[TDV6]

There is a lot of great information on the 2011 Touareg buying guide, but the 2010 fuel economy is incorrect in l/100 kms, the highway rating is 8 l/100km, I am not sure about the city rating.

Also in the V6TDI engine description (http://www.myturbodiesel.com/1000q/V6-TDI-engine-FAQ.htm) there are only two timing chains on the current engine, four timing chains were on the predecessor to the current engine. Quote: Additional measures for reducing friction target the chain drive. Whereas the previous engine still used four chains and a toothed belt, only two chains are needed now. They drive the four camshafts with their narrow bearings, the balance shaft, the regulated oil pump and the common rail system's efficient high-pressure pump.

Refer to: http://green.autoblog.com/2010/05/05/audi-introduces-lighter-more-efficient-3-0l-v6-turbodiesel/

Audi also totally redesigned the chain guide and lubrication system to reduce chain wear and noise.

One of the huge technical advances Audi made for this engine was the development of the laser honing process which reduces piston ring and cylinder wear, friction and oil consumption.

Refer to: http://www.optoiq.com/index/lasers-for-manufacturing/display/ils-article-display/214247/articles/industrial-laser-solutions/volume-19/issue-10/features/targeting-diesel-engine-efficiency.html

Another engine machining advance was the development of Quote: "plate honing, in which a plate is bolted onto the crankcase prior to the mechanical honing of the cylinder barrels. This simulates the pretension that the cylinder head will exert later during operation and which results in deviations from perfect roundness on the scale of just thousandths of a millimeter." Refer to Autoblog article above.

The new V6 TDI block is also made of Compacted Graphite Iron (CGI).

Quote: "While not quite as strong as ductile iron, CGI is 75 percent stronger and up to 75 percent stiffer than gray iron.

The thermal and damping characteristics of CGI are midway between ductile and gray iron. It is five times more fatigue resistant than aluminum at elevated temperatures, and twice as resistant to metal fatigue as gray iron.

The nodularity and tensile strength of the material also increases as wall-section decreases.

These properties have most recently been found to make CGI ideally suited for engine manufacturing, where lighter and stronger materials are needed which can absorb more power.

An assembled automotive engine can be made nine percent lighter with CGI. The engine block weight alone can be reduced by 22 percent. This corresponds to a 15 percent reduction in length and a five percent reduction in height and width.

All V-engines share a common design weakness, as there is a lot of flexing in the V-area between the cylinders when it is under power. CGI strengthens this physical area considerably.

Audi is an early user of CGI material in its power production. All Audi 2.7L, 3.0 V6 and 4.0 V8 diesel engine blocks are now being made of CGI."

Refer to: http://www.competitiveproduction.com/features/default.aspx?article_id=1388

This engine is rightly considered a technical tour de force and is the most advanced diesel engine in production. It won the Engine of the Year Award when it was introduced.

 

[chittychittybangbang]

Thanks for the input, I will fix any problems immediately. DOH! I don't know how the 14 got in front of the 8 but it's now fixed.

According to ETKA, the CATA engine has 4 timing chains. My best guess is that the 2010 European model uses another engine while the US/Canada still uses the CATA. From Autoblog:

Update: Just to be clear, although we won't get the new lighter engine in the U.S. yet, the current engine is in many ways still the most advanced version because of the after-treatment systems to make it meet 50-state emissions standards.

The press release clearly says 2 timing chains but the video I downloaded from TV showing construction of the engine at the 1:55 mark shows the balance shaft chain in the middle, the cam chains, and what is clearly a sprocket for another chain (not yet installed) on the left as the builder attaches another tensioner for a chain that isn't yet installed. At 2:03, you can see 3 chains. I think this means the video is of the older engine (the video was taken at the end of last year) that we get for 2010 and might get next year.

Very interesting, thanks for the heads up!

 

[chittychittybangbang]

After checking the parts catalog, I can confirm that any 2010 Audi Q7 w/CJGA, CJGC, or CJMA engine has the 2 timing chain setup. The CASB, CASA, CCMA, or CATA engines have the 4 timing chain setup.

The USA ETKA also shows CJGA, CJGC, and CJMA engines so I don't know if that means they were available since I don't know why they would have 2 very different engines in the US.

Interestingly enough, I don't show the more advanced engine for any 2011 Touareg, even in Germany.

 

[TDV6]

re: timing chains.

Maybe that is part of the justification for the Audi price premium. The 2 chain engine will probably trickle down the Touareg soon, as they usually do not want to keep producing too many variants.

Great to have a technical TDI site!