Big night as purple haze hits Thames Valley

To the rich glow of purple lights and the mesmeric beat of Japanese drums, 200 guests hailed the UK arrival of the world’s newest luxury car company.

Twenty years after Infiniti first took on America, the brand’s first-ever right-hand drive performance models made their UK debut in the highly contemporary surroundings of the country’s first Infiniti Centre, on the outskirts of Reading.

The new building, on the A33 between the M4 and Reading town centre, was declared open by its managing director, Paul Atkinson, in front of guests, VIPs and local dignitaries including some of the most important and foresighted people in Britain: the UK’s first Infiniti owners.

The country’s speediest celebrity chef, James Martin, left no one in any doubt that this was an evening for real car enthusiasts by talking of his great passion in life. Not cakes, but cars.

James, known to millions for his appearances on TV’s Ready Steady Cook, Saturday Kitchen and Strictly Come Dancing, is almost as well known for his automotive obsession: he owns several supercars, has a racing licence and has driven a Formula One car.

No surprise, then, that James felt quite at home surrounded by so many like-minded enthusiasts, as well as so much thoroughbred machinery – nothing in the five-model Infiniti range for the UK has less than 320PS (316bhp).

All five models were on display for Infiniti Centre Reading’s big night, in front of the soaring opaque glass wall that is already becoming something of a landmark in the town, commercial capital of the Thames Valley.

Guests, including potential customers and those who had a hand in designing and building the Centre, were able to get to know the G range of Coupé, Saloon and Convertible as well as the sexiest crossovers ever to turn a wheel, the coupé-like EX and the SUV that thinks it’s a sports car, the FX. The range was so impressive that one of the guests could not wait for his car to be delivered next week, and requested to drive one of the showroom models home after the event.

Focus of attention for many was the FX50S which has a strong claim to be the sportiest, best-equipped and most advanced crossover that its money (£53,800) can buy. It has proven to be Infiniti’s most popular model in Europe.

The opening night also provided a big first test for the showroom which, with its unique lobby/gallery/lounge layout, impeccable style and comfortable furnishings, creates the atmosphere of a five-star hotel far more than a car dealership. The visitors’ verdict? As comfortable and as calming as it appears. It was a welcome endorsement for a brand that places so much store by traditional Japanese hospitality.

Traditional Japanese crafts were in evidence, too. Apart from the Taiko drummers and purple light show (purple is the imperial colour of Japan as well as Infiniti’s trademark hue) guests were treated to a display of Japanese calligraphy known as Shodo. Every Infiniti model has its own Shodo brush stroke art – and now a lot of the 200 guests can claim to have their names in Shodo, too.

It was an evening of cars, crafts, culture, a little bit of cooking and a lot of celebration that Infiniti is finally open for business in the UK.

One night in Reading, but the start of something…if not big, then certainly welcome for the free-thinkers who get what Infiniti is all about.

London, Birmingham and Glasgow are next to turn purple, in 2010.