Volkswagen Group W-12 engine

The Volkswagen Group W12 is a family of twelve-cylinder piston engines that Volkswagen Group has produced since 2001 for its Volkswagen, Audi and Bentley marques. The only mass-production W12 is the 6.0 litre WR12 with 48 valves, which is built by joining two narrow-angle 15 degree VR6 engines at an angle of 72 degrees on a single crankshaft, so that the engine has the camshaft count of a V12 but is smaller than the contemporary Volkswagen 4.2 litre V8. A twin-turbocharged version powers the Bentley Continental GT and Flying Spur, a 6.3 litre FSI version arrived on the third-generation Audi A8, and a 2001 Volkswagen W12 concept car set a 24 hour endurance record with it. The first production car to use the engine was the 2001 Audi A8 (D2), and it was later used in the Phaeton and the Touareg.