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Filed under: Diesel, Volkswagen

We took a pretty in-depth look at the first-ever turbocharged oil-burning machine to compete in the Trophy Truck class of the famed Baja 1000 race while we were at the LA Auto Show. The machine itself was a Touareg in name only and is an extremely impressive piece of kit in person. Still, while it had cutting-edge technology and a massive clean-diesel V12 engine putting out 550 horsepower and 625 lb-ft of torque, the truck was going up against a field of equally impressive (though likely much less efficient) entries, so it had its work cut out for it. Of course, the ultimate goal was surely to win the event, but even Volkswagen’s most arduous internal fans of the project must have realized that just finishing the 634-mile event would be a major accomplishment. Finish they did, managing to score a 13th position in the process. That finish may have been better if a defective seal hadn’t necessitated a replacement of the entire gearbox partway through the race.

As we’ve said before, there’s nothing green about racing a 5,650-pound behemoth like this Trophy Truck through the Baja desert. There is no denying, though, that the lessons learned from racing programs such as this often go a long way towards improving the vehicles that we as consumers will be driving in the coming years. In fact, Honda - often cited as the efficiency leader in the automotive realm - has been continually refining its designs through its racing programs since the company’s founding many years ago. Diesel racing is still in its infancy when compared to its gasoline counterpart, though the increasingly important efficiency equation is slowly but surely changing that fact.

Photos Copyright (C)2008 Jeremy Korzeniewski and Sebastian Blanco / Weblogs, Inc.
[Source: Volkswagen]

Continue reading VW Touareg TDI Trophy Truck finishes Baja in 13th place

VW Touareg TDI Trophy Truck finishes Baja in 13th place originally appeared on AutoblogGreen on Mon, 24 Nov 2008 13:55:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Filed under: Diesel, Audi, USA

It makes pretty good sense for Audi to launch a diesel version of its A3 compact hatch here in the States. Since it uses the same platform as the Rabbit and Jetta, the 2.0L TDI is a sure-fire fit behind the A3’s huge front grille. In fact, we’ve driven the A3 with that exact engine a few times already, notably while we were participating in the Audi Mileage Marathon a few weeks ago. Volkswagen has already certified its 140 horsepower oil-burner for sale here in the United States, so that’s one more gigantic and expensive hurdle that wouldn’t need to be crossed. Popular Mechanics recently sat down with officials from the German automaker and Audi’s head of powertrain development Wolfganag Hatz confirmed that an unspecified Auti automobile would join the Q7 on our shores equipped with a diesel engine as early as next Spring. Sounds good to us.

[Source: Popular Mechanics]

Audi likely to launch A3 TDI in US originally appeared on AutoblogGreen on Sun, 23 Nov 2008 15:57:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Filed under: Biodiesel, Etc., Green Daily

Biodiesel proponents do a lot of work to make people see the biofuel as an environmentally friendly alternative. But then James Raulerson pretty much gave them the finger.

The southeast Missouri man was sentenced this week to two years probation and given a $10,000 fine for violating the Clean Water Act. How did he violate the Act? By dumping biodiesel waste from Natural Biodiesel Plant LLC into a local ditch back in 2007. The waste, mostly glycerin but also other biodiesel byproducts, was pumped out of a tanker truck and killed at least 30,000 (maybe over 100,000) fish and other aquatic life, according to the Southeast Missourian. The Missouri DNR claims that it “spent a tremendous amount of time working with other state and federal agencies to investigate this violation and ensure it was properly cleaned up.” Nice one, James.

[Source: Southeast Missourian, Missouri DNR]
Photo by tuppus. Licensed under Creative Commons license 2.0.

Giving biodiesel a bad name: killling fish with glycerin in Missouri originally appeared on AutoblogGreen on Wed, 26 Nov 2008 19:59:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Filed under: Diesel, MINI

Last summer we had a chance to drive a European spec MINI Cooper D (that’s D as in diesel) and loved its combination of fantastic handling, torque and 47 real world mpg. Shortly after that we had the chance to speak with MINI USA VP Jim McDowell and asked about the possibility of the diesel MINI coming to America. At the time McDowell told us that there were two roadblocks to that happening. They needed a 50 state legal version of the diesel engine and more production capacity. This week in Los Angeles we had the chance to talk with McDowell again and the subject of the MINI D arose once more.

Basically, things have changed. In July, the MINI factory in Oxford England was running full tilt to keep up with demand. Since then, the collapse of the financial markets has meant a drop in sales, including MINI sales, across the board and around the world. That means more supply is now available than demand and we could get more MINIs in America if needed. The other issue is the technical one about US certification. That, too, is being addressed. According to McDowell, BMW is working on a Tier 2 Bin 5 compliant version of the MINI D engine. Instead of urea injection for NOx reduction, this would use a lean NOx trap like the Jetta TDI. While McDowell wouldn’t commit to a time-frame, it looks like we may get the MINI D sooner rather than later.

[Source: MINI]
Photos Copyright (C)2008 Sam Abuelsamid / Weblogs, Inc.

MINI Cooper D could arrive in America sooner than we thought originally appeared on AutoblogGreen on Sat, 22 Nov 2008 15:12:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Filed under: Diesel, Bentley, Volkswagen

It looks like Bentley chief Franz-Josef Paefgen is being over-ruled when it comes to what kinds of powertrains will appear in his cars in the future. Specifically, Volkswagen is firmly committed to diesel engines while Paefgen has said that they are inappropriate for Bentley automobiles. VW Group CEO Martin Winterkorn told Auto Motor und Sport that the company will respond to changing markets and he could imagine a diesel Bentley. The engine for the British luxury brand is likely to be a new twin turbocharged variant of the current 3.0L TDI V6 currently being developed by Audi engineers. That engine with over 300 hp and 440 lb-ft of torque is set to debut in 2009 in the new A8. A high torque engine like this would be a good choice in a Bentley.

[Source: AutoCar]

Bentley boss gets over-ruled, diesel possible originally appeared on AutoblogGreen on Sat, 22 Nov 2008 10:23:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Filed under: Diesel, Etc., Volkswagen

Regular readers will already be familiar with the happenings of the 2008 Volkswagen Jetta TDI Cup season; we’ve been bringing you updates throughout the year on the drivers, the races and, of course, the cars. The race versions were outfitted with 170hp 2.0L TDI engines and six speed DSG transmissions, but the closest most drivers will be able to get to these versions is the $26,995 Jetta TDI Cup Street Edition.

VW must be pleased that the final episode of the eight-episode SPEED TV documentary on the TDI Cup comes the weekend after the Jetta TDI was named the 2009 Green Car of the Year. The doc that airs later today is an hour-long look at the entire season, focusing on how the drivers - all of them new to the scene - adapted to the new cars and grew throughout the series. Check your local listings for airtime.

[Source: SPEED TV]

Jetta TDI Cup documentary airs today on SPEED originally appeared on AutoblogGreen on Sat, 22 Nov 2008 08:42:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Filed under: Diesel, Volkswagen, LA Auto Show

Volkswagen is showing off the new Touareg V6 TDI at the LA Auto Show before it goes on sale in around March of 2009. The V6 TDI replaces the old V10 TDI in the lineup and uses the same 3.0L V6 diesel that’s going into the Audi Q7 TDI. At 221 hp and 407 lb-ft of torque, it should offer plenty of performance while still getting EPA mileage ratings of 17 mpg city/ 25 mpg highway. The city rating is 2 mpg less than the Q7, which VW spokesman Steve Keyes attributes to the Touareg’s extra weight. The Q7 uses significantly more aluminum in its structure. With the Touareg’s 26.4 galllon tank that should give it a 600-mile range. Given the real-world 29 mpg we got with the Q7 on the Mileage Marathon, 25 mpg in all around driving with the Touareg should be easily attainable. Keyes told ABG that AMCI will be doing some real world mileage testing of the Touareg as they did with the Jetta and those numbers are expected to exceed the EPA sticker values.

[Source: Volkswagen]
Photos Copyright (C)2008 Sam Abuelsamid / Weblogs, Inc.

Continue reading LA 2008: Volkswagen Touareg V6 TDI, 25 mpg highway

LA 2008: Volkswagen Touareg V6 TDI, 25 mpg highway originally appeared on AutoblogGreen on Thu, 20 Nov 2008 17:46:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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