The twin cylinder SGE (Small Gas Engine) Fiat has been working on will finally make its debut at the Geneva International Motor Show, March 4-14th. Originally the engine was to make its debut in the new Topolino super mini Fiat has been working on over the last year and a half, however, that debut has been postponed this year due to poor economic projections in Europe for 2010.
Spy shots of the new Fiat Topolino
The 900cc parallel twin cylinder SGE will be christened "TwinAir" because of its use of MultiAir technology and will be first installed this summer in the Fiat 500.The TwinAir will be the smallest displacement gasoline engine available in Europe, however, it is important to note that it is very powerful for its size. The initial application will be in turbocharged 85hp form with turbocharged 105hp and normally aspirated 65hp versions to follow.
When and if we in the US will get the TwinAir engine is yet to be seen, however we will see this engine downsizing technology applied to Chrysler products. Fiat's concept is combining the MultiAir technology with a turbocharger will give the same power as a larger engine.
This is not a new concept, but the big advantage Fiat has is, now with MultiAir, the engine can be tuned to maximize low end torque for increased drivability. The goal here is to have a small engine behave like a big engine, with no sacrifice in drivability.
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An example is the twin cylinder 900cc SGE, in turbocharged form, has the same power as the 1.4L 16V engine currently fitted in the Fiat 500.
For Chrysler, we'll see the new Pentastar V6 engines with MultiAir combined with single and twin turbochargers replace some of the large V8 engines.
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The TwinAir combined electric Hybrid has also been developed. It is a very interesting twist on the normal hybrid car technology. The Fiat hybrid system is developed specifically for small vehicles unlike most current systems, with their bulky batteries. which are more suited for bigger vehicles.
For more information on the SGE TwinAir and Fiat hybrid click here.
Photos and slides courtesy of Fiat Group Press
Video with thanks to Mickred video channel
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