“The milestone of 13 million units produced by ŠKODA represents 118 years of engineering skill and the performance of our team,” says Michael Oeljeklaus, ŠKODA Board Member for Production and Logistics. “Our headquarters is one of the longest-established sites in the automotive industry for the construction and development of powertrains. With the production launch of the TSI three-cylinder EA 211 series, we are adding another chapter to this success story.”
The first powertrain to leave Laurin & Klement’s workshop in Mladá Boleslav was a 1.25 hp single cylinder for the Slavia motorcycles built by the company that was founded in 1895. Previously, Laurin and Klement had built bicycles under the brand name ‘Slavia’ in the Central-Bohemian town. In 1905, they constructed their first automobile, the Voiturette A, with a water-cooled 1,005 cc engine and 7 horsepower. In 1997, six years after the company’s relaunch under the umbrella of the Volkswagen Group, ŠKODA supplied engines from Mladá Boleslav to sister brands within the group for the first time.
The production of the EA 211 model series began in 2012. This engine family is characterized by an aluminium cylinder block and twin overhead camshafts, which actuate four valves per cylinder. The exhaust manifold is integrated into the cylinder head.
The new 1.0 TSI once again extends the range of the engine family. The modern three-cylinder has weight-optimized, forged connecting rods and aluminium pistons. It does not require a balance shaft and features exemplary running smoothness. Compared to comparatively powerful four-cylinder engines, it is more compact, lighter and generates less friction, and thus operates much more efficiently.
In recent years, ŠKODA has significantly increased the main plant’s production capacity for both vehicles and engines. Today, up to 2,300 engines are built in Mladá Boleslav per day. Some 1,400 people are employed in engine production.
ŠKODA is continually investing in the expansion of engine development and production. In 2014, the company opened its new engine centre. The following year, construction work on the extension began, which will be operational in March, 2017.
In addition to engines, ŠKODA produces gearboxes for its own models and models of sister brands. In Mladá Boleslav, the MQ 100 and MQ 200 manual transmissions run off the production lines, and the DQ 200 automatic direct-shift gearbox is produced at Vrchlabí, where the 1.5-millionth DSG was recently produced.
Milestones in ŠKODA engine production in Mladá Boleslav
1997: ŠKODA supplies engines to the Volkswagen Group for the first time; The first unit is a 1.0-litre petrol engine with 37 kW (50 hp) for the Group’s small cars.
2001: The production of the 1.2 HTP from the family EA 111 begins In Mladá Boleslav.
2009: The EA 111 powertrain family is extended to include the turbo-petrol 1.2 TSI.
2012: In Mladá Boleslav, the construction of the motor centre begins. The centre houses 21 new engine and component test stands. It opens in April 2014. The new EA 211 family of engines is launched with versions 1.2 TSI and 1.4 TSI.
2014: The naturally aspirated petrol 1.6 MPI and 1.0 MPI extend the EA 211 family.
The three-millionth 1.2 HTP engine runs off the line.
2015: ŠKODA lays the foundations for the engine-centre extension in Mladá Boleslav 500 000 units of the EA 211 engine family built.
2016: Next jubilee – one million EA 211 powertrains produced.
2017: Production launch of the state-of-the-art EA 211 three cylinder 1.0 TSI.
