What few complaints reviewers have center on the Infiniti QX56's steering, with some reviewers complaining that it feels numb. If complaints about the QX56's steering are a deal breaker for you, check out the Land Rover Range Rover or the Land Rover Range Rover Sport. Both cost more than the Infiniti QX56 (in the case of the Range Rover, about $22,000 more) but turn in performance that reviewers say is hard to top.
You could say the Infiniti QX56 has a nationality crisis. Then in 2005, Nissan built a factory in Mississippi, and pasted the QX56 nameplate on the plant’s new big bruiser of an SUV, adding some down-home Americana to its image.
The Infiniti QX56 has been de-Dixied and is moving back to Japan, while Nissan figures out what to do with its slow-selling cousins, the Nissan Titan pickup and Armada SUV. There’s a discernible Infiniti umami to be tasted here, a fifth sense missing entirely from the old QX. Since it sits at the low end of the luxury-ute range, we’re even willing to look at the 2011 QX56 base price of $56,700 for the two-wheel-drive model as a relative bargain. If you’re fond of football-build brutes and know how much a Nakashima table goes for retail, you’ll adore the QX56.
The 2011 Infiniti QX56's luxurious interior, composed ride quality, and capability for the money make it a serious competitor among $60,000-plus SUVs … if you can accept its controversial styling.
From chassis to roof, the 2011 Infiniti QX56 is significantly different from the 2010. Nothing inside the QX gives the impression that underneath lies a trucklike chassis capable of towing 8,500 pounds.
The QX has room for seven occupants with the standard captain's chairs, or eight with a Split Bench Seat Package for the second row, which is a no-cost option. Conversely, the Infiniti QX56 feels just as big on the inside as its gargantuan exterior advertises, with 152 cubic feet of passenger volume; the Q7 has 133 cubic feet.
Many people have openly expressed disgust with the QX's looks. For a massive SUV, the Infiniti QX56 is a surprising performer.
The Infiniti QX56's EPA-estimated mileage is expectedly low, at 14/20 mpg city/highway with rear- or all-wheel drive, but that is an improvement over the 2010 QX's 12/18 mpg with rear-wheel drive and 12/17 mpg with all-wheel drive. Despite being built on truck architecture, the QX's ride isn't trucklike at all.
For $2,850, the Technology Package makes the QX as idiot-proof as possible. The tech package adds adaptive cruise control, a blind spot warning system, a lane departure warning system, brake assist and an adaptive front lighting system.
For the towing crowd, the QX's maximum towing capacity is 8,500 pounds with both front- and all-wheel drive. The Q7 can tow a maximum of 6,600 pounds, and the GX 460 can tow 6,500 pounds.
Standard safety features include front and side-impact airbags, side-curtain airbags for all three rows, an electronic stability system and active front head restraints. To see how well child-safety seats fit into the Infiniti QX56,
