Infiniti has started the production of its Q30 crossover car at its parent company, Nissan’s Sunderland UK plant.
The Q30 is the brands first vehicle to be manufactured in Europe, which is a strategic move by the company to accelerate its growth plan.
The newly constructed facility was built with a £250m investment.
It covers 25,000m2 at the Sunderland plant and it includes an automated body shop, and 134 new robots with laser-welding precision to build highly rigid bodyshell.
The Q30 is a crossover vehicle which is similar to Mercedes GLA and features 2.0-liter four-cylinder which produces up to 208 hp.
Infiniti decided to build the Q30 in the UK after it observed that the workforce in Sunderland plant had the quality standards required to meet the brand's demand.
The luxury automaker is also training 4,000 staff to meet the requirements and expectations of Infiniti customers.
Former Sunderland plant head Trevor Mann, who is currently working as chief performance officer of Nissan Motors in Japan has been called back to look after the launch of the Q30 active compact.
Mann said: "Today we are beginning an exciting new chapter in the Infiniti story, and I can't think of a better place to start than here at Nissan's Sunderland plant.
"Over its 30 year history, Sunderland has grown into the UK's largest automotive plant.
"To prepare for Q30 production, we invested 250-million pounds here in the UK.
"This is creating more than 1,000 new jobs in the UK automotive industry. Q30 production is further strengthening our premium vehicle manufacturing capability in Sunderland, and exports to global markets such as China and North America signal the next phase in the expansion of Infiniti and a new chapter for our UK plant."
Image: Infiniti Q30 production in Nissan's Sunderland plant. Photo: courtesy of Infiniti.
