2026 Infiniti QX80 Sport Up Close: Subtle Style
Love the big Infiniti QX80 three-row SUV but wish it had a bit more verve? A bit more ‘tude? Lucky you! Infiniti’s bringing back the “S” for the 2026 model year with the new QX80 Sport, adding a smidge more style and edge to the full-size SUV.
Related: How Much Is the 2026 Infiniti QX80?
As Lovely and Luxe as the Sensory
Don’t expect to achieve any additional sport with your Sport, though. Since this is best thought of as an appearance and style trim, the Sport is mechanically unchanged when compared to the Sensory trim it replaces in the lineup. It gets the same 450-horsepower, twin-turbocharged 3.5-liter V-6 engine with 516 pounds-feet of torque, routed to all four wheels through a nine-speed automatic transmission and four-wheel-drive system. Similarly untouched are the adaptive air suspension, brakes, tires and drive modes.
Yes, this is purely an appearance and equipment package despite the modestly evocative name. Look for the main differences in the Sport-exclusive 22-inch wheels, slightly reworked grille, darkened exterior chrome trim, “S” badging, and an exclusive Dusk Blue interior color scheme. In person, it’s exactly as subtle as you’d expect, with the biggest standouts being those big ol’ multispoke wheels and the silver “S” badge on the rear liftgate.
Everything else is mostly where you left it on the Sensory grade, including semi-aniline leather upholstery, heated and ventilated first- and second-row seats, biometric cooling, a 24-speaker Klipsch sound system and massaging first-row seats. It’s generally as lovely and luxe as we experienced on the prior trim level, only dusky.
I do wish the new Sport was Infiniti’s translation of the also-new Nissan Armada NISMO, however. (C’mon, were you really looking to make a back-roads bruiser out of your million-billion pound QX80?) Darkened chrome and deep-blue leather looks far classier than what’s on the garish NISMO, and if I was building my own QX80, I’d have a hard time staying away from the Sport configuration.
Well, given the 2026 Infiniti QX80 Sport’s $104,140 starting price (including $2,190 destination charge), maybe I could forgo its stealthy style for something a bit more … Sportless.
Read More About the Infiniti QX80:
- 2025 Infiniti QX80 Review: Good Tidings
- Which 3-Row SUVs Offer Captain’s Chairs?
- Buy This, Not That: Why We Prefer the Latest Mainstream-Brand Big SUVs
- 19 Vehicles Earn IIHS Top Safety Pick Awards
- Is the 2025 Infiniti QX80 a Good 3-Row SUV? 5 Pros, 2 Cons
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