Over the summer, we posted on a project being undertaken by students at the Tennessee Technical Center-Nashville and Nashville State Community College: prepare a 400-horsepower, 5.6-liter V8 from an Infiniti QX56 for seafaring duty in a 20-foot Chris-Craft.
The engine's transformation is nearly complete, but it seems the boat needs a great deal more work. The pleasure craft, which dates from 1962, has already has three other marinized engines from car manufacturers, a Lincoln and two Chrysler Hemi powerplants. The gents at Freeport Boat Outlet in Freeport, Maine are overseeing the wooden hull restoration and have said that 85 percent of the mahogany will need replacing.
When it's finally finished, the QX lump with water-cooled manifolds and a closed cooling system will be mated with a ZF/Hurth marine transmission and tested back at Infiniti HQ. Assuming all goes well, the hull will get an SUV's worth of Infiniti luxuries and be married to its engine. In the meantime, the name of the boat is being put to the public, so have a read of the press release after the jump for all the details. Then, come summer, keep an eye out for a very slick watercraft plying Tennessee's lakes.
AOL Car and Truck of the Year, new GM pickups, Dodge Caliber all done
Episode #262 of the Autoblog Podcast is here with Chris, Dan, and Zach this week. Topics include the first-ever AOL Autos Car and Truck of the Year, speculation about what the next generation of General Motors pickup trucks will have in store for us, and the end of the Dodge Caliber. Your questions and comments power the end of the 'cast, and for those of you who hung with us live on our UStream channel, thanks for taking the time. We've embedded our Q&A module after the jump for you to scroll through and follow along, too. Thanks for listening!
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Yes, we obsessively cover the auto industry, but that doesn't mean we don't enjoy other modes of transportation. We may even get downright giddy when two different worlds collide, like for example, when a boat is powered by a large automobile engine. Infiniti must feel the same way because the automaker is helping two Tennessee schools bring a maritime project to life.
Infiniti's North American headquarters is located in Franklin, Tennessee, and the automaker is awfully proud of the state in which it resides. Infiniti is also quite proud of the 5.6-liter V8 engine that sits under the hoods of both the QX56 sport utility vehicle and M56 sedan. How to combine those two loves? Donate a QX56 to two local schools, which will use the mighty mill to add some serious horsepower to their budding boat.
Both the Tennessee Technical Center-Nashville and Nashville State Community College have automotive tech programs. Infiniti provided the guts of its full-size luxobarge so that the students could learn how to apply the powerplant to a non-automotive application. Sounds kind of odd, but makes perfect sense when you dig a little deeper. These students are taking a modern (read: complicated) engine, and making it work in an environment in which it was not intended to perform.
So far, the team has the engine separated from the rest of the vehicle, and the rest of the QX56 will stay with Tennessee Tech for continued learning applications. The 400-horsepower engine is being prepped for nautical duty, and the ultimate result will see it powering a luxury boat. Infiniti isn't stopping with the engine, and is in fact supplying a Bose audio system, semi-aniline leather seats, XM satellite radio with NavWeather and, lest we forget, the brand's signature analog clock will find its way in there as well.
The line at the door for the recall party is getting longer. Nissan has just showed up and it needs to bring in 2.14 million vehicles around the world, making it the automaker's third largest recall of all-time. The issue lies with a faulty ignition relay that could cause the engine to stall or fail to restart. The fix is reported to take less than 25 minutes, and involves swapping out the faulty ignition relay for a new one.
This recall affects vehicles built around the world, from August 2003 to July 2006. Japan serves up the bulk of the recalled vehicles, with 835,000 units needing to come back in. The U.S. and Canada are not far behind, recalling 762,000 cars between them. The vehicles include a wide gamut of Nissan product, from subcompacts like the Micra and Cube up to larger cars and trucks such as the Titan and Infiniti QX.
Motor Trend has been around since 1949, and during that time it has handed out a fair share of awards to various automakers and vehicle models. More recently, the print publication has gone online by way of its web site, Youtube page and various social media networks. One network in particular has stuck a chord with the buff book and it's choosing to leverage the power of Facebook to announce the winner of its 2011 Sport/Utility Vehicle of the Year award.
M/T has been steadily rolling out its top 15 contenders, with the announcement of the winner to be made on October 19th, 2010 at 12:01 a.m EST. Why Facebook?
"We want to foster a two-way dialogue with our audience," said Angus MacKenzie, Editor In-Chief of Motor Trend, "and Facebook was the next logical step to engage our community even further."
2011 Infiniti QX56 - Click above for high-res image gallery
Infiniti has released details on its entire model lineup for 2011, and there are a couple of interesting tidbits to glean. Of course, we already know all about the new-for-2011 M and QX, so we'll focus on the other machines in Infiniti's line to see what's new, starting with the G series.
Two new extensions to the G Sedan will debut at the upcoming Pebble Beach Concours d'Elegance: a Limited Edition model and a Sport Appearance package. Infiniti promises that both machines will be available in September and will feature "special exterior and interior content features." The G Coupe will gain a Sport Package for all-wheel-drive models, while Infiniti's G Convertible gets a revised fascia with relocated fog lights (no pictures available) and a Limited Edition model. Scratch Resistance Paint becomes standard on all G models.
Moving on, the 2011 EX will get a new seven-speed automatic transmission and 18-inch wheels as standard, while three new exterior paint colors will be offered. The larger FX will get a new standard power liftgate in 2011 and Infiniti also reminds us that it plans to release its M Hybrid along with an electric vehicle later this year.
There are plenty more bits, pieces and package changes that true Infiniti aficionados may want to peruse. Find all the details in the press release after the break.
The line at the door for the recall party is getting longer. 
