New VW drivetrains to include hybrid, gas and diesel systems

Volkswagen has announced at the Vienna Motor Symposium that it will be adding new drive systems to its model range, including mild hybrids with 48V technology, new diesel engines that will also be available as hybrid variants, and natural gas engines.

The 48V mild hybrid will be on the market for the next Golf generation and VW say that they are aiming to make its hybrid drives affordable to more people.

The natural gas engine Evo has a 1.5-litre direct injector, fitted with a VTG turbocharger and TSI/TGI Miller combustion process. It has a range of 490 km in CNG mode. Thanks to the automatic switch to petrol mode, the range is extended by an additional 190 km (all data has been calculated on the basis of the NEDC cycle). This engine is not scheduled to go on sale in the United Kingdom, however.

The new 2.0 TDI will be the first Volkswagen diesel engine to launch with a mild hybrid system. In conjunction with a lithium-ion battery, the mild hybrid system reduces fuel consumption and increases comfort. The TDI engines developed by Volkswagen will initially be used at Audi in vehicles with longitudinally installed drive train.