volkswagen
VALVE TECHNOLOGY
VALVE TECHNOLOGY
Performance
and economy
When you drive
one of our TSI cars you don't have to choose between performance and economy.
TSI engines offer an enjoyable and involving drive, while cutting fuel
consumption and CO2 emissions. Because TSI engines are cleaner, you'll also
save on car tax. So they have a smaller impact on the environment, are kinder
to your pocket - and, best of all, they're great fun to drive.
What is
TSI?
TSI is
our pioneering technology for petrol engines. TSI engines are compact,
high-powered and use less fuel. TSI technology blends the best of our TDI
diesel and FSI (Fuel Stratified Injection) engines.
How do
you benefit?
You enjoy
excellent driveability and outstanding fuel economy. Acceleration is instant,
whichever gear you're in. So overtaking is safer and you can power smoothly up
hills with no delay. TSI technology is available on an increasing number of our
cars, from Polo to Passat.
The TSI
story
The
challenge
As
responsible car makers we wanted to make our petrol engines even cleaner and
more efficient, while still being fun to drive. Our aim was to create engines
that used less fuel and produced lower CO2 emissions without sacrificing power.
The
solution our engineers came up with was both elegant and ingenious: an engine
that combines petrol direct injection and turbocharging, and in some cases
twincharging - a turbocharger and a supercharger working together. The TSI
engine was born.
The
effect is to combine the benefits of both petrol and diesel power units: smooth
and quiet on the road, TSI delivers high torque - pulling power - throughout
the acceleration range with little discernible turbo lag.
The
successful formula
The
successful TSI formula combines a number of different elements:
Smaller engines
At the
heart of TSI is a smaller engine. It's more efficient, as there is less power
loss resulting from friction. It's also lighter, so the engine has less weight
to shift in the car.
Direct petrol injection with charging
Direct
petrol injection is combined with a turbocharger or charge compression with a
turbo and a supercharger working in tandem. This enhances the engine's
combustion efficiency so the TSI engine power output is much higher than that
of conventional, naturally aspirated engines.
Torque when you want it
On the TSI 1.4 160PS the engine-driven supercharger
operates at lower revs, with the turbocharger - powered by the exhaust gases -
joining in as engine speed rises. The supercharger is powered via a belt drive
directly from the crankshaft. This provides maximum pulling power on demand,
even at very low engine speeds. TSI engines are designed to deliver maximum
torque from engine speeds as low as 1500 or 1750 rpm. And that has the twin
benefit of not only increasing your driving pleasure but also cutting fuel
consumption.
Latest
developments
We never
stop refining our TSI technology. Some of our latest ideas for the 1.4 122 PS
include:
More ways to save weight
These
range from a lightened cylinder head cover and a weight saving per camshaft to
the refined design of the cylinder head itself.
Optimised fuel mixture
A new
injector with six fuel bores for electronic direct injection helps achieve
this. The injector jets have been realigned to give more efficient distribution
of the fuel mixture in the combustion chamber.
Charge-air intercooling
The
turbocharger has a water-cooled intercooler with a low-temperature circuit
independent of the engine cooling system. As a result we've cut the volume of
the charge air system by more than half, allowing a high charge pressure to
build up much more quickly. This gives improved dynamics because it reduces the
time it takes to achieve maximum charge in the combustion chambers.
Awards
for TSI
International Engine of the Year awards
Our
pioneering technology has impressed motoring experts from across the world. Our
1.4-litre TSI Twincharger engine has won the 1-litre to 1.4-litre category of
the prestigious International Engine of the Year Awards for five years running
and was voted the International Engine of the Year and Best Green Engine in
2009.
The jury
for this award is made up of 65 motoring journalists from 32 countries. At the
2009 Awards, the jury said: "Volkswagen not only attained an overall
victory, but also won the `Best Green Engine' award. This shows that driving
fun and fuel efficiency can certainly be unified in one package."
Dr
Rüdiger Szengel, Head of Volkswagen Petrol Engine Development, commented on
TSI: "Their combination of reduced displacement, direct injection and
intelligent engine boosting enables top dynamic performance while keeping
emissions and fuel consumption low. Winning awards in three key categories is
really a compliment to our development team. TSI engines are genuine
trendsetters."
Combining driving pleasure and economy
TSI, an acronym used by Volkswagen for petrol engines featuring its
"twincharger" (turbocharger plus supercharger) and Fuel Stratified
Injection technologies; latterly, also used for engines featuring only a
turbocharger and Fuel Stratified Injection. In developing TSI technology it
was Volkswagen's aim to create engines that offer significant benefits by
reducing fuel consumption and CO2 emissions while offering impressive power
delivery.
Advantages resulting from “downsizing”
The recipe for the success of
Volkswagen’s TSI engines is to be found in “downsizing.”
Maximum power is obtained with minimum fuel consumption from a smaller engine. The
reduction in engine size has brought better efficiency, as there is less power
loss resulting from friction. The smaller engines also have the advantage of
being lighter from the outset, so there's less weight to shift in the vehicle.
Volkswagen’s TSI engines take full advantage of these effects.
Gas direct injection plus charging
Pioneering technology used in TSI engines combines direct fuel injection with a
turbocharger or charge compression with a turbo and a supercharger, enabling
them to deliver impressive performance figures and torque as well as the full
spectrum of driving pleasure despite their smaller size. Combustion of fuel is
particularly efficient, with the result that power output of TSI engines is considerably higher than that of conventional,
naturally aspirated engines.
Torque at all engine speeds
Volkswagen TSI engines are designed to deliver maximum torque
from engine speeds as low as 1500 or 1800 rpm. This translates into driving
pleasure and fuel economy. The driver can make use of superb power delivery
across a wide range of engine speeds, andTSI engines can be combined to excellent effect
with higher, fuel-saving gear ratios.
Reduced fuel consumption with a performance bonus
With a combination of direct fuel
injection and turbocharging, TSI technology achieves unprecedented performance
figures for a 4-cylinder gas engine. It delivers high and even torque
development over a wide rev band plus outstanding engine power, coupled with
the characteristic good responsiveness and high engine revs of a gas engine.
The optimization resulting from direct injection enhances the engine’s dynamic
responsiveness while eliminating the much bemoaned “turbo lag.” As a result, it
consumes around 6% less fuel than the less powerful 1.6 FSI, which it will
replace in the long term.
Optimized fuel mixture
One of the factors that make this
possible is the newly developed injector with six fuel bores for electronic
direct injection. The injector jets are ideally aligned in relation to the
engine so as to achieve more efficient distribution of the fuel mixture within
the combustion chamber.
