Audi board member for technical development Ulrich Hackenberg has confirmed that an Audi SQ7 will arrive in 2016 and be fitted with an electric turbocharged engine. The Audi SQ7 will be the first model from the German automaker to utilise electric turbocharging after it was revealed on the Audi RS5 TDI Concept recently revealed.
While speaking with Autocar, Hackenberg said, “The new Q7 will be available in the market next year but the electric turbo will come a bit later in the Audi SQ7 available in 2016.”
The Audi SQ7 will arrive as part of the next-generation Q7 range and will be the second diesel powered S model offered by Audi alongside the SQ5 SUV.
In the RS5 TDI Concept, this new engine manages to deliver around 380 hp but most impressively, a mega 553 lb-ft of torque. Helping to ensure that power is available as soon as the throttle pedal is depressed, the RS5 TDI Concept utilises an advanced electric compressor to eliminate all turbo lag by ensuring that the smaller of the two turbochargers, is always spolled up.
All of the power is sent to all four wheels via Audi’s quattro system and an eight-speed automatic transmission. Consequently, Audi claims the RS5 TDI Concept will hit 100 km/h in just around 4 seconds and a top speed above 280 km/h (174 mph).
Of course, these figures aren’t the be all and end all of the new concept. What is arguably even more impressive is the fact that the TDI Concept manages to consume less than 5 litres of diesel per 100 km over the average cycle.
[Via Autocar]
