First unveiled at last year’s LCV event, the new vehicle is a 48V version which, says Mahle, signals “a bright future for mild hybrid gasoline engines”.
Mike Bassett, the company’s chief engineer for R&D, says: “In the last 12 months, our Northampton-based engineering team has replaced the standard 2.0-litre turbocharged engine in our donor VW Golf GTi, with the latest development of our acclaimed 1.2-litre downsizing engine.
“This new power unit harnesses leading-edge 48V eSupercharger technology coupled with an innovative belt integrated starter generator (BISG) to deliver high performance combined with fuel efficiency and reduced emissions.”
In addition to the eSupercharger and 10kW rated BISG, the 48V architecture used in the demo car comprises a three-cell, advanced lead acid, 48V battery pack and a pair of DC/DC converters (to maintain the state of charge of the 12V battery).
Real-world road tests, drive-ability and emissions calibration on the demo vehicle are underway and, says Mahle, early results are encouraging.
When compared to a standard 2.0-litre Golf GTi, the test vehicle is achieving a 22% reduction in CO2 emissions. In terms of specific power, the Mahle engine produces 160 kW/litre (more than 260bhp), compared to the baseline of 100 kW/litre.
The low-speed torque generated by the almost lag-free eSupercharger enables a 0-100 kph time of 6.4 seconds.