Audi, Porsche to Co-Develop New Engines

Volkswagen AG's Audi and Porsche units plan to co-develop a new family of V-6 and V-8 engines, Autocar reports. The engines codenamed KoVoMo eventually will be offered by other Volkswagen Group brands too, including Bentley, VW and possibly Lamborghini, according to the British magazine.

The new powerplants will feature a modular 90 architecture with a scalable displacement topping out at 500 cc, according to the German enthusiast publication. The base units will be a 3.0-liter V-6 and a 4.0-liter V-8. Audi also may use the architecture as the basis for an entry-level 2.5-liter Atkinson cycle V-6, Autocar says.

Initially, the new engines will use traditional exhaust-driven turbochargers to boost power. But they also will be able to accommodate emerging electric turbo compressors, which minimize turbo lag at low engine speeds.

Autocar offered no timeframe for the introduction of the new engines.