Lotus Omnivore engine Phase 1 testing

The idea of burning multiple types of fuel in a car isn’t new–GM and other carmakers have had flex-fuel vehicles on the road for years now. But doing so efficiently is a whole other challenge. Last December, we brought you word that Lotus had figured out how to make its Omnivore engine up to 10 percent more efficient than a state-of-the-art direct-injection gasoline engine thanks to the use of a two-stroke cycle and a variable compression ratio.

The variable compression ratio works by using a puck in the cylinder head to optimize the fuel burn. The system can go as high as a 40:1 compression ratio. That’s a sky-high figure–a typical modern engine lies somewhere between 10:1 and 13:1. But it lets Lotus cram more air in with the fuel to get the most out of every drop, no matter what ratio of alcohol or gasoline that drop’s made of.

Check out the interactive animated demo below to learn more about the Omnivore engine concept.

[Lotus Engineering]

Suzukiflew me out to VIR and did their best to wine and dine me, including giving me an 8GB Sony Walkman full of media material that one of you will be lucky enough to win in a giveaway soon.

If you’d told me a week ago that I’d be driving a Suzuki–any Suzuki with four wheels, that is–through 80-100 mph curves with not just confidence but ease, attacking a road course like Virginia International Raceway with not trepidation but temerity, I’d have called you a liar. But then I got behind the wheel of the 2010 Suzuki Kizashi.

No, I didn’t just sneeze. The name, pronounced “Kee-Zah-Shee”, means “something great is coming” in Japanese, and they nearly got it right; turns out it’s already here.

Now, this isn’t a car to make the BMW 3-series or Audi A4 shake in their boots. Nor is it likely to give much pause to the more luxurious or blandly utilitarian American and Japanese alternatives. But it ought to put a righteous fear into the likes ofMazda, Honda, Subaru and Ford. The Kizashi is an aspirational sports sedan with some serious chops.

Features and Equipment

Four grades of interior package treatment are available, with even the base S offering a fair complement of standard equipment, including push button start, sport front seats, steering wheel-mounted audio controls, automatic dual-zone climate control, stability control and eight airbags. The SE adds a standard continuously variable transmission (CVT), larger tires on 17-inch alloy wheels, 10-way power adjustable driver’s seat with 3-position memory, cruise control and leather surfaces on the steering wheel, shift lever and parking brake lever.

motorauthority.com