Australia: Infiniti tells you how many ‘German luxury cars’ live in your suburb…aims at Top 20 ranking by 2015
The Infiniti FX is predicted to be the brand’s best-seller in Australia
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After Opel (see my article on the launch of Opel in Australia here), it’s now Infiniti’s turn to launch in Australia with an advertising campaign openly targeting luxury brands Mercedes, BMW and Audi. And why would this deserve to feature on BSCB I hear you ask? Because Infiniti’s campaign, launched today, enables you to find out the number of German luxury cars currently in circulation in your own suburb… What if one day some brands used BSCB sales data in their campaign? 
Click on the picture to enlarge
Using data from the 2011 Australian Motor Vehicle Census, the online reskin of major news website The Sydney Morning Herald prompts viewers to type in the suburb they live in and displays the number of Mercedes, BMW and Audis in circulation in that specific suburb…to then establish Infiniti as “The new choice in performance luxury”.
Infiniti M
Infiniti Australia General Manager Kevin Snell says the brand’s long-term ambition is to overtake Lexus in Australia as the No.1 alternative to German brands Audi, BMW and Mercedes-Benz…This means Infiniti aims at selling over 7,000 cars annually by 2015, unlocking a spot in the Top 20 most popular brands in Australia by then…
See the entire article by clicking on ‘Read more’ below.
As is traditionally the case Infiniti Australia would not reveal its sales aspirations for the market but what is known is that Infiniti wants to be serious global luxury brand, with a 500,000 worldwide sales target for 2016. By today’s market this is about 10% share of the luxury segment. Infiniti launched in the whole of Europe in 2010-2011 and has been relatively discreet there to-date.
Kevin Snall says: “The first two or three years is around establishing the brand, building the customer experience, and get that right and by 2015 we’ll have a comprehensive range of new cars across all the segments.”
The Infiniti range in Australia is currently made up of the FX SUV and M sedan, with the G coupe and convertible coming in December.
The FX starts at AUD$83,900 (US$86,800) and will compete against the Audi Q7, BMW X5, Mercedes ML-Class and Lexus RX. In Europe, a lot of Infiniti’s communication on the FX was comparing it to the Porsche Cayenne, saying it delivers higher performance for a lower price. None of this (yet?) in Australia where the ‘luxury Germans’ and Lexus are in the line of fire.
The M sedan starts at AUD$85,900 (US$88,900), rivalling the Audi A6, BMW 5 Series, Jaguar XF, Lexus GS and Mercedes E-Class. Note the M sedan range include the world’s fastest mass-produced Hybrid (the M35h), and is priced higher than the Audi A6, BMW 5 Series and Lexus GS that each starts at AUD$77,900, as well as the Mercedes E-Class that kicks off at AUD$79,900…
The FX is anticipated to be Infiniti’s dominant model in Australia at least for the first year or so, with a rival for the BMW 3 Series and Mercedes C-Class – the G-series sedan – to become the second volume model from late 2013.
Source: www.caradvice.com.au
I remember 13 years ago when i bought my first Audi….nobody would even think that today Audi will aspire to be nº1 Worldwide in volume sales.. So with a good design; performance; general quality and marketing, everything can happen.
For exemple the infiniti G (the entry level model – 3.7 V6!!!) in USA is performing very well for years. And that particular model is a fiasco in Europe due to a lack of diesel engine. And everybody know that the top selling “luxury” models in Europe have small diesel engines.
Another thing, infiniti doesn´t have a entry level model like A1/A3; 1 series; A and B classes or even CT or IS. And selling cars for 30.000€ is different than selling for 60.000 €.
Remember that West European car market it´s very different from the rest of the world.
Best regards Bill
Please note: i`m European, but a live in Brazil and before in UAE.
@NismoBoy
According to seaa, one of the most successful Lexus in Greece is the RX450h.
It now costs 78.500 euros (as in its “Dynamic” version). Basic Infinity EX costs 61.700 euros and the Infinity FX GT 74.000 euros. Lexus CT is indeed a much affordable car, but Lexus was already successful before that, at least hear in Greece.
Of course Australian market is a different story and yes, Infinity may have quite a success over there. Oh…Russian market is a different story as well.
Bill why don´t you compare the prices between the entry level´s Lexus (CT/IS) and the Infiniti (G/EX) in Europe?LoL And another thing, compare the recent performance in Russia. Selling CT and IS (ordinary cars) is easy to get voulme sales!!
For my experience, i think Infiniti has a huge potencial….it has design; performance. Infiniti only needs to widenning is global footprint.
Lexus -vs- Infinity, Greece:
Brand 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 (8m)
Lexus 767 430 142 125 42
Infinity 12 34 9 3 1
Infinity is also a flop here in the UK, according to the SMMT figures only 342 were sold in the first eight months of 2012 compared to:- Lexus – 5526, Jaguar – 8177 with the German brands way ahead, Mercedes – 56783, BMW – 75265 and Audi – 79107
My neighborhood is full of German cars…LOL!!! Btw, in Greece while Lexus is doing OK, Infinity was the big flop of the decade.