Shuff's General Chat Thread ... #73 - Talk about anything and everything...  

Infiniti claims to have revolutionised the engine
Wheels Magazine

Variable compression technology highlighted as the next big step in engine development.

NISSAN’S luxury arm Infiniti claims to have invented a revolutionary new petrol engine that consumes 27 percent less fuel yet can match the performance outputs of engines up to 50 percent larger.

Infiniti says this new Variable Compression Turbo (VC-T) engine technology is "a revolution in internal combustion engines" as significant as "liquid cooling, fuel injection and turbocharging.

The arrival of variable compression ratio technology will establish new benchmarks".

The engine's ability to deliver significant fuel use savings and increased performance lies in its capacity to vary its compression ratio - the ratio at which fuel is mixed with air inside the cylinder.

A 2.0-litre, turbocharged four-cylinder petrol VC-T engine will be shown at the Paris Auto show in September. Infiniti claims this engine produces 200kW and 390Nm - equivalent to a conventional 3.0-litre V6, says Infiniti engineer Shinichi Kiga.

The VC-T engine is able to vary the amount of compression the air-to-fuel mixture undergoes between 8:1 and 14:1.

A lower compression ratio is better for performance, while a higher ratio improves fuel efficiency.

Infiniti says the key to unlocking variable compression capabilities in a conventional internal combustion engine is a multi-link that was actually invented 20 years ago.

It took until now for Infiniti's engineers to make it fit for production.

VC-T is not an easy system to put into words. Schematics below shown to Wheels at Infiniti's R&D centre in Atsugi near Tokyo in July show a harmonic drive and actuator connected to the multi-link, which in turn influences the piston's relative position inside the cylinder, and therefore the compression ratio.

Infiniti says the engine "makes an intelligent choice between performance and efficiency in all [driving] conditions", and can move "seamlessly between any compression ratio between 8:1 and 14:1".

Infiniti CEO Roland Krueger says the VC-T engine will be exclusive to Infiniti - and not shared with its Nissan or Renault alliance partners - initially, but he wouldn't put a timeframe on that exclusivity.

"We are utilising this engine first in Infiniti. We will also make sure it is marketed together with a new vehicle, an Infiniti. We will position this definitely as one of the leaders in the technology area.

That is our goal, and our goal as a company."

The forthcoming Infiniti QX50 mid-size SUV is expected to be the first vehicle to market with this technology, and even though it's not due for launch until 2018, Infiniti is confident no other carmaker will beat it to market.

"Other manufacturers have taken the ‘VCR’ challenge, though Infiniti will be the first to bring the variable compression ratio engine to market from 2018," it said.

Woolworths shuts Masters, sells the property, and now 7700 jobs are on the line

Woolworths will gain about $1.5 billion from exiting its home improvement division, including selling the property of the troubled Masters chain.

The company says it will work hard to find Masters employees jobs within the group or will pay full redundancy. There are 7,700 staff in the home improvement businesses

The retailers says Masters will cease trading by December 11.

A consortium of Aurrum Group, Spotlight Group and Chemist Warehouse will buy the Masters properties, including 40 freehold trading sites, 21 freehold development sites and 21 leasehold sites.

Home Consortium plans to repurpose the former Masters sites into multi‐tenant large format centres

What’s on the shelves at Masters will be sold, bringing in about $500 million.

The Masters business has been losing about $200 million a year, unlike main competitor Bunnings which is a major contributor to profits at its owner Wesfarmers.

In February, Woolworths posted a loss of $972.7 million for the first half of the financial year, its first for more than 20 years, driven by a massive $1.9 billion write down in the value of the Masters business.

Woolworths shares went into a trading halt today ahead of an announcement about the process to dispose of its troubled hardware business.

The retailer then announced the sale of Home Timber & Hardware Group to Metcash for $165 million.

A third of the Masters business is held by Lowe’s, a US retailer. Woolworths will need to buy Lowe’s share, at a price to be determined, before disposing of what’s left of Masters.

After estimated wind‐down costs, Woolworths expects to get $500 million following Lowe’s consent to the Home Consortium transaction.

“When I was appointed CEO in February, I said exiting the Home Improvement business was a top priority,” says Woolworths CEO Brad Banducci.

“Today’s announcement delivers on that commitment. These agreements are the result of an intensive seven month process of reviewing all possible options for exit and extensive negotiations. This decision means management can focus on driving the momentum in our core businesses.

“Since the sale process began, our 7,700 staff in the Home Improvement businesses have worked extremely hard in an uncertain environment and we sincerely thank them for their commitment.”

The company is due to announce full year results tomorrow.

Mazda RX-9 locked in
August 24, 2016

But sub-1300kg, 300kW rear-drive rotary coupe won't be released until 2020

Mazda’s board of directors has formally approved the design, engineering and production of the company’s long-awaited successor to the RX-7 and RX-8 rotary coupes, according to Japan’s Holiday Auto magazine which has also produced these new renderings.

Expected to be called the RX-9 — a trademark Mazda has registered — the born-again performance coupe is not due on sale globally until January 2020, when it will be the centrepiece of Mazda’s centenary celebrations.

Before then, the Mazda is likely to reveal a prototype version at the 2017 Tokyo motor show to mark the 50th anniversary of its first rotary model, before the final production model debuts at the 2019 Tokyo show.

Apart from producing these three new renderings — which show a range of updates from the 2020 RX-VISION concept revealed last October, including a sharper body-side surfacing and a more chiselled front-end design – Holiday Auto has reported a number of key new details.

As previewed by the SKYACTIV-R concept engine, Mazda’s next-generation rotary engine will grow to 1.6 litres by employing twin 800cc rotors displacing 1.6 litres, and for the first time will incorporate turbocharging and, potentially, diesel-style HCCI compression ignition.

Like us, Holiday Auto believes it will produce around 300kW, but the Japanese magazine says the RX-9 has a target weight of less than 1300kg, which will give it a formidable power-to-weight ratio.

Combined with the improved overall weight balance wrought by a rear transaxle, the low-slung rear-drive rotary coupe – which will be shorter than the rangy RX-VISION concept – should offer outstanding dynamics.

Fitted with a leather-lined interior and all of Mazda’s latest safety and convenience technologies, Holiday Auto says the two-seat Mazda sportster will be priced under eight million yen (about $A100,000).

Been lurking under the bleachers and I think
This should be called alpharx7 movie guide
🎥🎞

Looked better than I expected in the metal.

They won't let me inside though,

which is what I was looking for.

Been lurking under the bleachers

and I think
This should be called alpharx7 movie guide
🎥🎞

By the way hi all 🤗

was all over the media today as you'd expect.



7 ordered so far.

that sucks, them not letting you sit in it, you'd think that if someone's gone out of their way to come into the showroom that they'd offer better customer service than that. oh well you'll just have to buy a merc.

3D plastics working their way into the aftermarket industry.

the first one is a Datsun 1600 dash surround. Second and third photos are an aftermarket Cosmo 13b inspired inlet manifold. Couldn't use plastic there, it'd melt.

Merc don't make a single car I like ATM...
Anyway, not their fault - they literally don't have the keys. Honda Australia dropped the car off and kept them...

Yeah, they did all that as soon as the car was dropped off. After shooting they flogged the keys and let the public in. I arrived about an hour later.

As you may already know, it is a sin for a Muslim male to see any woman other than his wife naked and if he does, he must commit suicide.
So on September 11th, at 10:00 A.M. Eastern Time, all American women are asked to walk out of their house completely naked to help weed out any neighborhood terrorists.
Circling your block for one hour is recommended for this anti-terrorist effort. All patriotic men are to position themselves in lawn chairs in front of their houses to demonstrate their support for the women and to prove that they are not Muslim terrorist sympathizers.
Since Islam also does not approve of alcohol, a cold 6-pack at your side is further proof of your patriotism.
The American government appreciates your efforts to root out terrorists and applauds your participation in this anti-terrorist activity.
P.S.
If you don't share this, you're a terrorist-sympathizer,

'They're not going to sell much at these prices': Shoppers slam Masters' fire sale for offering 'rubbish' bargains

The home improvement chain failed to deliver on its promised 'fire sale'
Its liquidation sale would see $600m to $700m hardware to be sold
But shoppers were left disappointed with the limited discounted items
Customers said it was 'rubbish' and that 10-30 per cent off was 'not a sale'
The failed hardware chain will close its doors on December 11

Customers have slammed hardware giant Masters for failing to deliver on its promised 'fire sale'.

The home improvement chain, owned by Woolworths, was advertising a significant liquidation sale to start on Monday, with $600 to $700 million worth of hardware up for sale.

But shoppers were left disappointed with the limited discounted items, after GA Australia, a liquidation specialist in charge of the sell down, said the entire store would be on sale.