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How do you get 168bhp from a 1.4-litre car? Simple: create what's believed to be the world's first turbocharged supercharger. VW has done exactly that on an FSI petrol engine which debuts next year in the Golf GT.

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The GT's pioneering 'super-turbo' technology will deliver 240Nm of torque - that's only 40Nm less than the GTI - and 0-60mph in eight seconds. Mated to a six-speed manual or DSG auto box, the car will have lowered suspension, a GTI-style front grille, twin exhausts and unique alloys.
Meanwhile, the facelifted Beetle is due in September. Two higher-spec Luna versions replace the base 1.4 and 1.6-litre cars, starting at £11,245.

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Volkswagen will reach into the past for a combined supercharger-turbocharger system to boost power and fuel economy in its small gasoline engines.

The system, dubbed SuperTurbo Compounding by supercharger supplier Eaton, eliminates turbo lag while boosting overall power and fuel economy by 15 to 20 percent. Eaton, the apparent supplier of the supercharger for the engine, says a car fitted with the system will likely be shown at the upcoming Frankfurt show.

Engineers have combined superchargers and turbochargers in the past, most notably in World War II-era aircraft to avoid engine power losses at higher altitudes. Automotive applications have been limited, but include an Abarth-developed system used on the 1985 Lancia Delta S4 rally car.

Today’s computers make the complex induction system seamless in the new application, which uses a mechanical supercharger operating at low engine speeds to increase low-end torque, and a turbocharger engaging at middling revs to provide added muscle up high. Once the turbo reaches sufficient speed to provide boost, a clutch disengages the supercharger and an induction valve closes, bypassing the supercharger.

VW’s plans call for widespread use of the system, starting with a 1.4-liter direct-injection engine that is expected to debut in the 2006 Golf before heading into other VW models.

Two different versions of the 1.4-liter engine are planned. In standard guise the four-valve-per-cylinder unit kicks out 140 hp and 184 lb-ft of torque, with a more performance-oriented variant producing 170 hp and 199 lb-ft. By comparison, VW’s existing 2.0-liter four-cylinder delivers 150 hp and 148 lb-ft.

Also under way at VW are more powerful 1.6-liter and 2.0-liter versions of the supercharged/turbocharged engine with a rumored 195 hp and 240 hp, respectively.

Eaton officials said the system will initially appear on cars in Europe where it is expected to compete with turbodiesel engines. The system also could be fitted to diesels, but its future in the North American market could depend on fuel prices and demands for bigger engines.

“In the U.S., displacement is still king,” said one Eaton exec.

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Also under way at VW are more powerful 1.6-liter and 2.0-liter versions of the supercharged/turbocharged engine with a rumored 195 hp and 240 hp, respectively.

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“In the U.S., displacement is still king,” said one Eaton exec.

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Driven by spiraling gasoline prices and ever stringent emission regulations, the push is on at Volkswagen to introduce a range of small engines, all with reduced fuel consumption and emissions, capable of delivering the sort of power one might expect of their larger-capacity cousins.

It’s a tough task, but if VW’s newest Twincharger engine (Aug. 29) is any indication, Wolfsburg could be onto something.

Fitted to the European-market Golf GT, the 1.4-liter four-cylinder uses supercharging and turbocharging to boost output, picking up on an idea introduced by Nissan on its Japan-market March. The supercharger boosts low-end response and flattens the torque curve, while the turbocharger strengthens the top end.

The Twincharger delivers 170 hp at 6000 rpm and 177 lb-ft of torque from 1750 to 4500 rpm—20 hp and 29 lb-ft more than VW’s 2.0-liter FSI four-cylinder.

The result is serious pull off the line, with a sturdy 147 lb-ft of torque available from just 1250 rpm. The induction system makes the four-valve-per-cylinder unit extraordinarily responsive, extremely flexible and wonderfully linear well beyond the 2400-rpm peak where the supercharger begins to disengage.

At that point the turbocharger is already providing a decent amount of boost, without any discernable change to the driver. There is no turbo lag, and no undue harshness or supercharger whine, even when the little four hits its 7300-rpm redline.

VW says the Twincharger Golf GT’s 0-to-62-mph time is 7.9 seconds, down from 8.8 seconds for the Golf 2.0-liter FSI. A better reflection of the new engine’s enthusiastic nature is the 50-to-75-mph time, which is reduced by a second. Top speed is extended by 6 mph to 136 mph.

VW also claims better fuel economy, reduced emissions and lower engine noise levels, though there is an odd whistle from the turbocharger as it comes off boost. If this is the future of gasoline engines, it may mean diesel powerplants have already hit an all-time high in the marketplace.

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