Nissan and Porsche have a bit of a history of taunting each other and engaging in one-upmanship. After all, who can forget all the hoopla made about the claimed Nurburgring lap time of the GT-R?.
We’ve got a feeling things could again get a tad fiery as Nissan’s upmarket Infiniti brand has just released a video clip in which its M35h smokes a Porsche Panamera S Hybrid in a head-to-head drag race, and the former goes on to claim its offering is the world’s fastest full-hybrid sedan.
Teased online last week, the full 90-second spot opens on the 2012 Porsche Panamera S Hybrid, which is left trailing in the wheeltracks of the 2012 Infiniti M Hybrid, “affirming the thrill of the luxury environmentally-friendly vehicle”.
“‘The Duel’ is an exciting way to remind everyone that the Infiniti M Hybrid is the world’s fastest accelerating full-hybrid with 360 horsepower (269kW) and 32 miles per gallon (7.3L/100km),” said Infiniti Americas vice president Ben Poore.
The company says inspiration for the video originated when the M Hybrid made it into the Guinness World Records as the world’s fastest accelerating full-hybrid car last year. At the time, the petrol-electric luxury performance sedan covered the standing quarter mile (400m) in 13.9031 seconds (average of all runs).
As for the head-to-head match with the Panamera, Infiniti says it secured AMCI Testing, a third-party testing firm, to substantiate the speed of both vehicles and certified that the Infiniti M Hybrid actually was faster in its tests, covering the quarter mile faster in 13.41 seconds and accelerating from 0-160km/h in 11.54 seconds.
Meanwhile, testing by America’s Motor Trend magazine has yielded a 5.1sec 0-60mph (0-96km/h) split, so the Infiniti is clearly no sluggard.
As for fuel economy figures, the EPA estimates the M35h consumes 8.7L/100km in the city and 7.3L/100km on the highway, for a combined rating of 8.1L/100km.
The Porsche Panamera S Hybrid is rated at 10.7L/100km in the city and 7.8L/100km on the highway for an overall consumption figure of 9.4L/100km.
So, at this stage, it appears bragging rights are well and truly with Infiniti. But we’re quite sure we haven’t heard the end of this yet…
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