Late last month we reported that the Mk8 Golf GTI would gain a mild hybrid system, now it looks like the same system might replace some diesel Golfs, too.
Although VW has stopped offering diesel engines in America, Europe’s taste for diesels means that the automaker can’t just stop offering them all of a sudden. That said, new comments from brand boss, Herbert Diess suggest that the diesel’s days are numbered across the pond, too.
“The next Golf – the Mk8 – will lead a strong rollout of 48-volt electrics for us,” Diess told Auto Express. “I think we will have to substitute some of the diesels for micro-hybrids in that car; they will have similar fuel efficiency and better acceleration, but have a similar cost or even slightly less.”
Diess credits the increasing costs of making diesel engines clean enough to pass regulations for the move toward hybrids, reports Auto Express.
The seemingly likeliest engine to bite the dust would be the 1.6-liter TDI engine. This would probably be replaced by the 1.5-liter gas engine, to which a small electric motor would be attached. The little electric motor would help under acceleration and could power an electric compressor that would turbocharge the engine, like on Audi’s SQ7.
The Mk8 Golf isn’t expected until 2020, though, so the move away from diesel will be a slow one.
[source: Auto Express]
The post VW Stepping Away from Diesel in Europe appeared first on VWVortex.
from VWVortex http://ift.tt/2lnbRbm
via IFTTT
Comments
Post a Comment