February 25, 201412 yr Car and Driver is reporting that the next-generation Audi RS4 will retire the naturally-aspirated 4.2L V8 engine and use a turbocharged V6 engine. This is due to the upcoming emission regulations coming soon to Europe which are very stringent. Now the decision to go with a turbocharged V6 engine strikes us as odd since Audi currently has supercharged V6 that is being used in a number of their models. However Car and Driver says Quattro GmbH, the folks behind RS, is looking towards turbo power for future models. Car and Driver also reports that a decision on whether or not the next-generation RS4 will come to the U.S. hasn't been made. Source: Car and Driver William Maley is a staff writer for Cheers & Gears. He can be reached at [email protected] or you can follow him on twitter at @realmudmonster. View full article
February 25, 201412 yr That's because Audi doesn't make a fuel efficient V8 engine because they are either unwilling or unable to adopt a pushrod 2-valve design! Think about it... For the port injected generation, the Audi 40-valve 4.2 V8 made 340 hp / 302 lb-ft, weighed 195 kg and got 14 / 21 mpg. Moving to Direct Injection, their 4.2 32-valve 4.2 FSI V8 engine made 414 hp / 317 lb-ft, weighed 212 kg and got 13 / 20 mpg That's horrible! And the only way they know how to deal with it is to go to a V6 and bolt on a blower or pair of turbos. For comparison:- For the port injected generation, the GM 16-valve 6.2 Pushrod V8 made 426 hp / 420 lb-ft, weighed 183 kg and got 16 / 24 mpg (Camaro SS). Moving to Direct Injection, the GM 16-valve 6.2 Pushrod V8 made 455 hp / 460 lb-ft, weighed 211 kg and got 17 / 29 mpg (Corvette Stingray - albeit not weight comparable to the S4/RS4) Pushrods + Displacement = lighter, more powerful, much more torque and significantly better economy And, that's despite 48% greater displacement. If that doesn't call into question the "superiority" of low displacement, high complexity and high specific output designs, well... it should.
February 26, 201412 yr It will be a twin turbo V6 because they have that available from the Porsche Macan. With Bentley getting more and more turbo V8s, and the Audi's big gun the S8 has a turbo V8, it makes sense that the smaller vehicles in the VW stable get turbo V6 power. If this is a Europe only car, maybe they'll go with a 3.0 liter to try to beat displacement taxes, not sure why they wouldn't sell it in the USA, unless they just figure no one will buy it over an M3 or C63.
February 26, 201412 yr Crazy waste of time when they could drop in like dwight points out a solid pushrod v8. Turbo's are over rated.
February 26, 201412 yr Anyway... with the 460 bhp LT1 and the 630 bhp LT4, GM has plenty of firepower to throw onto a super sedan. The Europeans can try to get 600+ hp out of a turbo V6 or turbo V8 (of a smaller displacement). It's doable. But it'll be neither lighter, nor smaller, nor more fuel efficient, nor offer better drivability. And, it'll certainly cost a lot more and be a lot more complex. But, hey, it looks like they are committed to the path.
February 27, 201412 yr VW has a twin turbo V6 on the shelf they can use, they aren't going to make up a new V8 for a car with tiny sales volume. And Audi's have grip, let's remember a 420 hp S6 is quicker 0-60 than a 556 hp CTS-V. It is all about low end torque and grip. If the Porsche Macan turbo can do 0-60 in 4.4 seconds, I imagine the same engine in an RS4 that weighs less will be near the 4.0 second mark, that is pretty quick I bet the Audi S6 goes V6 also, saving the V8 for the RS6 with an insane price.
February 27, 201412 yr We VW has a twin turbo V6 on the shelf they can use, they aren't going to make up a new V8 for a car with tiny sales volume. And Audi's have grip, let's remember a 420 hp S6 is quicker 0-60 than a 556 hp CTS-V. It is all about low end torque and grip. If the Porsche Macan turbo can do 0-60 in 4.4 seconds, I imagine the same engine in an RS4 that weighs less will be near the 4.0 second mark, that is pretty quick I bet the Audi S6 goes V6 also, saving the V8 for the RS6 with an insane price. Well, that has everything to do with AWD and nothing to do with the engine.
February 27, 201412 yr VW has a twin turbo V6 on the shelf they can use, they aren't going to make up a new V8 for a car with tiny sales volume. ^^This
January 28, 201511 yr I don't really like how Audi prefers V engines in their vehicles. I personally prefer the sound of a straight six and why Audi never uses that configuration is interesting to me. I'm sure there is a reason. Despite this the old V8 was not a very fuel efficient engine but it sure did sound good.
January 28, 201511 yr I don't really like how Audi prefers V engines in their vehicles. I personally prefer the sound of a straight six and why Audi never uses that configuration is interesting to me. I'm sure there is a reason. Despite this the old V8 was not a very fuel efficient engine but it sure did sound good. Far be it for Germans to admit that the Americans build a superior V8 engine.
January 30, 201511 yr I don't really like how Audi prefers V engines in their vehicles. I personally prefer the sound of a straight six and why Audi never uses that configuration is interesting to me. I'm sure there is a reason. Despite this the old V8 was not a very fuel efficient engine but it sure did sound good. Far be it for Germans to admit that the Americans build a superior V8 engine. The only European V8 engine that I really like would be the V8 in the E39 M5. Not a huge fan of the others to be honest.
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