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It may seem as though we’ve exhausted all the possibilities in discussing the various Infiniti SUV models – ah, but then a n ew model shows up early and demands evaluation. That’s what happened to me when a new Infiniti QX60 arrived for a week’s test driving from the Chicago press fleet.

Hmm, I thought. It wasn’t that long ago I wrote about a QX60. But that was a 2023, and the new, deep red Autograph model that graced my driveway was a 2024.

The QX60 slots in below the boxier QX80 and sits a bit taller than the sleeker QX50, and since the entire vehicle was built anew for 2022, its upgrades would seem subtle if they weren’t so worthy of dazzling the occupants. The quilted leather bucket seats house seven, if you put the third-row jumpsuit to work instead of folding it down for more storage space. Nice to have it there, if needed.

The 3.5-liter V6 engine under the hood turns out 295 horsepower and 270 foot-pounds of torque, more than enough to send the solidly planted QX60 on its way swiftly. If you step hard on the gas, it also rewards you with a throaty sound as it runs up through the nine speeds in the transmission. It still will deliver 25 miles per gallon or more on the highway, where we used it frequently during our week, including the steep hills of Duluth, and the curving stretches between construction sites on the North Shore Drive up next to Lake Superior. Infiniti models always prove they are the up-level brand of Nissan’s upscale outlet, in both sedans and SUVs, and while I really like the smaller QX50 with its variable-compression-ratio inline 4, the bigger V6 does an effortless job of running the all-wheel-drive and larger QX60 through any requirements.

The Autograph model is also the top of the QX60 line, cleverly named Pure, Luxe, Sensory, and Autograph, with upgrades in features as you go. With the Autograph, most of the options from the lesser models are included as standard, which is why the base price might seem steep, at $66,100, but the as-tested model only rises to $69,445 — for the premium paint, and the lighting package. The headlights are impressively bright and with a distinct cut-off, so you can spot those deer dashing out on their suicidal highway crossings, but also you have a chance to not blind the oncoming drivers.

The taillights, too, are LEDs, with a full-width band of red notifying others that your QX60 has some width to it, along with a distinctive “autograph,” to coin a phrase. The real trick part of the light package is something called the Radiant Grille Emblem, which is the usual distinctive Infiniti emblem, except that this one glows brightly in the night to further notify others an Infiniti is coming. And not just any Infiniti.

With all the safety and convenience features expected of an upper-class vehicle, the QX60 also never loses that Infiniti driving flair, which is why the brand is known as the “Japanese BMW” among appreciative driving enthusiasts.