Used 2023 INFINITI QX55

It’s not going to work for everyone, but the 2023 QX55 will work exceptionally well for those who get what this small luxury SUV is all about. This isn’t a vehicle for the school run, trips to flat-pack furniture stores, or for taking the whole brood on a road trip. Leave that stuff to the square SUVs.

Instead, the QX55 cuts a sharper dash with its sloping roof and vibrant color choices. It retains the elevated driving position of the Infiniti QX50, its sensible-shoes stablemate with which it shares a platform. And all-wheel drive is standard for tackling wintry conditions or just getting power to the ground.

Infiniti jettisoned some rear passenger space and cargo room in the pursuit of style. But what’s that saying about eggs and omelets?

The steer-by-wire system is discontinued in the 2023 QX55 SUV. Sad Face, but not really. It was only available in the top Sensory trim and although Infiniti worked on it to make it less numb, it still felt artificial and hardly worth the bother just to get a tight turning circle.

The turbocharged engine makes an enjoyable amount of muscle, more than the base units in the German competition. The only slight disappointment is the use of a continuously variable transmission (CVT). These don’t supply the quick responses of a counterpart with actual gears.

Active Trace Control is standard. It applies subtle braking to individual wheels to help the QX55 and its driver track through corners with precision.

Despite standard 20-inch wheels wearing run-flat tires, the ride quality is comfortable enough, yet decidedly on the sporty side. Active noise canceling plus acoustic glass for the front side windows do what they can to suppress road roar.

To optimize fuel economy, the standard all-wheel-drive system sends power to the front wheels most of the time. When conditions dictate, though, it can direct up to half the available drive to the rear wheels.

However, it seems the QX55 has not quite hit its mark. Engine power hasn’t resulted in class-leading performance. And sound-deadening hasn’t created a particularly tranquil cabin. Then again, the 2023 QX55 is priced keenly for a luxury compact SUV.

The large rear pillars hinder over-the-shoulder vision. But blind-spot monitoring and rear parking sensors are standard, addressing that little issue.

Real leather comes standard in the 2023 QX55 luxury SUV. The two lower trims have dark aluminum accents, while black-stained open-pore wood goes into the Sensory model. This uppermost trim also offers the option of red leather in place of the usual black or gray.

With so many vehicles adopting a driver information/infotainment touchscreen arrangement in a single unit, the QX55’s dashboard looks designed five years ago. It probably was, because the closely related QX50 launched for the 2019 model year.

Ironically, the Infiniti QX 55 also has two touchscreens, but they’re placed vertically instead of next to each other, and both sit in the center console. The 8-inch upper display handles navigation and shows the backup camera feed. The lower 7-inch screen deals with the sound system, phone integration, and temperature controls for the climate system and front seats.

Speaking of front seats, they’re comfortable, power-adjustable, and come with heating as standard. The rear seats split and fold in a 60/40 fashion. Rear passengers have 38.7 inches of legroom, which is as good as a typical midsize sedan, plus 36.9 inches of headroom. Admittedly, that’s where a midsize sedan would have the upper hand, but people don’t buy fastback luxury SUVs for this purpose.

Luggage space goes from 26.9 to 54.1 cubic feet. This is better than any German rival.

Taste is one thing, presence is another. The 2023 QX55 makes an undeniable visual impact, regardless of whether each beholder thinks it’s beautiful or not. At least it doesn’t do anything odd with its grille, and the standard wheel size is a substantial 20 inches.

A few small changes have taken place this year. The headlights of the Luxe trim come with a black inner trim. Infiniti fits the Essential and Sensory versions with self-leveling cube-design LED headlights, while steering-responsive adaptive front lighting is another new addition.

The side mirrors receive heating and will now power-fold automatically. The rear door handles gain a capacitive touch function to unlock, and they come with the same LED welcome lighting as the handles up front.

The Liquid Platinum paint choice is discontinued. There aren’t any silvery alternatives, but Graphite Shadow or Slate Gray might do the trick. The QX55 also offers Dynamic Sunstone Red for the top two trim levels.

WIRELESS APPLE CARPLAY
Luxury vehicles should make life more convenient. The 2023 QX55 SUV contributes to this by enabling Apple iPhone users to keep their devices in their purse or pocket, and integrating with the infotainment system without the aid of a cable. Android users aren’t quite as fortunate, but they didn’t buy an iPhone like the rest of the world. So what do they expect?

SLIDING/RECLINING REAR SEATS
By giving the 2023 QX55 SUV a sloped roof, Infiniti hasn’t ignored the needs of rear passengers altogether. Their seats can slide to achieve decent legroom. And if their heads are too close to the ceiling, the seatbacks can recline a little.

Luxe trim marks the entry level, but with a lot of standard equipment. New additions to this 2023 QX55 variant include perforated leather seating surfaces, 4-way power-adjustable lumbar for the driver’s seat, rear side airbags, intelligent cruise control with steering assist, blind-spot intervention, plus a USB-C port for rear passengers (joining a USB-A port).

The rest of the inventory are features like full LED headlights, moonroof, powered liftgate, rear parking sensors, keyless entry/ignition, heated/8-way power-adjustable front seats, leather-wrapped steering wheel, and dual-zone climate control.

The infotainment system comes with wireless Apple CarPlay/wired Android Auto smartphone integration, satellite radio, Wi-Fi, and dual touchscreens.

Among the safety features are forward collision warning with automatic emergency braking and pedestrian detection, blind-spot monitoring with rear cross-traffic alert, automatic backup braking, and lane-departure warning.

Adding more features to a 2023 QX55 SUV means going to a higher trim rather than perusing an options list. Exceptions include some minor things like splash guards and illuminated kick plates. Oddly, wireless phone charging isn’t available at all.

Essential trim comes with a heated/power-adjustable steering wheel, driver’s-side memory settings, heated/ventilated front seats, navigation, 16-speaker Bose audio system, rain-sensing wipers, tilt-down side mirrors, front parking sensors, and a 360-degree camera system.

This year’s new features for Essential trim include adaptive front lighting, self-leveling/cube-design LED headlights, and road sign recognition. The top Sensory trim gains 4-way power-adjustable lumbar support for the front passenger seat, and heated rear seats.

Other features in this priciest version include a head-up display, 3-zone automatic climate control, perforated semi-aniline leather seating surfaces, ambient LED cabin lighting, and hands-free liftgate operation.

It’s not quite the same old same old in the engine bay of the 2023 QX55. Yes, like a lot of vehicles, it has a turbocharged 2.0-liter 4-cylinder unit. But nothing outside of the Nissan/Infiniti camp has variable compression.

Fixed compression is the usual approach because making it variable requires some clever and involved engineering. The idea is to optimize fuel economy under light loads, yet still deliver plenty of punch when required.

Where reality meets the road, the 268 horsepower and 280 lb-ft of torque are entertainingly energetic, but the fuel gauge’s needle isn’t noticeably slow on its journey down to E. Premium gasoline is required.

An automatic transmission directs drive to all four wheels.

2.0-liter turbocharged inline-4
268 horsepower @ 5,600 rpm
280 lb-ft of torque @ 1,600-4,800 rpm
EPA city/highway fuel economy: 22/28 mpg