Audi and Porsche have agreed on an historic agreement to co-engineer two new V6 and V8 engines.

Historically, although both the brands start with the initial stage of engine development with a common design, by the time the engines find their places under the hood of the respective cars, the outputs share very negligible commonality. This sharing of technology is setting the automobile market aflutter with hopes of a breakthrough in engine technology.

The collaboration involves developing a wide range of V6 and V8 gas engines all of which are to feature 90-degree design motors each with 500cc cylinder capacities. The V6 would feature a 3-litre capacity motor and the V8 would have a 4-litre capacity motor. The collaborative innovations are expected to replace the existing V6 and V8 models of both Porsche and Audi.

Although the engines would be designed as standard 3- and 4-liter models, the inbuilt tolerances would allow for scalability as per each brand’s needs. For example, Audi plans to introduce a smaller V6 with 2.5 liter capacity. This smaller variety would be similar to an Atkinson-cycle combustion engine used in A4 Ultra, its latest 2.0 gas engine. Initially, the engines will be designed using conventional gas-powered turbochargers but are expected to be re-engineered at a later stage using electric-powered motors built on Audi’s experiments with TT Clubsport Turbo and RS5 TDI Concept.

The new range of V6 and V8 engines is labeled KoVoMo, an acronym for Konzern Vee Otto Motoren, German for Group Vee Gasoline Engines. KoVoMo is expected to be debuted in future models of Porsche, Audi, Volkswagen, Lamborghini and perhaps Bentley. Automobile enthusiasts are waiting with bated breath to see how the two brands with a rich history of rivalry behind them will leverage on their individual expertise and experience to customize the new engines to meet individual brand expectations while retaining their unique characteristic features.