At this year’s Wörthersee Tour festival in Austria, Audi will unveil the TT clubsport turbo concept, which delivers 600ps and 650Nm with the help of an electrically driven biturbo compressor that is close to being production ready. With its stripped-out interior, wider stance and distinctive rear wing, the TT clubsport turbo is intentionally reminiscent of the Audi 90 IMSA GTO race car of the late 1980s.
“The electric biturbo signifies a new dimension in driving enjoyment; it boosts sprinting ability and torque and enables high peak power,” explains Ulrich Hackenberg, Audi board member for technical development. “In our TDI engines, we are close to production readiness with this technology. We are now presenting it in a TFSI – [which is] here too. We are the first automaker in the world to do this. For our fans at Wörthersee, we have packaged the electric biturbo in a very sporty show car.”
The Audi TT clubsport turbo has a power-boosted 2.5-liter TFSI engine with impressive performance data. From 2,480cc of displacement, the five-cylinder engine produces 600ps of power and 650Nm of torque – the latter from 3,000 to 7,000rpm – which equates to 240ps and 260Nm per liter of displacement. Power is transferred via a manual six-speed transmission.
The TT clubsport turbo show car sprints from 0 to 100km/h mph in 3.6 seconds, with a top speed of 309km/h.
An electrically powered compressor offers significant advantages. It revs up to maximum rpm rapidly and without any perceptible delay, and continues to boost charge pressure when too little drive energy is left in the exhaust gas for the conventional turbocharger. This operating principle makes it possible to design the conventional turbocharger more specifically for high charge pressures and consequently for high engine power – the e-turbo assures spontaneous response and powerful sprints from low engine speeds at all times.
Audi has also taken measures to retain its distinctive five-cylinder sound. The exhaust system is designed for minimal backpressure; a side pipe to the ambient air is located immediately after the racing-type muffler. The 2.5-liter TFSI engine is cooled by a racing-type radiator. In the lower engine speed range, the electrically driven compressor boosts torque by up to 200Nm.
A dedicated 48V electrical sub-system supplies electrical energy to the turbocharger. A compact lithium-ion battery in the luggage compartment stores the energy that is generated by recuperation when coasting. A DC/DC converter provides the connection to the 12V electrical system.
May 14, 2015
