Group Volkswagen will soon eliminate its V8 engines

As the headline of this article says, Group Volkswagen will soon stop producing V8 engines, both diesel and petrol. In fact, it seems that the newly presented V8 engine will be the last one the German multinational develops.

This is what the outlet AutoCar reports. The truth is that the economic investment needed to develop an engine that is then used very little is too high. Moreover, it is time to work on efficient powertrains, with low consumption and emissions, yet capable of delivering high power when the driver demands it.

In this regard, it seems that the future belongs to electric powertrains and, above all, hybrids. The financial outlay for a manufacturer is also very high, but it is where the future points, so in the long run it pays for itself. Perhaps for this reason, it is not profitable for Volkswagen to invest large sums of money in two totally opposite fields.

The manufacturer’s source who spoke with AutoCar, according to the outlet, said that for VAG “it would be difficult to justify the enormous investment in another new V8 due to the development cost of electric propulsion systems and their batteries”. It also added that “in 2025, the management plan of Audi is to have between 25 and 35% of electrified vehicles in production”.

V8s are large engines that have high levels of pollution, which is why many manufacturers are replacing them with smaller powerplants such as V6s or four-cylinder engines. We only need to look at Volvo, which in its largest car, the XC90, and in the new S90 and V90 saloons, only offers four-cylinder engines. That said, the most powerful versions rely on hybridisation with an electric system to achieve higher power and torque figures.

The new V8 engine from Group Volkswagen, debuted in the Audi SQ7, is diesel and features two turbos and an electric compressor. In this way, it delivers a powerful response in any driving situation. On the other hand, the new high-end models from Audi, as well as several vehicles from Bentley and Porsche, will get an already developed petrol V8.

It is a shame that the manufacturer will not continue to bet on V8s for much longer. Perhaps the dieselgate scandal and the need for Volkswagen to clean up its image with efficient powertrains have also influenced this decision.

Source | AutoCar