Audi, Infiniti, James Bond, and Q

This is Ben Whishaw, the brand new Q in the James Bond franchise (in Skyfall):

For others, this is a Q, an Audi Q5, to be precise, a compact SUV:

Here is its big brother, the Audi Q7:

This is Johan de Nysschen, who became head of Infiniti this past July:

Mr. de Nysschen’s previous job had been heading Audi in the U.S.

Which brings us to this: the Q strategy.

No, this is not about exploding pens or cars with ejector seats.

Rather, Infiniti has decided to jettison other letters in the alphabet, save X, for the naming scheme for its vehicles.

This, for example, is the Q60, formerly known as the G:

This is the QX70, which used to be the FX:

This is the QX80, which used to be. . .the QX:

Said Mr. de Nysschen: "Over the past few months, we have talked at length with our retailers, our customers, and our business partners about our brand. The need for a new identity and direction to promote consumer familiarity with our model range as we expand the portfolio became evident. To achieve this, we clearly needed a simple and consistent nomenclature framework. After exhaustive research and evaluation, we concluded that 'Q' captured the inspiration within the next generation of Infiniti models, as well as emphasizing our performance credentials while harking back to our heritage with the Q45 – Infiniti's first iconic flagship product in 1989."

We’re expecting a bit of a battle between the two over Q, wouldn’t you?