New 1.6-Litre Diesel Engine Continues Powertrain Revival At Vauxhall

LUTON, UNITED KINGDOM – Jan 16, 2013: Vauxhall continues the renewal of its powertrain portfolio with an all-new four-cylinder, turbo-diesel engine. The second family of new downsized power units to be introduced after the petrol 1.6-litre SIDI ECOTEC, the 1.6-litre CDTI ECOTEC diesels will replace existing 1.7-litre engines and certain lower powered versions of the 2.0-litre range.

Featuring closed-loop combustion control and an aluminium block, the new 1.6 CDTI ECOTEC is the first diesel from Vauxhall to comply with future Euro 6 emissions requirements. The engine will be available in a variety of power outputs across several car lines.

Class-leading NVH (Noise, Vibration and Harshness), high power/torque density and low fuel consumption were the main development targets. Initially maximum power and torque have been increased versus the 1.7-litre engine to 136PS and 320Nm respectively, while fuel consumption has been reduced by up to 10 per cent compared with similarly powerful 2.0-litre diesels.

“The comprehensive renewal of our powertrain portfolio continues at full throttle,” said Dr. Thomas Sedran, Deputy Chairman of the Opel/Vauxhall Management Board. “Our new 1.6-litre diesel will set benchmarks for refinement, performance and environmental compatibility. By the end of next year we will have launched three all-new generations of petrol and diesel engines, as part of our roll-out of 23 new models and 13 new powertrains by 2016.”

The new 1.6-litre diesel and its innovative engine control unit have been entirely developed in-house by a global team of engineers in Turin, Ruesselsheim and the USA. Beginning in spring, the 1.6 CDTI ECOTEC will be manufactured at the same “flex plant” as the new 1.6-litre petrol engine, in Szentgotthard, Hungary.