Audi plans to bring its electrically assisted turbocharging system to production on a high-performance 'S' version of the next Q7 SUV in 2016.
Versions of the system – which combats turbo lag and improves response – are already fitted to two concept cars, the 322bhp Audi A6 TDI Concept and the 380bhp Audi RS 5 TDI-e.
The system is set to make its production car debut on the Audi SQ7, which will follow the introduction of the next-generation Q7, due in 2015.
Audi's board member for technical development, Ulrich Hackenberg, told Autocar: "The new Q7 will be available in the market next year but the electric turbo will come a bit later in the Audi SQ7 available in 2016.”
The SQ7 would be a new variant, although Audi currently offers the smaller SQ5 SUV, its first-ever diesel-fuelled 'S' model, which is powered by a bi-turbo oil-burning engine producing 309bhp.
Car makers and turbocharger manufacturers alike have worked hard to reduce turbo lag on both petrol and diesel engines in recent years.
Audi is trialling two different systems on its concepts. The system on the A6 TDI Concept combines an electrically driven supercharger with a single turbocharger, while the RS 5 TDI combines it with a series sequential twin-turbo system with a large and small turbocharger.
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