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Nissan delays GT-R LM Nismo's return to WEC after poor Le Mans showing

After a catastrophic run at the 24 Hours of Le Mans in June and a widely publicized review of the program, Nissan is delaying the GT-R LM Nismo prototype's next showing in the World Endurance Championship season. The team will continue testing and working out the car's crippling issues. "We know people will be disappointed, but be assured that nobody is more disappointed than us," Shoichi Miyatani, the president of Nismo, said in a statement. "We are racers and we want to compete, but we also want to be competitive. That is why we have chosen to continue our test program and prepare the GT-R LM Nismo for the strong competition we face in the World Endurance Championship. When you innovate, you don't give up at the first hurdle. We are committed to overcoming this challenge." The big issue for the GT-R at Le Mans was its Energy Recovery System. Its failure meant the racer was forced to rely on engine power alone, hobbling the program significantly. "We have many areas to work on – not least ensuring that we have the best ERS option available to us. The team is pushing hard on track, in the wind tunnel and at Nismo's various facilities around the world to deliver the long list of improvements we know that we need," Ben Bowlby, Nissan LM P1 technical director, said in a statement. The GT-R was met with skepticism upon its debut, thanks to the way it eschewed the hallmarks of most successful racers. Not only was the engine in front – a rarity in the past four or so decades of prototypes – but it also sent its power to the front wheels. And it was a lot – 1,250 hp to be precise, with 700 hp coming from electric motors alone. Despite this frankly absurd output, the competition from Porsche, Audi, and Toyota easily bested the GT-R LM Nismos. Scroll down for the official press release from Nissan. Nissan to address technical issues of LM P1 car before returning to World Endurance Championship Nissan GT-R LM NISMO to remain in test program before re-joining World Endurance Championship LONDON – Nissan today announced that it will delay its return to the LM P1 class of the FIA World Endurance Championship and instead focus on technical issues that challenged its race team during the Le Mans 24 Hours. Issues with the energy recovery system (ERS) meant that Nissan had to run at the Le Mans 24 Hours on engine power alone.

Mitsubishi admits to tampering with fuel economy data

Mitsubishi admitted this week to intentionally rigging fuel-economy testing in four of its models sold in Asia. The affected models are all so-called Kei class cars with sub-660cc engines manufactured at Mitsubishi's Mizushima plant in Okayama, Japan. About 157,000 of those cars are Mitsubishi eK wagons and eK Space models, and 468,000 are re-badged Nissan Dayz and Dayz Roox cars, which Mitsubishi produces for Nissan. The matter came to light after Nissan found inconsistencies in reported mileage data, which then led to Mitsubishi launching an internal investigation. The fraud was discovered to be related to falsified tire pressure data, which has an effect on mileage results – an important matter considering these kinds of vehicles are marketed by fuel economy. Mitsubishi said it has stopped manufacturing and marketing the affected vehicles. The news caused Mitsubishi's stock to plummet over 15 percent, slicing $1.2 billion off the company's value. When the eK models hit the market three years ago, they were decorated with a Good Design Award by the Japanese Ministry of Economy – a merit that is now surely tarnished. While Mitsubishi has been suffering in the US recently, with news of the Normal, Illinois plant closing, its small Mirage model has sold well. Related Video: Image Credit: Getty Images Green Plants/Manufacturing Mitsubishi Nissan Fuel Efficiency Hatchback Minivan/Van kei cars minicars

Infiniti Q50 Eau Rouge to cost over $100,000?

Enthusiasts have been clamoring for Infiniti to build a car like the Q50 Eau Rouge for years. In concept form, it employs the GT-R's much-loved 3.8-liter twin-turbo V6, tuned to produce 560 horsepower and 442 pound-feet of torque, with the whole works slid underneath fetching luxury sedan bodywork with carbon fiber aero aids. At this point, the model is rumored to be all but certain for production. The company recently even put Sebastian Vettel in one to show it off. However, Infiniti President Johan de Nysschen is suggesting that the model's lifetime could be brief, limited and rather expensive.
The Infiniti boss recently gave a long interview to Motor Trend that spilled a lot of beans about the Eau Rouge. While he refused to officially admit that the super sedan was on the way, he admits that he's "pushing the Eau Rouge concept for commercialization."
According to de Nysschen, if built, the production version will hew closely to the concept with the engine from the GT-R, but the seven-speed automatic transmission and all-wheel drive system will come from the Q70. And while that would make the Eau Rouge a performance powerhouse, it might also be a rarity on the road: