Did you know that Skoda provide the majority of petrol engines for the entire Volkswagen group. So far, the Czech carmaker has mainly developed naturally aspirated MPI engines of this series, but now it will also take responsibility for the development of TSI units.

Skoda is taking charge of the development of all EA 211 series engines for Volkswagen Group.

For the brand, this is proof of its advanced technical know-how. “Taking responsibility for the development of the entire EA 211 engine series is confirmation of Skoda’s high level of technical expertise. At the same time, this underlines the importance of the Skoda brand within the entire Volkswagen Group, as the engines in this series are used in 50 model lines of seven of its brands,” remarks Johannes Neft, Skoda board member for technical development.

The new responsibility builds on Skoda’s previous roles in the area of MPI engines as well as other tasks that Skoda carries out in the context of VW Group. For example, the Czech carmaker is already responsible for the development of the MQB A0 Global platform, which can use the EA 211 engines. It also develops drum brakes for the entire group. And alongside the new generation of the Skoda Superb, the new Volkswagen Passat was also developed in Mladá Boleslav

Developing the EA 211 engine series will boost Skoda’s competitiveness and create new jobs.

Engine-making tradition

Skoda’s engine development tradition in Mladá Boleslav stretches back almost a century and a quarter. The history of the development and production of internal combustion engines in this town dates back to 1899, when Václav Laurin and Václav Klement built their first bicycle fitted with an auxiliary engine. As early as 1905, Laurin & Klement presented its first car, the Voiturette A, which was powered by a 1-litre liquid-cooled engine developed in-house.

The Voiturette A and its 1 litre engine

With a few exceptions, the Czech carmaker used its own power units almost exclusively until it joined the Volkswagen Group. And even this merger in 1991 did not put an end to the engine-making tradition in Mladá Boleslav, although engines developed by other group brands did start to appear under the bonnets of Skoda cars. Skoda continued to develop its own units and continued to manufacture them.

1997 saw the start of production of the 1.0 MPI engine in Mladá Boleslav, which the brand also supplied to other car companies in the group. The legendary 1.2 HTP unit of the EA 111 series, the predecessor of the current EA 211 series, was developed in-house. In almost 15 years of production, this three-cylinder engine has found its way into more than 3.5 million vehicles from all of the Group’s “volume” brands (in addition to Skoda, these include Volkswagen, SEAT, Cupra and Volkswagen goods vehicles).

1.2 HTP engines delivering various power outputs were not used only in Skoda's Fabia and Roomster models, but in other Volkswagen Group models like the VW Polo and Seat Ibiza.

Production of the EA 211 engine series began in Mladá Boleslav in 2012 with the new 1.0 MPI type. Shortly afterwards, Skoda was put in charge of the complete development of MPI power units for the entire group. In 2014, Skoda opened a brand new engine centre, which gave it the necessary capacity and cutting-edge technology to take responsibility for an entire engine series.

High efficiency, low consumption

Consequently, engineers in Mladá Boleslav are now going to gradually take charge of developing the future TSI engines of the EA 211 series in addition to the MPI units. Today the EA 211 model range is characterised by a high degree of variability. The engines can have three or four cylinders, range in size from 1.0 to 1.6 litres and currently cover a power output spectrum from 48 to 115 kW. The engines can burn petrol, CNG or ethanol and are also available in mild-hybrid and plug-in hybrid versions.

The Czech carmaker will be hiring almost a hundred and fifty new skilled workers for its Technical Development department.

The MPI units are naturally aspirated engines with indirect multipoint fuel injection, which are renowned for their robustness. A typical representative of this range is the 1.0 MPI unit used by the brand in its smallest and most affordable models. The TSI engines, by contrast, feature an exhaust pressure wave supercharger. These are powerful, high-torque engines that can power a wide range of models and offer drivers a combination of high performance and low fuel consumption, as well as excellent handling. The popular three-cylinder 1.0 TSI or the four-cylinder 1.4 TSI (for plug-in hybrids) and 1.5 TSI are examples of this range.