Audi claim their new V6 diesel has no turbo lag
Audi's new V6 is their first MHEV, and it is a 3.0-litre that will make 295 bhp and around 580 Nm of torque and will first appear in the A6 and the Q5 before making its way in other products from the brand.
New Delhi: With the European Union pressing for emission slashing by carmakers. Which means the diesel engine is mostly fading away, although it remains a preferred powertrain in India. However, in the majority of places where brands like Audi have big sales, there has been a 50 per cent plunge in market share from the pre-Dieselgate period.
It has gone to the level that in Europe, the PHEVs are outselling the diesels for the first time. Audi, however, isn’t ready to pull the curtains on TDI just yet. The brand has been selling the diesel-powered cars since 1989 and even managed to win eight Le Mans with a TDI endurance racer. It had even once put a massive V12 diesel in the R8, but that never came into production. Now, there is a new 3.0-litre V6 with an electric tweak.
What’s new in the V6 diesel engine?
Debuting with the A6 and Q5, Audi has a new six-cylinder diesel engine paired with a mild-hybrid system with an electrically powered compressor. While Ingolstadt has previously given V6 with a 48-volt battery, however, it is the first time they are coming with MHEV hardware for the first time that works synchronously with an electrically driven compressor. The unit is placed at the back of the turbocharger and intercooler in the intake path.
When pressing the accelerator, the turbocharger gets little energy to work with, and the intake air is set up to an electrically powered compressor. Compressed by the exhaust-driven turbo, the air is squeezed a little more before it enters the combustion chamber. So it results in more turbo at low rpm and virtually no turbo lag. Audi have claimed that the latest V6 diesel performance is comparable to that of a similarly powered electric car.
Audi's new V6 performance
The 3.0-litre block makes 295 bhp and around 580 Nm of torque, and compared with its predecessor, the maximum boost pressure of 3.6 bar builds a second quicker in fact. When pushing, the mild-hybrid adds a temporary 24 bhp and 230 Nm of torque.
The A6 sedan is equipped with a V6 diesel that does 0-100 kph in 5.2 seconds and has a maximum speed of 250 kph. The heavier Q5 manages to be quicker than the sedan, and both hit the 0-100 kph in the five-second barrier.
Despite all things about the engine looking complicated, Audi have reassured that the durability is better than the earlier version of the V6. Further, the fuel efficiency is improved, and as an engine, it is an upgraded version of the Volkswagen Group diesel first introduced in 2010.
Audi have said that this is their cleanest diesel and that it could run on hydrotreated vegetable oil (HVO), which reduces CO2 emissions by 95 per cent compared to usual diesel fuel. HVO, which is made from used cooking oil and agricultural by-products, is being used in diesel cars built at Audi’s Ingolstadt and Neckarsulm plants in Germany.
This engine is expected to make its appearance in the A7, but the big Sportback is probably coming to the end of the production line. The fate of the A8 flagship is uncertain as well. The upcoming Q7 and the even bigger Q9 expected next year are the models most likely to come with the revised V6 diesel.