It may sound odd to you, but the Renault-Nissan Alliance hasn't produced any modern V6 Diesel engines - so far. After all the alliance, will have a decent engine to go with their 10th anniversary next year.

The first Diesel V6 engine developed and produced by the Alliance bares the code V9X. It is based on dCi common rail technology, and know-how derived from the 2.0 dCi straight four engine (year 2005).

In order for the engine to be used in various configurations (longitudinal, transversal) and different types of cars (coupes, sedans, SUVs…) accross the world (Renault, Nissan, Infiniti), the V cylinder arrangement was the only logical choice. Nissan contributed with the deep knowledge of V6 petrol powerplant engineering. Each year, Nissan produces more than a million V6 engines, making Nissan the biggest V6 producer in the world.

As the upper parts of the V6 dCi are very similar to these of the 2.0 dCi, the conception of the new engine was faster, and cheaper. As with the 2.0 dCi straight four, the internal displacement of the single cylinder is half litre. Thus in 6-cyl configuration, the total displacement is 3 litre.

Renault-Nissan V6 dCi engine in longitudinal concept

Contrary to most Diesels, the new V6 diesel engine is nevertheless able to attain 5000 rpm, which makes it a serious competitor to gas engines in terms of driving pleasure. If you look at the graph (powerband) on the left, you'll notice that in dCi 235 version, nothing really happens after 4500 rpm. Nevertheless the fact the engine could spin at 5000 rpm with no issues, leaves it open to modifications and future versions.

Renault and Nissan have worked on bettering the sound of the new V6 dCi
and lessening vibrations. Very low noise levels are the result of a
joint optimization of powertrain engine base, injection and tuning
strategies.

 Powerband of the dCi 235

The new dCi 235 powertrain has the highest level of torque in the Renault lineup with 450Nm. On Laguna Coupé, the transversely mounted VX9 posts 235hp, which makes it Renault’s second most powerful engine offer. Further versions of  this engine will be commercialized with more power and more  torque.

In early 2009 dCi 235 will be offered on Laguna Sedan and Laguna Estate. Concerning Nissan, the V9X will be available on the new version of Maxima in the US and on Pathfinder and Navarra, in Europe. It will also be available on Infiniti EX, FX and M models, in Europe.

The original news article is here.