Those lucky bums over at Autoweek recently had a chance to flog a Euro-market VW Golf GT that was equipped with the manufacturer's new 1.4L turbo- and supercharged Twincharger (or TSI) engine. So, how does it perform? Much like one would expect from a powerplant that manages to make 121 HP/L and also provides nearly 85% of its peak torque at 1250 RPM, meaning that words such as "flexible", "responsive", and "linear" are used. Yummy. There's no word on fuel economy, but one can imagine that it's potentially rather good (and probably also heavily dependent on one's driving style).
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
josh64 @ Dec 18th 2005 10:26PM
According to http://volkswagen.de the fuel consumption is a very respectable 5.9-7.2 L/100km.
Tony @ Dec 18th 2005 10:26PM
VW seems to forget that the Lancia Delta S4 launched in 1986 had a turbo and a blower...
charlie @ Dec 18th 2005 10:26PM
What is the point of such a contraption? Low end boost from the super, higher end from the turbo? Couldnt they have achieved the same thing with two smaller turbos? Thats what my car, and it has 100% of peak torque available at 1,850rpm.
Hooty @ Dec 18th 2005 10:26PM
Does it have an intercooler?
Mike O. @ Dec 18th 2005 10:26PM
I'd hope so. All the fuel savings would be kind of pointless if you have to use premium I would think.
Rocket Punch @ Dec 18th 2005 10:26PM
Reliability and price is another issue.
Adrian @ Dec 18th 2005 10:26PM
Talk about unreliable!! Turbo's are a bad enough reliability issue after years of use. (Burned bearings, leaky seals) Add in the complexity of a supercharger on top of that?
How many Volvo 240's do you see driving around? A lot. (Considering their age) How about the slightly later 700 series with Turbo's? Hardly any... But I've seen lots in scrapheaps.
TheChaz @ Dec 18th 2005 10:26PM
I don't think reliability will be a huge issue. Not to underestimate it, of course, but there are plenty of twin- and multi-turbo machines out there that are quite reliable. I've seen a profile of a tri-turbo supra, the new Bugatti has 4 turbos and there was an 8-turbo (1 per cylinder - smallblock chevy) BelAir at SEMA last year.
I'm sure an OEM with the resources of VolksWagen will have the reliability issues dealt with. It's surely not cost effective for them to do otherwise.
mick @ Dec 18th 2005 10:26PM
Can't believe I'm reading "reliability" and "VW" in the same sentence.
ebm14- @ Dec 18th 2005 10:26PM
I read in a magazine that it will have 174 hp!!! Not bad from a tiny liter engine.
Dr. Woo @ Dec 18th 2005 10:26PM
Tony: "VW seems to forget that the Lancia Delta S4 launched in 1986 had a turbo and a blower..."
What makes you say they "forget?" They are the first company to put such a concept into large-scale production, and they haven't made any claims that say they're the absolute first.
This always comes up from someone who likes to trumpet his or her knowledge of cars in everyone's faces to try and sound smarter. Yes, Lancia did it. But how many engines did they build? VW will surpass that number in its first year of production. This is an engine designed for economy first, excitement second.