Audi Celebrates 25 years of TDI

The German car maker with the four rings is celebrating the 25 year history of its famed TDI engine. Since its inception in 1989, the TDI engine has undergone tremendous technological advances - mainly forced induction, fuel injection and emissions controls - which have helped the TDI increase its power and torque relative to displacement by over 100 percent, while pollutant emissions have come down by 98 percent over the last 25 years. In fact, the TDI models are a major reason why the brand has been able to reduce the average CO2 emissions of its EU new vehicle fleet by three percent per year in recent years.

With the exception of the Audi R8, TDI engines can be found in every model series, and the 2.0 litre TDI is its best-selling engine with more than 3 million units sold. But Audi has only begun to further enhance its diesel engines and the electric biturbo also represents the first step in Audi's electrification of the TDI. The goal is to always get more and more out of every drop of fuel. The racing successes powerfully document the potential of TDI technology from Audi. Most recently with a 1-2 finish at Le Mans in the world's most prestigious endurance race.

“25 years of TDI mean a quarter-century of progress, efficiency, dynamics and power,” says Prof. Dr. Ulrich Hackenberg, Member of the Board of Management of AUDI AG, Technical Development. “We look back on this time with pride. For the TDI, which Audi brought to the market before any other carmaker, is today the world's most successful efficiency technology. It thus made a big contribution to our brand’s upward positioning in the premium segment of the market.”

To date Audi has produced roughly 7.5 million cars with TDI engines – nearly 600,000 in 2013 alone.