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Subaru's gone diesel?

S

Steve Barnes

Well Known Member
Subaru's producing a turbo diesel, boxer engine with 148 h.p.. Bad news is that it's going to Europe and Australia, but not the U.S.. Is anyone thinking of putting one of these babies in an RV?

Steve Barnes "the Builders Coach"
 
If the ECU can be made to play nice, or a good aftermarket one sourced, It might be worth a look. It would also depend on the usual factors of weight, cooling, etc. Unless they've done something metallurgically interesting, the diesel block would probably weigh more than that of the garden-variety sube.
 
cool, but...

From motor trend mag

"Output is 145 hp at 3600 rpm but the engine makes a manly 258 lb-ft of torque at just 1800 rpm (compared with 226 lb-ft for the Forester's 2.0L turbo gas engine)."

Read more: http://www.motortrend.com/roadtests...baru_forester_diesel/index.html#ixzz11yiNjOc5

Great that it's not 100LL, but the mechanical architecture still doesn't allow the engine to make it's power quite where we need it without a PSRU.

I'd do it in a heartbeat if the peak output was at a lower rpm-- provided it didn't weigh as much as the rest of the whole airplane.

I'll stick with the 13b.


Shouldn't this be moved out of V-bay?
 
John Courte said:
If the ECU can be made to play nice, or a good aftermarket one sourced, It might be worth a look. It would also depend on the usual factors of weight, cooling, etc. Unless they've done something metallurgically interesting, the diesel block would probably weigh more than that of the garden-variety sube.
Click to expand...

I posted a link quite some time ago about an aftermarket diesel ECU from the UK which should allow the use of all the stock injection hardware so this is certainly doable for someone with the gumption and talent. Search "new diesel ecu".

Would be cool to see one flying but will be heavier and less powerful than a Lycoming. Would probably perform decently at altitude being turbocharged at least.:)
 
Subaru diesel

I agree with Ross. It just about has to be too heavy. When you consider that even the gasoline Subaru installations (at least the ones I know of) are quite heavy, the diesel will probably be over the top. Especially if it needs a PSRU, which I'm sure it will.

The aftermarket ECU for diesels is a good thing. I think it will open doors for more development of aerodiesels. We found an aftermarket ECU for our Duramax diesel race car, and it has worked well. It's amazing what can be done with it in terms of tuning, monitoring, data logging, etc.

I still think that the future of diesel aviation lies with two-stroke, direct drive engines. It will be VERY difficult for a 4-stroke to match the simplicity, weight, and performance of the 2-stroke.

That being said, I'd still like to get my hands on a Subaru diesel and see what can be done with it!
Kurt
 
I don't think that PSRUs will be a challenge for much longer.

Watch this video for an explanation of a nearly frictionless PSRU that reduces torque pulses and prevents from torque overload.
 
breister said:
I don't think that PSRUs will be a challenge for much longer.

Watch this video for an explanation of a nearly frictionless PSRU that reduces torque pulses and prevents from torque overload.
Click to expand...

That's pretty neat. However, I think using brushless DC motor technology as a baseline, this idea will sadly suffer from being extremely heavy for the power levels we require.
 
Hey!
I have the Subaru diesel engine in my garage here in the US !!

Can you guys guess the weight of the engine ?

Then I will post it later... I just want to know what is people guess.

http://www.vanorama.com/


GSB
 
Last edited:
Good guess! I know you found that from me somewhere ;)

I weight scaled it this morning and was very surprised!

136kg (300lbs) Is the weight of the engine excluding:

Exhaust
Alternator
A/C compressor
Flywheel

All this item listed above are not suitable for an airplane application as they are either not used (A/C compressor) or to heavy (casted iron exhaust manifold, flywheel). Maybe the alternator is worth to keep as it is and compact.

Looking at it closer I found out that the intake manifold is aluminum casted and could be replaced with a thiner 6061 aluminum tubing custom welded.

Overall a great candidate!

GSB
 
John Courte said:
If the ECU can be made to play nice, or a good aftermarket one sourced, It might be worth a look.
Click to expand...
That's not hard. Fake a speed signal to tell it it's in a moving car. Diesels don't have catalytic converters I think so there shouldn't be a problem with sensors.
 
The Mini Cooper D, available everywhere on the friggin planet besides North America, gets 73mpg on the highway. Rated as being "greener" than the Toyota Prius. And I can't get one.:mad:
 
kristoffon said:
That's not hard. Fake a speed signal to tell it it's in a moving car. Diesels don't have catalytic converters I think so there shouldn't be a problem with sensors.
Click to expand...

Kris,
Often auto ECUs have hidden safeties that rear their ugly head only when used in extream conditions. Several people who built planes using the smaller Subies found out that there was a "safety" built in that would put the engine in the "Limp home" mode after the engine had run at or near redline for more than 2-3 minutes. Less likely on a Diesel, but it could still have some concerns. The Gas engines were protected supposedly because the only time the car would exceed redline for more than a couple of minutes was in a crash with the throttle stuck open!
Bill Jepson
 
rocketbob said:
The Mini Cooper D, available everywhere on the friggin planet besides North America, gets 73mpg on the highway. Rated as being "greener" than the Toyota Prius. And I can't get one.:mad:
Click to expand...

I guess we are the only ones.:rolleyes: Hyundai makes a great diesel Santa Fe, for Europe. They won't bring it over here "because American's won't buy them". :mad:
 
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