TSI: Powerful and Fuel Efficent Engine from Volkswagen

It was time for me to buy a new car and I was definitely going to buy a Volkswagen but I wasn't sure what model I was going to get. I was watching the television as I saw the new advertisement of Volkswagen Golf in 2007. The advertisement was about the new engine that Volkswagen engineers built, the TSI. In the advertisement, a fly was taking a chameleon to the air, which was trying to catch the fly with its tongue. First I thought it was an advertisement from National Geographic. This advertisement got me very interested in the new engine and after I gather some information, I bought a Volkswagen Golf TSI.

Volkswagen is very much experienced in producing small capacity engines like 1.4 liters and they took the advantage of it. The TSI technology is using a 1.4 liter engine; supercharger and turbo to power it. This technology was seen before in the Group B World Rally Cars like Lancia Delta S4 which was later banned because it was too fast. The engine power is increased by the fresh air supplied by turbo and supercharger. The TSI engine is producing 140 hp for a regular Golf and 170 hp for a Golf GT. The only difference between these two engines is the ECU that is programmed to provide extra 30 hp for the Golf GT. This engine is also fuel efficient if it is used calmly; goes about 19-21 kilometers (30-32 mpg US) with only one liter of gas. As we all need adrenaline sometime, if you decide it is time to be fast, the regular Golf with 140 hp TSI engine can take you to 100 kmh (about 60mph) in 8.8 seconds. 8.8 seconds is faster than the Mercedes SLK 230 and BMW 325 which they have almost the twice engine capacity of the Volkswagen Golf TSI. The maximum speed is 210-220 kmh (130-136 mph). In a safe driving area, I reached 205 kmh. The TSI engine also doesn't have the turbo lag with the help of the supercharger. The supercharger kicks in at the low revs that make the car have a good engine response. It is very exciting to drive uphill with this engine. The engine seems very much reliable and stable as I haven't seen overheating even I am driving the car in a place hotter than 100 °F during summers.