BY JUERGEN ZOELLTER
The Audi R10 rewrote the record books on the racetrack this year when the V-12 diesel race car won the 24 Hours of Le Mans. This result apparently so excited Audi that it has decided to build a V-12 diesel passenger vehicle.The Q7 V-12 TDI just made its debut at the 2007 Detroit show in January, but we already got an early drive in a prototype of the world’s first V-12 diesel engine. It’s set to shock the sports-car fraternity even more than did the Cayenne Turbo, thanks to 493 horsepower and 738 pound-feet of torque.
The twin-turbocharged 5.9-liter V-12 engine is influenced by the R10 race car, but it shares its bore and stroke with Audi’s current V-6 and V-8 diesels. Weighing 728 pounds, the V-12 has an iron-block 60-degree cylinder-bank angle instead of the racer’s 90-degree aluminum block. Bosch supplies the common-rail injection system, which pumps up to 29,000 psi of pressure through 12 piezoinjectors. Audi boss Martin Winterkorn has confirmed that the engine will have a urea injection system (similar to Mercedes’ AdBlue technology) when introduced to the U.S. in 2008.
If you turn off the stability system, hard acceleration in first and second gears paints black rubber stripes down the highway despite the best efforts of the Quattro system to make the thing behave. Audi claims this SUV will rip from 0 to 62 mph in 5.5 seconds, with top speed governed at 155 mph. Winterkorn is pleased with the fuel consumption: The Q7 V-12 TDI gets 20 mpg on the European combined cycle.Don’t think, however, that this engine turns the Q7 into a sports car. In fast corners and under heavy braking, the monster diesel shows the limits of a high center of gravity and so much weight.
The car goes on sale in Europe next year, priced at Cayenne Turbo S money: Think $110,000 or more.
VEHICLE TYPE: front-engine, 4-wheel-drive, 7-passenger, 5-door wagon
ESTIMATED BASE PRICE: $110,000
ENGINE TYPE: twin-turbocharged and intercooled DOHC 48-valve diesel V-12, iron block and aluminum heads, direct fuel injectionDisplacement: 362 cu in, 5934ccPower (SAE net): 493 bhp @ 4000 rpmTorque (SAE net): 738 lb-ft @ 1750 rpm
TRANSMISSION: 6-speed automatic with manumatic shifting
DIMENSIONS:
Wheelbase: 118.2 in
Length: 200.2 in
Width: 78.1 in
Height: 68.4 in
Curb weight: 5700 lb
PERFORMANCE (MFR’S EST): Zero to 62 mph: 5.5 sec Top speed (governor limited): 155 mph
PROJECTED FUEL ECONOMY (MFR’S EST): European combined cycle: 20 mpg
