Subaru annouces new boxer engine series

[MatsuDano]

Motorized Lawnmower?! Pfftsh, as if. I'm so old school I use one of those suckers that spins the blade as you walk it. Yea, ever try taking apart one of those? You might cut your hand off! It's so old school. Only true grass cutting enthusiasts cut their lawns this way.

 

Pic related.

 

http://i55.tinypic.com/aph8xe.jpg

 

\/\/\/\/\/Fixed, just for you ;p

[dudeondacouch]

hotlinking fail. n00b.

[JoeFromPA]

Dano - Try using a scythe you bastard. You are such a trendy guy with your mechanized lawn mowing. Back in the old days, we used scythes that made old people shit their pants that the grim reaper was coming.

 

And before that, we just let the damn goats graze.

[bosco]

I wonder if Subaru will use this new engine in the STI? Seems like a smaller bore would leave less room for larger valves and that can't be good for performance.

 

So is this new super engine going in the STI or what?

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[GTS Jeff]

Dano - Try using a scythe you bastard. You are such a trendy guy with your mechanized lawn mowing. Back in the old days, we used scythes that made old people shit their pants that the grim reaper was coming.

 

And before that, we just let the damn goats graze.

Man, those were the good old days. I was taking apart goats and putting them back together in the shed when I was 8. Nowadays with them mechanical doodads you can't get anything done!!

[sti2k5]

http://images.despair.com/products/demotivators/compromise.jpg

[sti2k5]

I love how someone that has different viewpoints on this subject is ridiculed...

 

I just happen to have been raised by the "don't fix it if it isn't broke" mentality, meaning, I like a car, that I can fix...myself...

 

it seems here we have the usual subaru douchers anyway in this forum, sarcastic asshats that can't have anyone else talking differently than they do.

 

I love how people get e-fortitude behind a keyboard...lol...know it alls...

[ehsnils]

I see it this way - even if they do build a new engine today it won't rule out DI in the future since that is a change to the cylinder heads. Since it's obvious that DI has some problems with deposits it can even be a good thing that they are waiting for a solution to that.

 

The thing is that if the engine has a smaller bore and longer stroke it will probably have a better torque in the lower RPM:s which in turn means that the torque is closer to the RPM:s you have when you do your daily driving, which in turn results in better fuel economy.

 

Another change is the use of a chain instead of a belt which means that the dreaded belt changes are history. OK, personally I like gear driven cams better, but that's a different story. And a chain means a more compact engine too. It means that they can probably shrink some models or there will be better place under the hood on some models.

 

As for the STi - it may be that they keep the old engine or that they just let the turbo have a bit higher pressure to compensate for smaller valves. What you really drive with is the torque band anyway so losing some power at the top may not mean that much in reality.

 

What also should be said is that you can't compare the diesel DI with GDI, they are only similar, not identical.

[Ridgeracer]

Amen ehsnils.....BTW what is Subaru's R&D budget when compared to an auto co like GM, Ford, Honda, BMW, Audi, VW, Toyota, etc. Probably peanuts. Let them figure it out first cost effectively I say.

[GTS Jeff]

I just happen to have been raised by the "don't fix it if it isn't broke" mentality, meaning, I like a car, that I can fix...myself...

 

That makes no sense at all.

[sti2k5]

That makes no sense at all.

 

 

you must be more dense than I imagined...

 

aka: don't change things that work just fine for the sake of changing them...

 

double meaning: when they do that it makes it harder to work on...

 

keep up junior!

[MatsuDano]

Teh IntErbuttZ iz SearwIouS BusInuzz

[sti2k5]

lol...I had no problem till this douche-canoe started making fun...

[bosco]

..

 

aka: don't change things that work just fine for the sake of changing them...

 

double meaning: when they do that it makes it harder to work on...

 

 

Does that apply to Honda when they incorporated VTEC to their engines?

 

Explain to me how DI affects working on a car vs an engine with sequential FI?

[rao]

It's harder, accept it. Besides you can't fix engines anyways. Also, Honda's typically don't need to be fixed in the first place, which makes this whole thing sort of strange.

[dudeondacouch]

true. but weren't we talking about fixing things even if they aren't broken?

[bosco]

It's harder, accept it. Besides you can't fix engines anyways. Also, Honda's typically don't need to be fixed in the first place, which makes this whole thing sort of strange.

 

Your probably right i don't know what i was thinking when i posted that.

 

Carry on.

[ece_tim]

Because they can charge you $300 at 30,000 miles for a valve cleaning procedure;). Some manufacturers have solved the problem, others have not.

Some keep auxiliary port injectors, in addition to the direct injectors, just to keep the intake valves clean.

Bingo people. Direct injection is NOT the future. DI is a bandaid on a broken leg. It IS a logical and good evolution, but it is not without its problems.

 

Do some searching on Audi direct injection problems. There are huge threads by Audi and Porsche owners that have serious issues as a result of DI.

 

Frankly, I don't begrudge Subaru for not going to DI. They are *tiny* compared to the Detroit or other Japanese manufacturers. The cost is huge and the benefit relatively small.

 

You all need to realize that we are a tiny segment of the market. Most consumers don't know or care about the difference between DI, flat engines, or the number of overhead cams. They care about horsepower, fuel economy, how the car drives, and features/cupholders. Subaru has their attention with the latter items and they are doing well with it. DI makes NO sense for them to just jam in at significant cost to them.

[Ridgeracer]

Whats the broken leg? = The internal combustion engine?

[ece_tim]

Improving fuel economy in the Otto cycle internal combustion engine. DI is more efficient fuel injection, sure, but has its own issues that need to be worked out. It makes sense for a large or high end car manufacturer to invest in DI now, as they have the resources to spend on developing it.

 

Companies have been trying to make massive improvements in the Otto ICE for decades with little success. We likely won't see major improvements in efficiency of this engine design, but rather a radically different power plant. Thus, (expensive, complicated) bandaid on a broken leg.

[ehsnils]

There are other methods for improving fuel efficiency too.

 

 

• Variable compression - like the Alvar Engine with two pistons (one normal, one small):
  http://www.osti.gov/bridge/purl.cover.jsp;jsessionid=8C3C12E2860011CBF79F12A101528ED1?purl=/598416-37lJIS/webviewable/
  
• Hot vapor technique developed by Smokey Yunick. (Claimed to give 51mpg in a Fiero)
  http://www.legendarycollectorcars.com/featured-vehicles/other-feature-cars/smokey-yunicks-hot-vapor-fiero-51-mpg-and-0-60-in-less-than-6-seconds-see-and-hear-it-run-in-our-exclusive-video/
  

[ece_tim]

Indeed. But if any of them would have been commercially viable, we would have seen them already.

 

Again: bandaid, broken leg.

[SurlyOldManMN]

Man, those were the good old days. I was taking apart goats and putting them back together in the shed when I was 8. Nowadays with them mechanical doodads you can't get anything done!!

 

Oh come on now, it doesn't take that long to learn how to use a centrifuge.

[StoplightAssassin]

Do some searching on Audi direct injection problems. There are huge threads by Audi and Porsche owners that have serious issues as a result of DI.

 

Audi owners are suffering because Audi refuses to acknowledge the carbon buildup problem with the DI. Audi just needs to take responsibility and get the cars fixed. Their big problem is that all of their FSI engines are DI, which is most of them.

 

As was said, other manufacturers have learned to fix the carbon buildup problem.

[robbie_R]

I wonder what type of oil they will recommend for this totally new engine?

 

Not sure if this got answered but it's 5w20. I just did my training for this motor through Subaru. The exhaust manifold and intake manifold design is pretty intense.