Infiniti Project Black S prototype evolves

Luxury car brand Infiniti has been without a hero car for, well, since the brand's inception in 1989.

But that could be set to change as the Nissan-owned Japanese company is now one step closer to a BMW M4 and Audi RS5 competitor, the Infiniti Project Black S prototype making a significant step towards production-readiness.

With two working prototypes currently undergoing testing, Infiniti has confirmed it will make a decision on whether to build and sell the car – or axe it completely – before the end of 2019.

Given no decision has been made on the car's future, and the rumoured high cost of the advanced 400kW-plus F1-derived powertrain, it is possible the company is grappling with the idea of a very, very expensive machine.

With years of development work already undertaken, Infiniti is in a challenging situation as it needs a halo car more than the Spice Girls need a world tour to pay their tax bills.

The new dual-hybrid V6 powertrain, which was co-developed between Infiniti and the Renault F1 team, has successfully completed its 'track-focused' development according to the car-maker, which was signed off by Renault F1 driver Nico Hulkenberg at the Salzburgring track in Austria.

Based on the 298kW/475Nm twin-turbo 3.0-litre V6 found in the Infiniti Q60 Redsport ($84,900), the Project Black S adds a pair of heat-energy harvesting systems, or motor generator unit – heat (MGU-H), which the company says will 'develop electricity under acceleration'.

This is augmented by a kinetic harvesting motor generator unit (MGU-K) that scavenges energy from braking. With a bit of clever energy management, the Infiniti Black S stores energy and can dish out whenever required, in the form of instant turbo spooling to create lag-free acceleration.

Suffice to say the hybrid system is highly complex but is claimed to deliver sustained and sustainable hybrid performance 'lap after lap' according to the official press statement.

Peak power for the prototype rear-drive coupe is currently 418kW or 563hp – a 40 per cent hike on the Infiniti Q60 Red Sport donor car.

Cyril Abiteboul, managing director of the Renault F1 Team, said: "The Black S project now gives us a rare opportunity for the direct transfer of genuine F1-honed technology back into a road car.

"Making this leap, from circuit to road, is something we are incredibly excited to be involved in."

But it doesn’t take a rocket scientist to understand the cost of deploying F1 tech in production cars, as evidenced by the $5 million AMG ONE hypercar whose rollout has been delayed two years due to its complexity.

The tone of Infiniti's deputy chairman, Mike Colleran, was more cautious when talking about production realities for the new Q60 Black S.

"There is still work to be done," he said.

"Now we have two completed prototypes we will fully evaluate the production potential of Project Black S.

"It is still too early to predict the outcome as we need a solid business case, but the latest rounds of testing have proved its unique performance and underlines our pursuit of electrified performance."

The Japanese car-maker had a red-hot go at building an AMG C63-killer with the Infiniti G50 Eau Rouge prototype (418kW/600Nm) back in 2014, a Nissan GT-R-powered AWD weapon.

The hard-core G50 Eau Rouge was later axed in 2015.