Infiniti Middle East: Students Adapt QX Engine to Luxury Boat Motor

DUBAI, UAE, October 27, 2011 -

- 400-HP engine set to go from towing workhorse to luxury boat motor with the help of local community college students -

Infiniti has announced it is to lend the power of its QX56 SUV’s 400-horsepower, 5.6-liter V8 engine and 2,000 kg towing capacity to a special one-off project that will see a boat modified to work with the QX engine. The Infiniti QX56 full-size luxury SUV, has a 2,000kg towing capacity, strong low-end torque, smooth operation throughout the entire RPM range and peak torque of 57.1kg-m and this power is more well-known for towing boats than powering them, but Infiniti could think of no better engine to outfit a boat custom-outfitted to QX-inspired standards, starting with its powerful but fuel-efficient engine and continuing with semi-aniline leather on the seats, Bose® speakers, and signature Infiniti analog clock.

This unique creation will be designed in the spirit of Infiniti’s line-up of luxury cars and be modelled after the performance, craftsmanship and luxury interior design of its flagship Infiniti QX SUV. Construction on the luxury boat has already begun with the extraction of the QX engine which was carried out by a group of automotive technical training program students.

The students were assisted by top engineers from Infiniti and guided by training managers in the removal of the mammoth 5.6-liter engine and 7-speed automatic transmission from this year’s Infiniti QX SUV which Infiniti have since donated to the college as a learning aid for their automotive students. The students from Tennessee Technical Center-Nashville and Nashville State Community College were also set the task of determining how to make the engine work with the boat components and will now prep the boat for its debut next boating season.

Updates on the Infiniti QX-powered luxury boat project will be delivered through social networking sites Facebook (facebook.com/infiniti) and Twitter (twitter.com/infinitinews) where teaser photos will be posted along the way and fans and followers will be given the opportunity to name the SUV of boats.

About Infiniti:

Infiniti is the latest luxury automotive brand to enter the market and their rapidly expanding product line-up is taking the Middle East by storm. The current product line-up in the Middle East consists of the Infiniti Premium Luxury G Sedan, G Coupe and G Convertible, the EX35 Luxury Crossover, the Infiniti FX-35/50 Performance Crossover, the M37/56 Mid-size Premium Luxury Sedan and the Infiniti QX56 Full-size Luxury SUV. Infiniti Middle East put comfort, performance and luxury at the forefront of their design and the line-up’s highly advanced features include the innovative Around-View Monitor, Intelligent Cruise Control, Intelligent Brake Assist, Four-Wheel Active Steer, Lane Departure Prevention and Blind-Spot Intervention. Visit www.infiniti-me.com for more information.

Contact Information: Hakam Kherallah, Senior Manager, Corporate Communications Department, Tel: +971-4-881-7500, Fax: +971-4-881-9747, E-mail: hakam at nissan-me.ae . Vivian Hawat, Infiniti Press Office, Tel: +971-50-567-6-132, E-mail: press at infiniti-me.com