Cadillac CEO Taunts Infiniti About Eau Rouge Cancellation

Infiniti Q50 Eau Rouge Concept (Credit: Infiniti )

The drama surrounding the possible cancellation of the Infiniti Q50 Eau Rouge continues. This time, Cadillac CEO Johan de Nysschen has fired off some shots of criticism at Infiniti, his former employer. Even better, de Nysschen did it with a Facebook post where he also accused Noboru Tateishi, the head of development for Infiniti, of being the “bottleneck” for green-lighting the production of the luxury sedan with the heart of Godzilla.

During his rant, de Nysschen claimed that he was the big driving force behind throwing the GT-R’s engine in a modified Infiniti Q50, which is why the Japanese luxury brand is supposedly now getting cold feet about the aggressive move, thanks to a culture de Nysschen says supports innovation in driver assistance technologies instead of driving enjoyment. In contrast, the Cadillac CEO says that engineers at Audi or Cadillac are guilty of going overboard on performance.

In the same post, de Nysschen also says the new Cadillac CTS-V “eats buzzy little German motors for breakfast.” Of course, his comments have caused a stir, but that’s what de Nysschen does. He’s an agitator that is in the process of dramatically shifting how Cadillac as a brand does business. Not everyone has been a fan of his decisions thus far, such as the move to New York City.

Of course, de Nysschen has quite a bit to brag about. The CTS-V packs the LT4 under its hood, which thunders out 640 horsepower. It’s the sort of thing that the BMW M5 and Mercedes-Benz E63 AMG have night terrors about. The car is also rumored to have a top speed of 200 mph. Still, Cadillac has a real fight on its hands as it must work hard to convince luxury car shoppers that it delivers not only more excitement than the Germans, but also superior quality.

Thanks to the holidays, Infiniti has been silent on the de Nysschen’s unfiltered comments. Perhaps this public flogging is just what is needed to ensure that the Eau Rouge does indeed see production. After all, a little bit of rivalry never hurt anyone.