Skoda Auto Launches Production of a New Low-Volume Supercharged Engine

BOTANY, AUSTRALIA – November 19, 2009: Škoda Auto has started producing a brand new engine in its Mladá Boleslav plant. The new unit is going to be fitted to Škoda, Audi, Volkswagen and Seat vehicles.

The all-new product is a 1.2-litre supercharged four-cylinder (77 kW) engine with direct fuel injection. The identification of vehicles to be fitted with this engine is going to include the abbreviation “TSI”. One of the key targets in the product development process was to reduce CO2 emissions and fuel consumption.

“This brand new TSI engine provides a unique opportunity of combining environmental friendliness with a well-balanced driving performance. With substantially lower CO2 figures, this new engine needs to be seen as a contribution to a significant reduction of average emission volumes in our cars,” said Škoda Auto BOD Chairman Reinhard Jung.

The new engine is going to take the environmental friendliness across the Volkswagen Group brands to the next level. Furthermore, this project is a reason for increasing the total capacity of Škoda Auto's engine manufacturing plant. “I am very pleased that the first installation is going to be performed at Škoda Auto and that I have a chance to be involved in this project," said Head of the Engine Manufacturing Plant Project Joachim Rossmanit.

The engine manufacturing plant in Mladá Boleslav produced 270,875 three-cylinder 1.2 HTP atmospheric engines and 538,069 MQ 200 transmissions in 2008. Besides fitting the new engine, the Mladá Boleslav plant is going to cast the engine block and machine a number of key parts.

“This new unit is going to be one of the most important engines for the company, and we are indeed pleased that it is our plant that is going to manufacture it,” says Milan Staněk, Head of Engine Manufacturing at Škoda Auto. Škoda Auto's engine manufacturing department was recently also commissioned to produce new MQ 100 transmissions