The annual Wörthersee festival is generally seen as something of a Volkswagen love-in. The other brands within the group will roll out their best concepts before the daddy of the group arrives to vanquish the lot. This year, Volkswagen may have a fight on its hands as Audi has just revealed the TT Clubsport Turbo Concept.
Packing a turbocharged 2.5-litre five pot engine the Clubsport Turbo is said to produce 600hp or a frankly ridiculous 240hp per litre. It does so, not by the way of black magic, but by using a larger than usual turbocharger to boost power and an electric turbocharger to fill in the gaps. Completecar has driven various electric bi-turbo equipped Audis like the A6 electric Biturbo prototype and RS 5 TDI prototype and but they have all been diesel powered, this is the first time the technology has been applied to the TFSI petrol range and, according to Prof. Dr. Ulrich Hackenberg, the technology is close to production ready.
The result of this Frankenstein powertrain is 0-100km/h in 3.6 seconds and a top speed of 310km/h. The electric turbocharger alone is said to propel the Clubsport Turbo sixteen metres in 2.5 seconds, six metres or one and a half car lengths further than a conventional car would manage.
Power for the electric turbocharger is supplied by a dedicated 48-volt lithium ion battery pack that is mounted in the boot. This unit harvests energy while the car is coasting to keep the electric turbocharger in a constant state of readiness.
The looks of the concept are said to have been inspired by the Audi 90 IMSA GTO of the late 1980s so it is low and squat wide with 14cm added to the width by way of widened wheelarches. An oversized spoiler, a development of the one used on the TT Cup Sport race cars, also adorns the bootlid.