Those "in the know" about coherent, individualistic, ahead-of-its-time automotive design are pointing to the Infiniti brand these days.

The company, which once produced cars that looked a lot like Nissans and lacked much of a sense of self, now is producing vehicles that look like nothing else on the road.

Infiniti also has had its share of watershed designs, especially the Infiniti FX35 and FX45. Those two crossovers had an aggressive, almost terrifying look that got them the nickname "The Bionic Tiger."

The car has a look marked by huge tires, muscular, high-waisted profiles and raw, visceral grilles. Now, many carmakers are introducing designs that obviously are influenced by the roofline, open wheels and hunkered-down profile of the FX.

Where is the company headed next with its design? We talked with Shiro Nakamura, the Japan-based senior vice president for the Nissan design division, and Mark Igo, vice president and general manager of Nissan's Infiniti division, based in Nashville, Tenn.:

Q: There was a point where Infiniti designs seemed to be little different from Nissan, except perhaps for slightly different trim, grilles, etc. Then something happened. What was it?

Shiro: Before, we had a mixture of Nissan and Infiniti, and there was not enough clear direction for both brands. After the Nissan revival plan was completed, we decided to give a totally different character to both Nissan and Infiniti. Now we've taken two different brands and given them their own identify. We were not happy with the way it was before.

Q: What are the key themes and design elements or words that are used to provide the design foundation for all Infiniti models?

Shiro: All Infinitis are a mixture of strength and grace, with a strong blend of performance and design -- and our designs must express performance. Our all-new FX is, for instance, a very powerful design, but at the same time it expresses elegance.

For us, Infinitis must have very good proportions because we are in the luxury car segment, and authenticity is important. For luxury cars, that comes from good proportions, large tires, longer hood and so forth. Good styling on top of bad proportions doesn't work.

Mark: For one thing, the front of all our vehicles have a family feel to them. It can be seen in how the headlights are married to the sheet metal, for instance. You can see the heritage in our vehicles.

Q: What are the influences and elements Infiniti uses in creating their designs?

Shiro: We design our products by looking at elements in nature -- the powerfulness and elegance of a wave of water, for instance. Our FX, EX, and G35 are all based on that kind of expression drawn from nature. Also, there are always some strong hints of Japanese expression of elegance in Infinitis. Our G35 and G37 use Japanese wallpaper as one of our interior elements, for instance. This and other elements give our cars a strong Japanese DNA. It's also, as I said, how we look at nature. Ours are simple, natural, human-centric designs.

Q: Which models would you identify as having the strongest, purest expression of that Infiniti design as you've expressed it? And which model is Infiniti's icon?

Shiro: I think it's all of our cars, but I will say that it started with the previous generation of the FX and the previous generation G35 Coupe. It's now being continued by the new FX and our G37 Coupe. But I think you'll really see more of this in our next generation of the M (M35 and M45) series as well as a number of other product lines we have planned.

In terms of our icon, I would say that our FX is definitely Infiniti's icon.

Mark: When you see an Infiniti FX coming down the road, you know you are witnessing something that's very different. At the time that it was introduced, it was extremely aggressive about making a statement. We always said it was polarizing. You either love it or hate it, but that's exactly what you want.

Q: For most car companies, their designs reflect their ideas and statements about their buyers. What makes the Infiniti buyer different from other luxury car buyers? Shiro: They are looking for something of their lives in their cars. Our buyers know their own minds, and they follow their own minds. They are very creative, they enjoy life and they don't want to compromise. They enjoy and appreciate design and prefer more artistic expression in their cars.

Mark: We see people who are probably a little more comfortable making a statement in terms of how they look and present themselves.

We also have among our owners more entrepreneurs as opposed to people from the corporate world, for instance. ... They want the full package -- performance, luxury and styling. They are also more apt to be proud of putting their Infiniti in the driveway and explaining to others why they have this particular car instead of what everybody else has.

Q: Will Infiniti's designs in the future be more revolutionary or evolutionary in your mind?

Shiro: I think luxury cars must have some continuity, and so I would say evolution is important at Infiniti. We don't change too much. We must have a reasonable evolution of our design. We are still young, you know, as a luxury brand, and in the next several years we want to maintain our direction as we have it today. We don't want to change our strategy of what design is to us. Our design already is quite distinctive and bold, and we want to enhance that boldness and distinction in the future.

Mark: In terms of where we're headed, we will keep looking for niches, but what's important to us is how sustainable that niche will be. You don't want to get into something that's here today and gone tomorrow.

This is one in an occasional series of question-and-answer sessions with automotive design executives.