INFINITI has craved an impressive niche for itself in the U.S. luxury car market. That in and of itself was an accomplishment for parent company Nissan, which was not previously known to Americans as a luxury brand. But could anyone have guessed the extent to which INFINITI would be a game-changing innovator when it comes to engine technology?
Whether anyone could have guessed or not, that’s exactly what has happened with the development of the VC-T engine – a development that will be introduced on 2017 model year cars. VC-T, or Variable Compression works by varying the compression ratio continuously as needed. The system uses two pairs of connecting rods with a multi-link. The position of the multi-link is changed by a control arm. Essentially, this varies the pistons’ height. In effect, it changes how much gas is compressed. The piston height varies by 5 mm, causing the compression to vary from an 8:1 ratio to a 14:1 ratio.
The new technology will first be shown to the world during an auto show in Paris in October 2016.
For those who aren’t gear heads, the long and short of it is that your INFINITI equipped with a VC-T engine will be able to optimize your performance and fuel economy. In fact, the new engines will improve fuel efficiency by 27 percent when compared to the conventional engines in the 2016 and earlier models. Improvement in fuel efficiency will be realized both with vehicles using port injection and direct injection fuel systems. The improved fuel efficiency is comparable to that of diesel engines. The VC-T is expected to replace a significant portion of INFINITI’s diesel engine production. The cost of producing the innovative new engines is significantly lower than producing diesel engines – potentially leading to better profit margins for INFINITI and lower sticker prices for INFINITI buyers.
Other benefits of the VC-T engine include reduced vibration and reduced noise. An inline four-cylinder engine will be able to provide similar noise and vibration to previous V6 engines. For now, the four cylinder engine is the only one available in VC-T. Look for that to change in coming years.
The first INFINITI to receive the new VC-T engine will be the 2017 INFINITI QX50. This will be paired with the CVT transmission. The CVT transmission is another INFINITI innovation that offers a continuous transmission rather than gear ratios that shift periodically. Like the VC-T engine, the CVT transmission improves fuel efficiency. It also provides a smoother ride by eliminating jarring transmission shifts when accelerating or decelerating.
While INFINITI is introducing the CV-T engine technology, you can also look for it to trickle down, eventually being used in the Nissan line of vehicles. Will the new engine replace conventional engines? Not entirely, at least not at first. For now, INFINITI will continue to offer conventional V6 options and performance packages.
The degree to which the new technology will replace conventional engines remains to be seen, of course. As INFINITI (and, by extension, Nissan) begins to apply the technology to larger engines, it’s entirely possible that it could have a game-changing impact on the auto industry. Undoubtedly, its impact will be felt right from the 2017 model year as people are increasingly looking for better fuel efficiency and greener engine options.
Drivers are encouraged to come test drive the 2017 INFINITI QX50 when it arrives in dealerships later this year to see just how much difference the VC-T engine can make in the quality of the ride and fuel economy and to get further information regarding when the VC-T engines will likely be available in their favorite INFINITI model.
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