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For a fully-electric racing car like the Volkswagen I.D. R Pikes Peak, the weight of the battery is especially important: it is the heaviest individual component – and each increase in weight has a detrimental effect on the car’s performance. It was logical for the Volkswagen Motorsport engineers to keep the batteries as small and light as possible in the record-breaking car. In addition to the sophisticated, weight-saving lithium-ion design, they are relying on technology that is already implemented in numerous electrically-driven production models: recuperation.

In a conventionally-driven car, much of the energy generated by braking is converted into heat and is lost. In an electric car, this energy flows back into the battery packs. The I.D. R Pikes Peak itself produces part of the electrical energy required for the two engines, which generate 500 kW (680 PS). “This allowed us to reduce the dimensions of the batteries and keep the vehicle weight, with driver, well under 1,100 kilograms,” explains Piotr Wrzuszczak, Head of Research and Development Concepts at Volkswagen Motorsport.

However, the Volkswagen Motorsport engineers had not yet had any experience with recuperation. They were supported by the technical departments for e-mobility at the parent company in Wolfsburg and at the Volkswagen Preproduction Center (VSC) in Brunswick. “The cooperation with our colleagues from series development was a big help and saved us a lot of time,” says Wrzuszczak.

Golf GTI TCR touring car as development agent 

To make the learning process easier, Volkswagen Motorsport first installed an electric drivetrain in a Golf GTI TCR from touring car racing. This experimental vehicle was used a mobile laboratory at the Volkswagen test site in Ehra-Lessien. The focus was on recuperation. “As we were not able to test on the original circuit at Pikes Peak, we compared the data harvested from the converted TCR race car with the data produced in the simulator at Volkswagen Motorsport. We had programmed the whole track as a model in the computer,” explains Wrzuszczak. 

The simulations were used to answer an important question: what portion of the energy required during the race will be produced by the on-board systems in the I.D. R Pikes Peak? A high percentage requires large generators, while big batteries need a correspondingly lower percentage – both options mean extra weight on board. “We finally settled on a value of 20 per cent as ideal,” recalls Wrzuszczak.

Recuperation must not affect the driving experience 

The engineers also worked on another challenge in the simulator and during test drives. Regardless of whether it’s a race car or a production vehicle: the driver should barely notice the recuperation process and it should not have any effect on braking. The balance between the mechanical brake and the braking effect of the electric motors, which work as generators during deceleration, is decisive. 

“The interplay between recuperation and braking is controlled by the on-board computer in the I.D. R Pikes Peak,” explains Wrzuszczak. Racing cars have far more extreme objectives than production cars, and the software is programmed much more aggressively. However, the production car also has to deliver the best braking feeling for the driver, make use of coasting phases and ensure that the battery recharged effectively without surges.

“One factor to be taken into account was limiting recuperation with a fully-charged battery right after the start,” adds Wrzuszczak. Energy management towards the end of the 19.99-kilometre race was also a complex task: with a racing car that uses a combustion engine, weight concerns mean that crossing the line with a near-empty tank is ideal. “We had a different task with the I.D. R Pikes Peak,” says Wrzuszczak. “Batteries that have nearly completely discharged do not perform as well. That is why our strategy was to avoid the charge level dropping below 30 per cent, even just before the finish line.” 

This plan worked perfectly at the “96th Pikes Peak International Hill Climb” on 24 June 2018: the I.D. R Pikes Peak delivered a great performance for Volkswagen driver Romain Dumas during the final kilometres leading up to the 4,302-metre summit – vital for the new track record of 7:57.148 minutes. 

Recording record times on the racetrack is not the objective for the vehicles in the I.D. Family, which Volkswagen will be bringing to market from 2020. The recuperation strategy applied during the record-breaking performance of the I.D. R Pikes Peak provided plenty of data for the development of the first fully-electrically driven production cars for this brand.

Article source: www.volkswagen-newsroom.com

• Electric racing car comes to iconic event in Jüchen as a double record holder
• Autostadt presents I.D. R Pikes Peak along with numerous racing legends
• Video: development history of the I.D. R Pikes Peak – from the idea to the record-breaking drive

From 03 to 05 August the time has come: the Volkswagen I.D. R Pikes Peak will make its debut in Germany at the 13th Classic Days at Schloss Dyck. The Autostadt in Wolfsburg will present Volkswagen’s first all-electric powered racing car at their “Passion | Pace | Performance” exhibition. With around 40 exhibits, ranging from the 1920s Bugatti to the current Volkswagen I.D. R Pikes Peak, the motorsport brand diversity of the Volkswagen Group will be presented, focussing on the past, present day and future. The 500 kW (680 PS) I.D. R Pikes Peak is the sporting forerunner of the I.D. family, the series of all-electric powered production cars that Volkswagen will be launching as of 2020.

Volkswagen Retailers are today, Thursday 9 August, making available to order a new turbo diesel engine to the all-new Touareg range. The 3.0-litre V6 TDI unit has an output of 231 PS and joins the 286 PS TDI engine that the Touareg launched with in June.

Both engines are available on the new model’s three trims – the Touareg SEL, Touareg R-Line and Touareg R-Line Tech. This enhances customer choice and results in a lower starting price for the car. The all-new Touareg SEL with the new 231 PS V6 TDI engine is priced at £48,995 (RRP OTR).

The 231 PS engine delivers maximum power from 3,250 rpm to 4,750 rpm. Peak torque is 500 Nm from 1,750 rpm to 3,000 rpm and the new engine maintains the same CO₂ figure (173 g/km) and the same towing capacity (3,500 kg) as the 286 PS unit.

Article source: www.volkswagen.co.uk

New engine family.

The 1.4 TSI of the Polo BlueGT is the top engine of the entirely new series of petrol engines that has been developed. The engine range consists of 1.0, 1.2 and 1.4 litre engines. The efficient 1.0-litre three-cylinder engines are used to drive such cars as the new up!. The 1.2- and 1.4-litre four-cylinder engines were each designed as charged direct fuel injection engines (TSI).

The outstanding technical aspect of the engine is its active cylinder management (ACT). Volkswagen is the first carmaker to implement this fuel saving cylinder deactivation technology on four-cylinder engines, as it was previously the preserve of large eight or 12 cylinder engines. Shutting down the second and third cylinders during low and medium load states reduces fuel consumption in the EU driving cycle by about 0.4 l/60 miles*. For urban driving it saves as much as 1.0 l/60 miles*. Even while driving at 70 km/h in fifth gear, fuel consumption of the Polo BlueGT is reduced by 0.7 l/60 miles*.

*This information should be used for illustration purposes only. Standard EU Test figures for comparative purposes, may not reflect real driving results.

Active cylinder Technology (ACT) mode of operation.

ACT is active over an engine speed range between 1,400 and 4,000 rpm and torque outputs between 25 and approx. 100 Nm – a range that covers nearly 70 per cent of all driving states in the EU driving cycle! If the driver presses the accelerator pedal hard, both cylinders begin to work again without a noticeable transition. The high efficiency of the system has no negative effects on smooth running: even with two cylinders the excellently balanced the 1.4 TSI engine of the Polo BlueGT runs very quietly and with low vibration.

All mechanical switchover processes take place within one-half of a camshaft rotation; depending on engine speed this takes between just 13 and 36 milliseconds. Accompanying interventions in ignition and throttle valve processes smooth the transitions. What’s more, thanks to an accelerator pedal sensor and intelligent monitoring software, the system can also detect irregular driving profiles – such as during a drive through a roundabout or in sporty shifting on a highway. In such cases, cylinder shut-off is deactivated. The driver is aware of whether two or four cylinders are active by a related indicator in the multifunction display between the speedometer and tachometer.

ACT components.

Altogether, the components of active cylinder management weigh just three kilogrammes. Their actuators, the camshafts and their bearing frames are integrated in the cylinder head; two low-friction bearings reduce friction of the shafts. It is only with the TSI concept – petrol direct injection plus turbocharging – that a cylinder deactivation is even conceivable in its form today.

Aluminium block reduces weight.

Thanks to an ultra-rigid aluminium die-cast crankcase, the new petrol engines are especially light with a maximum weight of 114 kg. The 1.4 TSI of the new Polo BlueGT is 22 kg lighter than its counterpart of the previous engine series. The meticulously practised lightweight construction for which Volkswagen is renowned extends to the smallest of details: for example, engine developers reduced the crankshaft main bearing diameter of the 1.4 TSI from 54 to 48 mm; the crankshaft itself was lightened by 20 per cent, while the weight of the connecting rods was even reduced by 25 per cent. The rod bearing pins are hollow bored, and the aluminium pistons (now with flat piston crowns) have also been weight-optimised.

Exhaust manifold in the cylinder head.

Particular importance was also paid to the whole issue of thermal management. To use optimally the thermal energy of the exhaust in the hot running phase, and to cool it more effectively at high loads, the exhaust manifold of the new engines was integrated in the cylinder head and was provided with its own cooling jacket.

Small turbocharger, big effects.

By means of the innovative construction of the exhaust manifold, Volkswagen was also able to use a very narrow single-scroll compressor in turbocharger selection. This also reduced the engine’s weight. In the new engine, the intercooler was integrated in the induction pipe which is made of injection-moulded plastic, allowing significantly accelerated pressure build-up. This has resulted in very responsive downsized engines.

Toothed belt in the valve drive.

In the new generation of engines, Volkswagen was also able to make further significant reductions in internal friction. Take the example of the overhead camshafts (DOHC): the drive here is not by chain, rather by a single-stage, low-friction toothed belt drive with a 20 mm wide belt and load-reducing profiled belt wheels. Actuation of the valve drive via roller cam followers and an anti-friction bearing for the high loads of the first camshaft bearing also lead to reduced friction resistances.

To ensure that the engine takes up as little mounting space as possible, ancillary components such as the water pump, air conditioning compressor and alternator are screwed directly to the engine and the oil sump without additional brackets, and they are driven by a single-track toothed belt with a permanent tension roller.

Volkswagen recommends a five year change interval for the toothed-belt.

Variable camshaft for more torque.

To reduce emissions and fuel consumption further, and to improve torque in the lower rev range, the intake camshaft on the engines was designed to be adjustable over a crankshaft angle range of 50 degrees– on the 140 PS 1.4 TSI of the new Polo BlueGT an exhaust camshaft adjuster is added. It permits the desired spread of control times, enabling even more spontaneous response from low revs; at the same time, torque is improved at high revs.

200 bar injection pressure.

The maximum injection pressure of the new TSI versions (direct fuel injection) is 200 bar. State-of-the-art five-hole injection nozzles deliver up to three individual injections to each of the cylinders via a stainless steel distributor bar with extreme precision. In designing the combustion chamber, Volkswagen also paid particular attention to achieving minimal wetting of the combustion chamber walls with fuel and to optimised flame propagation.

Article source: www.volkswagen.co.uk