Monday, 16 February 2015

Audi rolls with three-cylinder TFSI engine

The arrival of the Audi A1 with a three-cylinder TFSI gasoline engine has made weighing up the pros and cons of petrol and diesel power somewhat harder

The 97g/km TFSI version of the new three-cylinder engine marks the first time a gasoline  engine of this configuration has been installed in an Audi model, promising according to the company, to bring 67mile/gal economy within even easier reach.

The 95PS turbocharged three-cylinder gasoline engine replaces the hitherto baseline 89PS 1.2-litre four-cylinder engine available in the A1 since launch.

The engine offers 160Nm of torque to propel the A1 1-litre TFSI with standard five-speed manual gearbox to 62mile/h from rest in 10.9s, regardless of whether it is powering the three-door or five-door Sportback body style. A seven-speed S tronic twin-clutch transmission is also available, and with this installed the acceleration time is also unchanged in both versions. Top speed is 116mile/h in every case.

According to Audi the new engine can return up to 67.3mile/gal in the A1 with a standard manual gearbox, or 64.2mile/gal with the S tronic transmission, equating to CO2 figures of 97g/km and 102g/km respectively. These figures apply regardless of the body style chosen. Whether such figures can actually be achieved ‘by owner man in the street’ of course remains to be seen.


For comparison the 1.6-litre TDI, which retains its position as the most frugal option in the updated range, now benefits from an economy boost from 74.3mile/gal to 80.7mile/gal according to the combined cycle test, and a CO2 reduction from 99g/km to 92g/km in both body styles.

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