Infinti Q60 Black S due in 2020 with F1-matching hybrid tech
We have more evidence that the 500-horsepower Infiniti Q60 Project Black S concept unveiled at the 2017 Geneva auto show is on its way to production.
Tommaso Volpe, who heads motorsport and performance projects at the Japanese brand, revealed to Car Advice in an interview published Monday that the setup for a prototype had been finalized and that suppliers would be delivering necessary components within weeks.
He said final approval hasn't been given but if everything goes well production could start in 2020.
His comments come a year after another Infiniti exec said production had been given the green light.
Car Advice predicts that a version of the car more closely resembling a potential production version could be unveiled in October at the 2018 Paris auto show.
The Australian publication also reports that the car's proposed hybrid system features the same technology found in the current crop of Formula 1 cars. Infiniti is a technical partner of the Renault Formula 1 team, specifically in the area of energy recovery, and is keen to apply some of what it does in F1 in its road cars.
Just like in an F1 car, the production Q60 Project Black S is expected to benefit from a pair of motor-generators. One would be paired with the engine and used to recover wasted brake energy as well as help drive the wheels. The other would be integrated with a turbocharger and used to recover wasted exhaust energy as well as help spool the turbo's compressor at low revs.
At the time of the concept's reveal, Infiniti said one of the reasons for building the car was to gauge interest in a new performance division called Black S and utilizing F1-derived technology. Let's hope Infiniti doesn't chicken out this time like it did with the previous Q50 Eau Rouge.
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