Infiniti Q60 Makes Automotive History in Cuba
The newest Youtube video from Infiniti shows exactly how different Cuba is these days.
It’s open to US travel, Fidel Castro has passed away, and the droves of old American cars roaming the island’s streets are going to get modern company. The first US-spec model to land there? The Infiniti Q60, the first new car to appear in Cuba since the late 1950s.
In the video, a red Q60 3.0t is accompanied by the automaker’s executive design director, Alfonso Albaisa. As the son of Cuban parents, he grew up listening to stories about their homeland and looking at pictures of it, but never went there. Until now.
He takes the curvaceous coupe on a tour of Havana, where it’s well received by curious passersby. Footage of the city’s abundant foot traffic rolls as Albaisa goes on about how human beings have long been impatient with the speed of their feet, which caused them to use horses and eventually cars as transportation. It’s a fitting monologue considering the top-of-the-line Q60, the Red Sport 400, has 400 horsepower and available all-wheel drive. Impatience may not have its virtues, but it certainly seems to have its rewards.
Upon visiting his late great-uncle Max Borge’s house and looking at the stairway up to the architect’s former bedroom, Albaisa comes to a realization. The railing for the stairs is formed by the combination of an elongated sine curve on top and a chain of circles below. Albaisa sees it as an artistic pairing of form and function.
The same can be said of the Q60, a collection of muscular bulges and dramatic curves assembled around a cockpit designed to coddle the driver in luxury and connect them to ample amounts of turbocharged power. It’s also a rolling metal sculpture that serves as a reminder of what vehicle manufacturers are capable of achieving these days. We have a feeling Cuba will be getting a lot more reminders from Infiniti and other automakers in the coming years.
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