Nissan to Introduce Infiniti Brand in Japan

Nissan Motor Co. is poised to debut its Infiniti luxury brand in Japan as early as this winter, according to The Nikkei, which cites no sources.

The Tokyo-based newspaper says the first of the Infiniti-branded models will be a redesigned version of the Nissan Skyline, a model sold elsewhere as the $36,700-$45,000 Infiniti Q50.

Nissan will sell the brand through existing dealers in Japan rather than set up a separate retail network. Whether more Infiniti models will be added there will depend upon sales growth, The Nikkei says.

Nissan has set a target of hiking annual Infiniti sales worldwide to 500,000 units more than twice the current volume within three years. Nissan shelved an earlier plan to add the luxury brand in Japan primarily because of the global economic crisis.