Infiniti is dropping the aging QX70 — its oldest SUV design — for 2018 as the brand moves to update its SUV lineup.
The QX70 mid-size two-row SUV, formerly known as the FX before Infiniti renamed all of its models, first rolled out as a 2003 model and got its last major update in 2009. It was considered a bold, fashion-forward design when it first appeared. Infiniti confirmed its demise in a statement to and indicated there would be no immediate replacement.
In contrast, the QX80 Monograph Concept, a direction for a next generation of Infiniti's largest SUV, a truck-based three-row, was shown this spring in New York. And a concept for a new version of the smaller QX50 two-row SUV, which appeared as a 2008 model and had a similar design theme, was shown in Detroit in January. Infiniti confirmed a production version of the QX50 will go on sale soon.
"Infiniti is preparing for new and updated crossovers and sport utility vehicles, including the all-new QX50, which will arrive in our showrooms early next year," the company said. "As a result, there will not be a QX70 for the 2018 model year in the Americas."
Infiniti added, "The QX70 will indeed live on in the near future in other iconic Infiniti models."
The SUV news from Infiniti came as reports surfaced of possible cutbacks in cars at GM and Ford as car sales languish versus more profitable SUVs in an overall market that is down this year. Full-size sedans and subcompact cars have been among the hardest hit.
Reuters, citing sources familiar with GM's plans, reported that the company is considering killing up to five sedans and converting the Chevrolet Volt hybrid sedan to a crossover SUV configuration. Other GM cars said at risk include mostly large cars, including the Buick LaCrosse, Cadillac CT6, Cadillac XTS and Chevrolet Impala, plus the subcompact Chevrolet Sonic. Cadillac head Johan de Nysschen said, however, that you can take Caddy's flagship CT6 off that list, telling Jalopnik: "There is absolutely no plan, at all, to cancel the CT6."
Meanwhile, a Romanian site quoted Robert Stiller, a Ford small car manager in Europe, as saying that the new version of the Ford Fiesta subcompact, rolled out in Europe last fall, may not make it to the U.S.
"The previous model was a global Ford product, and with the new generation we are targeting only Europe, the Middle East and Africa," Stiller was quoted as saying. "In North America, especially in the U.S., China and Latin America, the demand for such cars is declining, and we are reacting accordingly." Stiller added that the smallest of Ford's global cars, there, will be the Focus.