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As you may or may not know the next GTR is expected to have a 7 speed tranny (8 with reverse) and equipped with paddle shifters, the same CVT tranny found in the Nissan skyline (350) GT-8. (it's an infiniti G35 equipped with the CVT) Shifting time takes place in .2 seconds. So what does Gran Turismo have to do with all this? read this article and find out 
[font=Arial,Helvetica,Geneva,Swiss,SunSans-Regular][font=Arial,Helvetica,Geneva,Swiss,SunSans-Regular]8-SPEED PADDLES ANYONE?
[/font][font=Arial,Helvetica,Geneva,Swiss,SunSans-Regular]WORLDS FIRST PRODUCTION 8-SPEED CVT TAKES OFF IN 350GT-8
[/font][font=Arial,Helvetica,Geneva,Swiss,SunSans-Regular]
Kazunori Yamauchi of Gran Turismo game fame was chuffed. Nissan engineers were asking HIM about paddle design. Why? Because the producer of the worlds biggest selling driver simulation game had painstakingly tested more than a dozen prototypes before deciding on the paddle destined for his PlayStation Force Feedback steering wheel kit. And now, Nissan had their own paddle design that needed evaluation.
At a test drive of Nissans soon-to-be-launched Skyline 350 GT, Nissan engineers were all ears. This model will be the flagship version of the new Skyline range which is currently headed by a 3.0 litre V6. Nissan designers had developed the worlds first production 8-speed Extroid CVT with dual paddles a la F1 style, and they wanted feedback from the assembled scribes and racing drivers.
Married to the new 350 GT-8, which boasts the same 3.5 litre V6 powerunit as that destined for Nissans upcoming 350Z, the Nissan generates 200kw (272ps) at a lofty 6000rpm, and 353 Nm (36.0 kg-m) of torque at 4800rpm. The all-new 8-speed CVT is an extension of the revolutionary 6-speed CVT Nissan introduced on its 3.0 litre Gloria model more than three years ago. That model set new standards in shift shock-less response.
The GT-8 takes the equation two steps further. Firstly, it adds two more gears and narrows the ratios between gears substantially. First comes up around 55kph at the 7500rpm redline while second is reached at 88 and third arrives quicker than expected at 115kph. And secondly, 0.2 seconds is all the time you need to wait to have your chosen gear on tap. Fully. Immediately. So basically gear selection happens as fast as you can flick your fingers. Theres no delay like that with Alfa 147s Selespeed. The CVT is perfectly matched to the 3.5 litre. Pumping out 280 bhp, the 350 has loads of low to mid-range torque, superb acceleration over the entire power band, and its exhaust note sounds more like a V8 than a V6. And having access to a transmission that transfers power so directly, and in real time, is something that will have other manufacturers talking for a long time.
Only thing is that after you've dropped four gears entering a tight corner, from 8th back to 2nd, you begin to wonder whether 8-speeds are necessary. In the just-launched version of GT3, Yamauchi has given the Nissan GT-R Concept a 7-speed CVT based on the 350 GT-8 paddle feel and speedy 0.2 second gear change. While Nissan wouldnt let him prematurely add the 8-speed CVT to his game, a full month before the actual 350 GT-8 launch in Japan, they did give the green light for him to fit a modified version to the next generation Godzilla. And it was Yamauchi who chose 7 gears in stead of 8. He says 8 is too many, and realistically, how often will you use the 8 th gear? Cant argue there.
Now, back to that tight corner Ive just entered in 2 nd. Ideally of course you'd want to be sitting on grippier rubber. The Dunlop Sport 230 tires (215/55R17) don't quite make the grade. While the rear-drive 350 GT-8 has progressive understeer dialed in for good measure, switch the traction control off and controlled power sliding is yours for the taking. Grip levels and chassis rigidity are exceedingly high, but once adhesion limits have been reached, you find yourself playing with massive dollops of opposite lock as you try to keep the revs high in 2 nd. Hit the redline in mid corner and just flick to third with no drama. The gear response is that quick and shift shock free.
And the paddle Nissan finally chose is superbly placed behind the steering wheel and packs excellent rigidity. Yamauchis comments, as well as those of forty or so other industry types, certainly steered GT-8 designers in the right direction. The virtual world of GT3 has come alive in the 3.66 million yen 350 GT-8. And Yamauchi is smiling It used to be that games copied cars.
Now car designers seem to be copying games.[/font][/font]
[font=Arial,Helvetica,Geneva,Swiss,SunSans-Regular][font=Arial,Helvetica,Geneva,Swiss,SunSans-Regular]8-SPEED PADDLES ANYONE?
[/font][font=Arial,Helvetica,Geneva,Swiss,SunSans-Regular]WORLDS FIRST PRODUCTION 8-SPEED CVT TAKES OFF IN 350GT-8
[/font][font=Arial,Helvetica,Geneva,Swiss,SunSans-Regular]
Kazunori Yamauchi of Gran Turismo game fame was chuffed. Nissan engineers were asking HIM about paddle design. Why? Because the producer of the worlds biggest selling driver simulation game had painstakingly tested more than a dozen prototypes before deciding on the paddle destined for his PlayStation Force Feedback steering wheel kit. And now, Nissan had their own paddle design that needed evaluation.
At a test drive of Nissans soon-to-be-launched Skyline 350 GT, Nissan engineers were all ears. This model will be the flagship version of the new Skyline range which is currently headed by a 3.0 litre V6. Nissan designers had developed the worlds first production 8-speed Extroid CVT with dual paddles a la F1 style, and they wanted feedback from the assembled scribes and racing drivers.
Married to the new 350 GT-8, which boasts the same 3.5 litre V6 powerunit as that destined for Nissans upcoming 350Z, the Nissan generates 200kw (272ps) at a lofty 6000rpm, and 353 Nm (36.0 kg-m) of torque at 4800rpm. The all-new 8-speed CVT is an extension of the revolutionary 6-speed CVT Nissan introduced on its 3.0 litre Gloria model more than three years ago. That model set new standards in shift shock-less response.
The GT-8 takes the equation two steps further. Firstly, it adds two more gears and narrows the ratios between gears substantially. First comes up around 55kph at the 7500rpm redline while second is reached at 88 and third arrives quicker than expected at 115kph. And secondly, 0.2 seconds is all the time you need to wait to have your chosen gear on tap. Fully. Immediately. So basically gear selection happens as fast as you can flick your fingers. Theres no delay like that with Alfa 147s Selespeed. The CVT is perfectly matched to the 3.5 litre. Pumping out 280 bhp, the 350 has loads of low to mid-range torque, superb acceleration over the entire power band, and its exhaust note sounds more like a V8 than a V6. And having access to a transmission that transfers power so directly, and in real time, is something that will have other manufacturers talking for a long time.
Only thing is that after you've dropped four gears entering a tight corner, from 8th back to 2nd, you begin to wonder whether 8-speeds are necessary. In the just-launched version of GT3, Yamauchi has given the Nissan GT-R Concept a 7-speed CVT based on the 350 GT-8 paddle feel and speedy 0.2 second gear change. While Nissan wouldnt let him prematurely add the 8-speed CVT to his game, a full month before the actual 350 GT-8 launch in Japan, they did give the green light for him to fit a modified version to the next generation Godzilla. And it was Yamauchi who chose 7 gears in stead of 8. He says 8 is too many, and realistically, how often will you use the 8 th gear? Cant argue there.
Now, back to that tight corner Ive just entered in 2 nd. Ideally of course you'd want to be sitting on grippier rubber. The Dunlop Sport 230 tires (215/55R17) don't quite make the grade. While the rear-drive 350 GT-8 has progressive understeer dialed in for good measure, switch the traction control off and controlled power sliding is yours for the taking. Grip levels and chassis rigidity are exceedingly high, but once adhesion limits have been reached, you find yourself playing with massive dollops of opposite lock as you try to keep the revs high in 2 nd. Hit the redline in mid corner and just flick to third with no drama. The gear response is that quick and shift shock free.
And the paddle Nissan finally chose is superbly placed behind the steering wheel and packs excellent rigidity. Yamauchis comments, as well as those of forty or so other industry types, certainly steered GT-8 designers in the right direction. The virtual world of GT3 has come alive in the 3.66 million yen 350 GT-8. And Yamauchi is smiling It used to be that games copied cars.
Now car designers seem to be copying games.[/font][/font]
