Chinese Turbo Days Are Here

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Looking back six years ago, there were hardly any non VAG turbo vehicles out there, it seemed as if VW and its portfolio of brands had a death grip on that side of technology, but fast forward to 2012 and we have a myriad of companies offering gasoline turbo engines in the Chinese market, including Chinese companies.

Turbo powered engines are becoming quite common in China, European users prefer turbo diesels in four and even three cylinder form where as American consumers seem relectunt to shake off their V shaped engines although inline four cylinder engines are becoming popular following the growth of small and compact car segments. Chinese consumers want the power of 2.0L and above engines, but they don’t want to pay for the running costs of larger engines, hence the addition of turbo powered units.

Brilliance were the first Chinese manufacturer to introduce a turbo engine, the 1.8T was installed in their poorly selling coupe and also the BS4 and BS6 sedan, however in 2011 and 2012 they are pushing their new 1.5T engine which was installed in the recent H530 compact sedan. Brilliance worked with Germany’s FEV to develop the tiny turbo unit, and on paper the engine looks quite good, the 100kw of power it produces is greater than VW’s 1.4TSI engine, although the torque is slightly lower at 200Nm/2200-4500rpm

Chang’an surprised the Frankfurt Auto Show with their seemingly random arrival with the Eado sedan, a car that they benchmarked against the Hyundai Excel in terms of quality and handling. The Eado will come with a 1.5T direct injection engine that Chang’an designed themselves, Chang’an have come in leaps and bounds in the past 24 months and also boast other self developed technologies such as TEi, GDT, D-VVT and also their own gearbox technology, including Dual Clutch, Manual and Automatic units. The Eado will launch in March 2012 according to our sources, as to actual power specs for the 1.5T, we have only found sources saying that the unit exceeds VW’s 1.4TSI unit in terms of kw and torque, so perhaps this is one to watch.

The Riich brand from Chery has one major goal – make the government become a major fleet buyer. The government wasn’t going to buy any Chery’s in a hurry, but they will buy a standard looking black sedan and its here that Chery have scored a home run. Recent government mandates indicated that mid level and junior ministers at all levels of government are to keep to strict purchasing rules when buying their new cars, under 180,000rmb and small displacement. The 2.0L TCI unit is no powerhouse, it produces just 158bhp but produces a decent amount of torque at 250Nm at 1900RPM, its not a cheaper car either at 152,000rmb.

BYD’s introduction of their own 1.5T did not come as a surprise, it is obvious that China’s long term automotive energy is going to come from electric cars, but in the short term a greater emphasis on fuel economy is going to be driving the market forward. BYD’s mid size sedan, the G6, has been one of the first recipitants of BYD’s own 1.5T and for the money it does seem like a good car, the G6 comes in at 99,800 and rises to 111,280rmb for the top of the line dual clutch 1.5T unit. The plucky 1.5T produces 158bhp/113kw and will deliver 240Nm of torque between 1750-3500RPM. The downside to consumers is that this engine prefers to drink the more expensive 97 gasoline rather than the regular 93.

Greatwall are diesel experts, their turbo diesel engines already adorn the Haval SUV range but their first turbo unit was installed in the Voleex C50 sedan, a new compact sedan. Greatwall’s 1.5T is not quite as powerful as its rivals, it produces just 136bhp and a mere 188Nm of torque, but on the other hand this turbo unit will take 93 gasoline.

Gasoline turbo engines are becoming more popular in the Chinese market as the government aims to push consumers away from larger displacement cars via the addition of extra taxes, the recently adjusted ‘Boat and Vehicle’ tax has put extra pressure on consumers to buy smaller vehicles in 2012.