Nissan 350 Z JGTC Record & Other News - Spin Out

Toyota's Racers

Infiniti's All-New M45etween the amazingly successful G35 and big Q45, Infiniti has been selling the V8-powered M45 with practically no one noticing. At April's New York Auto Show, though, it displayed an all-new M45 that promises to rock, rattle, rip and reconfigure the midsize luxury car ranks when it goes on sale next year.

While Infiniti calls the New York show car a concept, rest assured it's in fact the 2006 M45 production vehicle. Based on a next-generation version of the FM platform that underpins both the G35 and Nissan 350Z, the new M's biggest distinction is that it will be the first FM car to carry a V8 engine. That V8, to no one's surprise, is the 4.5-liter, DOHC, 32-valve unit already used in the current M and Q, and rated at 340 hp. It sends power to a mandatory five-speed automatic transmission and then back to a reinforced version of the G35's multi-link independent rear suspension.

The new M's wheelbase stretches 2 inches longer than the current G35 sedan's, with all that additional length spliced into the passenger compartment for increased interior volume. At 192.1 inches, it's 5.6 inches longer than the G35 in overall length as well. It's also 4.1 inches longer than a BMW 5 Series, which Infiniti sees as the M45's greatest competition.

Of course, the new M45 will be overstuffed with such high-buzz technology as a DVD audio system, Bluetooth-compatible communications system, ABS, EBD and the groundbreaking E-I-E-I-O farm animal stability system-it's all expected in this class of car. The grille treatment, clear lens headlights and 19-inch wheels all produce an exceptionally sleek and handsome package that stands in stark contrast to the current, very boxy M45. Other Infiniti products will swipe elements of the M45's styling to sustain a family resemblence among them.

Infiniti invited a select group of journalists to its Arizona proving grounds to drive an M45 engineering mule cobbled together from a production G35. The FM chassis is beloved around here for its panther-like reflexes and battleship steadiness and both translate well over to the new M. The steering is a bit heavier, which is to be expected considering the additional weight of the V8, but this is still a spectacularly nimble machine. Despite an interior made up of 40-percent free-floating plastic panels and 60-percent duct tape, the mule was a well-sorted machine that felt at least as good as a BMW 545i on hand for comparison. Anyone who's driven a G35 knows there's a lot of potential in the FM chassis and this car only amplifies the possibilities.

Rumors&Lies* In a coordinated series of raids this March, police (aided by a helicopter) seized 13 cars in a crackdown on illegal street racing around Sydney, Australia, according to a report in "The Daily Telegraph." The 13 cars will be impounded for three months and the owners charged $1,000 (Australian) for storage, on top of the $500 fines they received for doing burnouts. Beyond that, police inspected a further 60 cars and issued 54 defect notices.

* The city of Flint, Mich., is considering an ordinance that would fine drivers $500 for showing porno films on in-car video systems that may be seen by children in other vehicles, according to a report from the Associated Press. Furthermore, the report continues, a driver in Schenectady, N.Y., was arrested in February after police saw that he was playing a film called "Chocolate Foam" on a screen built into the passenger-side sun visor and in screens in the headrests of his Mercedes. He was charged with violating state laws against watching TV while driving and the illegal exhibition of sexually explicit material in a public place.

* Both Nissan and Toyota had record sales in the United States during February, beating expectations with a rise of 5 percent more than February 2003.

* Meanwhile, in February, sales of the Hummer H2 massive SUV dropped for the sixth month in a row.

* Chrysler has officially pulled the plug on its three-year deal to use Celine Dion in ads for its cars. Dion still gets to cash a $14 million check, but her appearances will be limited to public service announcements promoting child safety. Note to Chrysler: If you'd given us five bucks, we'd have told you hiring Celine Dion was a dumb idea, thus saving you a full $13,999,995.

ToyotaTriathlon ConceptFuel cell technology promises to someday revolutionize the way cars are powered. Does that mean racing is doomed? Can competition exist in a world of cars generating electricity by a chemical process?

Toyota's Triathlon concept car that was shown at the New York International Auto Show postulates a future where fuel cell vehicles battle in wheel-to-wheel combat. Well, maybe not combat, but would you believe slight anger?

With fuel cells still more a dream of the future rather than a reality of today, the Triathlon is pure blue sky speculation. So it has an electric suspension, "intelligent tires" and all-wheel drive that theoretically allows the car to compete on-road, off-road and on-track (that's the "tri" in "Triathlon"). It also uses a system Toyota calls "Mixed Reality," in which the driver and passenger wear helmets that project information like a Heads-Up Display (HUD), but a lot more of it.Mixed reality at SCC is still happy hour at T.G.I.Friday's.

High Octane 2-DVD ReviewIn addition to its homegrown production, Live Sockets also brings over the "High Octane" series from New Zealand. While the first "High Octane" release included footage shot in the United States (including a hairy scene of a Dodge Viper heading down into the San Fernando Valley without benefit of a road), this one is 100-percent, undiluted Kiwi.

First, we only understand about 70 percent of what's being said by anyone in this DVD solely because the accents are thicker than petrified lime Jell-O. Beyond that, their goofball sense of humor may slay the lads down at the pub in Auckland, but in America, where everyone has written their own spec-script for "Everybody Loves Raymond," it's just lame. Lame and unintelligible aren't a good mix.

Still there's something to be said for watching fast cars run at night and apparently New Zealanders take their drag racing very seriously. There are some wicked-looking, wicked-sounding cars featured here, but there's practically nothing about them in this DVD. They also have a buildup of an MR2 that seems interesting, but we just can't relate to expressing engine output in kilowatts.

In fact, so much of this DVD is N.Z.-specific that maybe it's best for native New Zealanders somehow stranded in America. Having said that, we do have one caveat: there's a bikini contest on this thing and the Kiwi women are gorgeous.

On 247Motoring.com "High Octane 2" is available for $19.95.

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