Infiniti apparently has high hopes for its upcoming JX crossover. According to a report from
WardsAuto, the Japanese automaker predicts the three-row crossover will be its second-best seller, behind only the G sedan and coupe range in sales volume. Infiniti also believes the JX will raise sales above 2011 levels when it goes on sale this spring.
"It will become our second-best-seller this year, right behind [the] G [lineup]," Infiniti's North American vice president Ben Poore said to WardsAuto in an interview.
Infiniti isn't publishing sales targets for the JX, but the fact that combined sales for the G sedan and coupe totaled 58,246 in 2011 paints a pretty good picture of where the brand is aiming. The second-best-selling vehicle for Infiniti in 2011 was the recently-introduced QX SUV at 13,428 units sold. Other models fell pretty short of that number, with the smaller FX and EX CUVs -- which Poore calls more "niche" than the "mainstream" JX -- each selling fewer than 10,000 units in 2011.
Infiniti is optimistic about the JX's chances of success, with Poore saying it's priced "at the heart of the segment, where the growth is." That market is also where some of the heaviest competition is. But Poore says the JX is "right on top, if not a better value than, the Acura MDX... and it's right on top of the [Lexus] RX as well." Poore notes that the MDX and RX are the best sellers for Acura and Lexus, respectively, and that they make up 30 to 40 percent of each brand's annual sales. "We want volume on this product," Poore said. The JX will start at $41,400, including destination, when it goes on sale this March as a 2013 model. The 2012 Acura MDX starts at $43,815, while the Lexus RX starts at $39,950.