Volkswagen has revealed that the brand new Tiguan is coming to the US fitted with the latest generation of its EA888 four-cylinder engine producing 184 hp and 221 lb-ft of torque.
The 2.0-liter engine isn’t only expected to get healthy power figures, it’s also anticipated that it will be 20% more efficient than the current 1.8-liter version of the EA888 in the Beetle, Jetta, Golf, and Passat, although the EPA has yet to officially confirm that.
Volkswagen wasn’t just interested in making the engine efficient in tests, though. The new EA888 gen3B engine uses a modified Miller combustion cycle that’s unique to the automaker. The advantage of the so-called Budack-cycle is that the engine is more efficient during everyday driving.
That’s because the intake valves close earlier, effectively leading to longer combustion and faster airflow on the intake, which improves the mixing of the fuel and the air. That means more torque and more efficiency.
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Thanks to variable valve timing, the engine can always choose the best valve timing, be it at idle, while humming down the highway, or under acceleration. That decision is made via VW’s quad-core processor engine management unit.
As with all EA888 engines, max torque is produced low in the rev range, between 1,600 and 3,940 rpm, while max (184) hp is produced between 4,400 and 6,000 rpm, 400 revs faster than on the 1.8-liter unit.
The EA888 engine first arrived in the US in 2009 in the VW CC, and this latest generation will find its way into more engine bays than just the Tiguan’s. It is making its US debut next year in the Tiguan, though.
