2023 Infiniti QX80 is powerful and posh

Infiniti’s QX80 is an immense SUV with the body-on-frame construction used for trucks, a gross vehicle weight up to 7,500 pounds, towing capacity up to 8,500 pounds, and a monster V8 engine capable of handling the tonnage without complaint.

The above description could apply to a municipal garbage truck, but the QX80 also happens to have a fabulous interior that is luxurious, spacious, and built to last.

There are three trim levels of the 2023 QX80: Luxe, Premium Select, and Sensory. Rear-wheel drive is standard and four-wheel drive is optional, across the board.

Pricing starts at $74,395 for a rear-drive Luxe, and four-wheel drive is an extra $3,100 on all models.

Captain’s chairs are standard equipment, providing seven-passenger total seating. A three-seat split bench can be substituted for the captain’s chairs if eight-passenger seating is preferred.

I drove the QX80 Sensory 4WD model whose $89,145 base price was increased by $2,435 in optional items including illuminated kick plates and cargo scuff plate, roof rail cross bars, exterior welcome lighting, and premium paint.

QX80’s powerful 5.6-liter 400-horsepower V8 engine is paired with a seven-speed automatic transmission. There’s no shortage of acceleration but agility is lacking in this monolithic SUV. That’s a minor issue compared to its shameful EPA rating. With four-wheel drive it’s rated 13 mpg city, 19 mpg highway, and 15 mpg combined. With rear-wheel drive, the numbers are 14/20/16 mpg. Premium fuel is recommended. Oof.

Quiet and comfort prevail inside the QX80, whose total passenger volume of 152.2 cubic feet provides generous space for three rows of seats, and even the third row is usable for adults if they aren’t too oversized.

With third-row seats folded, cargo capacity is just shy of 50 cubic feet. The optional illuminated cargo scuff plate on my test vehicle looked great and was a big help during the chore of unloading 40- and 50-pound bags from the local feed store.

Infiniti’s intuitive 12.3-inch touchscreen infotainment system adds Amazon Alexa for 2023. A 13-speaker Bose Audio system is included on Luxe and Premium Select models, but the Sensory trim gets a transcendent 17-speaker Bose Performance series sound system. Sensory also adds dual 8-inch rear-seat entertainment screens with HDMI/USB ports.

2023 INFINITI QX80 4WD

Base price, including destination charge: $89,145

Price as driven: $89,885

Mary Lowry is a member of the Motor Press Guild and a member and past president of the Northwest Automotive Press Association. She lives in Snohomish County. Vehicles are provided by automotive manufacturers as a one-week loan for evaluation purposes only. Manufacturers do not control content of the reviews.