6 Sports Car-Shaming Diesels That’ll Do 0-60mph In Under 5 Seconds
6. Audi SQ7
We’re starting with a big yacht of an SUV. Audi has given its massive Q7 the ‘S’ treatment, and in the process has chucked a 4.0-litre V8 under the gargantuan bonnet. The engine uses two conventional turbochargers as well as an electric compressor that sits downstream of the intercooler, and its job is to eliminate lag. All that culminates in 429bhp and 664lb ft of torque, and a highly impressive 0-62mph sprint of 4.8 seconds.
5. BMW 335d xDrive M Sport
The top-of-the-range 3-series diesel is still resisting BMW’s downsizing efforts, staying as an inline-six rather than becoming a four-pot like much of the range. The twin-turbocharged 3.0-litre engine makes 309bhp and 465lb ft of torque, contributing to a 0-62mph time of 4.8 seconds, while still clocking nearly 50mpg.
4. Audi A8 4.2 TDi Quattro
It’s no surprise to see Audi on this list, as it runs a race-winning diesel-hybrid Le Mans car. The Audi A8 has a 4.2-litre V8 diesel making 380bhp, which works with the Quattro all-wheel drive system to propel the largely aluminium car to 62mph in 4.7 seconds.
3. Alpina D3 Bi-Turbo
Alpina has been upgrading BMWs for decades, and the diesels in the range don’t get away without a tune up. Based on the aforementioned 335d, the D3 has undergone changes that include a new pair of variable geometry turbochargers amongst many other things. The result? 345bhp, 516lb ft of torque, and a 0-62mph time of 4.6 seconds. Oh, and the title of fastest current production diesel thanks to the removal of the 155mph speed limiter, which allows for a top speed of 171mph. We’ve got one on test at the moment, so keep an eye out for the full verdict soon.
2. BMW M550d xDrive
Yep, it’s another BMW. Those Bavarians certainly like going fast in diesels. This time it’s the 5-series, and this time it’s a triple-turbocharged 3.0-litre six-pot. Again, it has all-wheel drive - that’s what xDrive means, by the way - which contributes to a stonkingly fast 0-62mph sprint time of 4.5 seconds. I can only imagine what accelerating so fast in a big barge like this does to your innards.
1. Audi R8 6.0 Quattro V12 TDI
Okay, so it was only a concept, but it was a working concept and we feel like it’s too cool to leave it out. Back in 2008, Audi experimented with a diesel-fuelled version of its R8 supercar. Under the rear window sat a V12 TDI engine, which made 492bhp and an eye-watering 738lb ft of torque, the latter of which was available from just 1750rpm. The performance figures are just as staggering: 0-62mph took 4.2 seconds, 0-100mph took less than 10 seconds, and the top speed was “well over” 186mph.
Clearly Audi didn’t feel the world was ready for a Ferrari sports car rival that filled up with the black pump. Here’s hoping it’s not completely off the table, as that ridiculous torque figure would have a poser’s Ferrari choking on Audi fumes.
Comments
Id rather take this! 😉
(My father’s A5 tuned by darkside) 😍
Came here for R8, left happy
I could see some redneck American being like, “That’s a fancy looking car you got there. But does it roll coal?”
Rednecks be like in country voice “That be a nice ride ya got there. How many deer can ya fit in the back? Does it have a gun rack?”
Mmmm love that smoke
Porsche do the Cayenne with a big v8 diesel, 385hp. I drove one the other day, it’s a monster.
i got the 335d and its brilliant, only thing i’d change is would like it to come in manual. This flappy paddle stuff you get these days is ok but i’m a control freak and will give up the slightly faster gear change for the choice of changing gear when i’d like. but its a brilliant car.
If you get one, you might not be so happy.
I have Audi A4 Quattro with 2.5 liter V6 TDI, 132kw @ 4,000 rpm; 370 newton metres (273 lbf·ft) @ 1,500 - 2,500 rpm engine, which is pretty much half of what’s listed here.
With its 6spd gearbox, the first 3 gear ratios are soooo slow (optimal cruise in city limits is 4th). Sure, cruising on a highway is a bliss but its worst enemy is stop-and-go traffic. You need to change already when you’re at 5-10kph, or start with 2nd but in a small inclination you can feel clutch saying “why dude?”
As ratio is so slow, when boost comes up (and it comes hard at 1800) it creates quite uncomfortable jilt. As you have so many gears early on ratioed to amplify every little twitch with your clutch foot, you get more jilts and it is just….bad.
Why 6spd, when it has so much torque so early on? So clutch-moms wouldn’t rip it apart. Audi has said that this is “not a recommended setup for city drive” and mainly i am able to avoid it but when i get to one, i miss any kind of automation or torque conversion.
Stresses to the engine is relieved with elctrohydraulic engine mounts, that work well actually. If replaced with traditional solid aftermarket mounts it is said to vibrate the chassis weld points off over time when not treated with “racecar” care beforehand…Not to mention how thankful the engine itself would be.
True, on highway i don’t miss it so much and during winter i can’t congratulate myself enough for this right choice in life, but most of the world doesn’t have lakes that freeze over during winter. So yeah, big diesels introduce quite a variety of technical problems to overcome in order to maintain the refined feel of the car we are used to in Europe.
And then i sit in my CRX that has less power, laughably less torque, but the double amount of RPM range with no turbo lag feels even more satisfying.
When I saw the post on Facebook, I didn’t read the title and skipped immediately to the specs and thought “wow, this must be some really high compression engine because those are diesel-engine specs. Then I read the title and felt both smart and dumb at the same time.
TAKE THAT AMERICA!
Who the hell would buy a TDI R8?
Me.
ME!
Exactly!
Supercars are petrol, period!
Basically another reason to say Germans are the masters of cars