Seven minutes. That’s all the time we’ve been allotted behind the wheel of the 2012 Infiniti M35 Hybrid at Nissan’s Oppama proving ground just outside of Yokosuka City, Japan. The near-production spec car we’ve come all this way to spend a paltry 420 seconds driving is a hugely significant vehicle for Nissan’s luxury arm, as it’s the manifestation of some six years of development, millions of testing miles, and billions of yen invested.
The M35 Hybrid is Infiniti’s first vehicle powered by Nissan’s all-new, in-house-designed, full parallel hybrid powertrain, which comprises a 3.5-liter V-6 engine working in conjunction with a single electric motor and two clutches. Nissan will initially launch the new system in its Japan-market Fuga sedan this fall. We’ll get it next spring at a price set somewhere between the M37x all-wheel drive ($49,275) and base M56 ($58,425), which is in the neighborhood of its main bogey — the Lexus GS 450h ($58,325). Not surprisingly, it will also be Infiniti’s cleanest ride ever.
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