Power, efficiency, luxury--you can have it all, and the entry price is just $53,700. That's the price of the 2012 Infiniti M35 Hybrid, announced today ahead of the start of retail sales March 16.

Infiniti bills the M Hybrid as the only car in America to offer 350 horsepower in combination with a 30-plus highway mpg rating, and it looks secure in that title for the present. Only Porsche's brand-new Panamera S Hybrid looks poised to challenge it in the near future, and it costs about $40,000 more than the M.

Competition from Lexus' GS450h hybrid, which is $5,000 dearer, 10 horsepower weaker, and considerably less attractive to our eyes, should post little threat to the Infiniti--especially since the GS hybrid scores just 22/25 mpg according to the EPA.

We'll have to get behind the wheel of one before we can render final judgment on the car's capabilities in the real world, but considering TheCarConnection's 8.8/10 overall rating and strong scores in features, styling, and performance, we're expecting good things.