Stretched compact executive sedans may be non-existent in most regions, but in China they are big business, appealing to those who want acres of legroom but don't want to shell out for something like a Mercedes-Benz S-Class. With the Audi A4 L, Volvo S60L and LWB versions of the BMW 3 Series and Mercedes-Benz C-Class already in the fray, the Japanese have now joined in with this – the Infiniti Q50L.

The wheelbase has been lengthened to 2,898 mm, 48 mm longer the Q50. This is a smaller increase than the A4 L (60 mm), S60L (80 mm), LWB C-Class (80 mm) and LWB 3 Series (110 mm), but the regular Q50 already had the longest wheelbase in the segment, so the Q50L's actually beats that of the A4 L and S60L.

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Q50L models are powered exclusively by the base 211 PS/350 Nm 2.0 litre turbocharged inline-four mated to a seven-speed automatic transmission with Adaptive Shift Control (ASC) both derived from Mercedes-Benz. The 0-100 km/h sprint is done in 7.8 seconds, 0.6 seconds slower than the regular Q50, while top speed (245 km/h) and fuel consumption (7.4 litres per 100 km) remain unchanged.

Built at Dongfeng's plant in Xiangyang, Hubei, prices for the Q50L will start at 279,000 yuan (RM152,o00), and five trim levels will be available – Comfort, Elegance, Sport, Luxury and Sport Luxury. Sport and Sport Luxury models are equivalent to the Q50S we also get over here, with more aggressive bumpers, larger 19-inch wheels (as opposed to the regular 17-inchers) and steering wheel paddle shifters.