London, UK November 10, 2026 – Horse Powertrain, a manufacturer of innovative and low-emission powertrain systems, revealed its first production-ready V8 engine: the HORSE W40. It follows the start of production earlier of a powerful e-motor specially designed for plug-in and hybrid vehicles.
The HORSE W40 is a 4.0L, 8-cylinder engine optimized for high-performance hybrid vehicle platforms. The HORSE W40 is one of the most power-dense V8 solutions available on the market today – weighing just 200kg, its peak power output is over 500kW with a maximum torque of 800Nm. The engine’s ability to deliver exceptional low-end torque along with high peak power makes it an ideal solution for sports cars, pick-up trucks, and off-road vehicles.
Designed for longitudinal layouts and featuring twin top-mounted turbochargers in a “hot-V” configuration, the HORSE W40 brings together numerous technologies from across the Horse Powertrain portfolio to achieve unparalleled power and torque density. This is enabled by features such as the HORSE W40’s advanced direct fuel injection systems, use of extensive lightweighting techniques, and its shortened intake path for its turbochargers.
To complement the HORSE W40 and cement it as the leading hybrid engine for top-end vehicles, Horse Powertrain has developed the HORSE 8LDCT transmission. This eight-speed transmission features a sportscar-grade wet dual clutch, achieving a world-class pre-fill time of <50ms and delivering a shift response of <20ms. Featuring a built-in silicon carbide control system and power module, along with a variable-displacement mechanical pump, the HORSE 8LDCT supports a peak torque input of up to 1,050Nm.
The HORSE W40 and HORSE 8LDCT will make their world debut as an integrated set in Lotus’s upcoming Type 135 supercar – the brand’s first entry into the category.
“The HORSE W40 marks another landmark achievement for Horse Powertrain’s engineering teams, with our world-class technology powering one of the most power-dense V8s in automotive history,” said Matias Giannini, CEO of Horse Powertrain. “This hybrid-first engine has been built with our company’s full-powertrain perspective and expertise, designed for integration from the outset with our landmark HORSE 8LDCT transmission. In powering the Lotus Type 135, Horse Powertrain is both advancing the state of the art of automotive engineering while making a historic contribution to the world-renowned Lotus brand.”
“We are excited to partner with Horse Powertrain to bring its advanced V8 engine and hybrid transmission technology to the upcoming Lotus Type 135,” said Feng Qingfeng, CEO of Lotus. “The HORSE W40 V8 engine and 8LDCT hybrid transmission represent significant advances in powertrain engineering, combining exceptional power and torque density with a highly integrated design. By bringing these technologies together with Lotus’ expertise in lightweight engineering and chassis dynamics, we aim to deliver a new generation of supercar performance, combining outstanding power, efficiency, and the precise, engaging driving experience that defines Lotus.”
Last year Horse started production of its eMotor at its Aveiro facility in Portugal. The new radial flux eMotor uses the latest technology and materials to deliver exceptional performance and efficiency for next-generation plug-in and hybrid vehicles.
The eMotor is initially designed for use in hybrid powertrain architectures using HORSE’s HR12, HR16 and HR18 internal combustion engines. Capable of being used in both full hybrid and plug-in hybrid applications, the eMotor delivers maximum power of 49kW and 212Nm of torque.
“The start of eMotor production at Aveiro reinforces Horse Powertrain’s commitment to delivering efficient powertrains using the latest technology,” said Patrice Haettel, CEO at Horse Powertrain.” With its compact design, and the ability to work in 100% electric mode, this powerful and efficient motor is perfect for many types of hybrid vehicle. Once again, HORSE has demonstrated its credentials as the ideal partner for our customers on their ongoing electrification journeys.’
Featuring a compact design, the eMotor is mounted between the internal combustion engine and the transmission, delivering two driving modes: 100% electric and hybrid.
In electric mode, the eMotor drives the wheels directly at speeds of up to 130km/h. In hybrid mode, the eMotor assists the internal combustion engine to deliver enhanced acceleration and improved fuel efficiency. When the vehicle is decelerating, the eMotor acts as a generator, recovering kinetic energy that is stored in the vehicle’s battery.
To enable this production, Horse Powertrain’s Aveiro plant has invested in four new lines that allow the facility to manufacture up to 160,000 units a year. Each line has a dedicated function for various stages of production: including machining of the motor housing, rotor shaft, and magnet, along with final assembly. Among these state-of-the-art lines is a three-head precision winding machine, allowing faster and more accurate construction of the eMotor’s core.
In April, the HORSE D20 Methanol powertrain debuted at Beijing Auto Show 2026. This integrated engine and generator unit is designed to recharge the batteries of range-extended EVs (REEVs), using 100% methanol fuel blends.
The D20 Methanol achieves a remarkable fuel-to-energy conversion of 47%, meaning that for every ~2.1kWh of methanol burned it’s able to recharge 1kWh of battery energy. This means the powertrain can recharge a full 40kWh battery pack with just 3.8 US gallons of methanol – which is roughly equivalent to 1.8 US gallons of gasoline.
There are a range of technologies that make this efficiency possible. Much of it can be found in the D20 Methanol’s engine. Solutions like the engine’s high-energy ignition system allow it to burn methanol at very high air-to-fuel ratios, reducing the amount of fuel needed to provide raw mechanical power.
However, there’s another key technology innovation in the D20 Methanol that allows it to achieve its levels of efficiency: its motor-generator. Specifically, it is one of the first uses of an axial flux motor in a mass-market powertrain.
The first modern examples of electric motors were developed in the 1820s by inventors and engineers. Ever since then, a core principle of how motors work has remained unchanged: every motor consists of two central parts, the stator and the rotor.
- The stator is the non-rotating part of a motor. In most motors, it serves as both a large block of iron to conduct a magnetic field and provides a location for the windings – tight coils of wiring, typically copper – to conduct an electrical current.
- The rotor is the rotating part of the motor. Through an electric current passing through its own set of windings or a set of permanent magnets, it is designed to spin in place in response to a magnetic field passing through it.
In most motors, electrical current passing through the windings of the stator generates a magnetic field, which then pushes against the rotor and causes it to spin and produce torque.
If we take the reverse approach by applying torque to a rotor, then it will produce a magnetic field through the stator that will in turn produce an electrical current in the copper windings – turning it into a generator.
Most motors, as we know them, are designed as radial flux systems: the stator and rotor are two cylinders, one nested within the other – typically with the rotor being the “inner” part. These motors are called “radial flux” because of the pattern of the magnetic field lines that pass through the stator, which are pointed outwards – radially – from its axis of rotation.
For a range of practical engineering reasons, radial flux motors have dominated. Reasons have included greater ease in manufacturing the materials needed for a radial flux system compared to alternative designs, and an ability to easily scale up a motor’s power by simply increasing its length.
Particularly key to the success of the radial flux architecture is that the “air gap” between the stator and the rotor is easier to maintain, which is crucial to ensuring that the motor doesn’t destroy itself from the rotor and stator colliding. The reason why comes down to geometry: in a radial flux system, the magnetic attraction between rotor and stator at any one point of the rotor circumference is canceled out by the attraction at the other side of the rotor.
In recent years, however, hypercars and motorsport vehicles have increasingly experimented with the use of axial flux motors. In these motors, the rotor and stator exist as disks stacked atop one another, with magnetic fields that are pointed in parallel to the axis of rotation – axially, hence the name. One of the most exciting and commonly explored axial flux designs is the use of a “yokeless” motor, consisting of two rotor disks surrounding a single stator.
This configuration maximizes the magnetic surface area for either motor or generator applications. This means that an axial flux motor of the same mass as an equivalent radial flux motor will be able to produce more power – either mechanically or electrically.
However, this does come with new engineering challenges. Among other things, axial flux motors require more careful machining and manufacturing techniques to produce and typically require far more elaborate control and power electronic systems to regulate. The main reason for this is due to an axial flux motor’s air gap not having the same self-regulating qualities as a radial flux system: meaning that small imprecisions in manufacturing, or faults during operation can quickly destabilize the gap.
For these reasons, axial flux motors have typically been constrained to vehicles that have high-performance demands and higher budgets for ultra-precise manufacturing. In the HORSE D20 Methanol, Horse Powertain produced one of the first axial flux motors for use in a mass-market powertrain for consumers.
Compared to an equivalent radial flux motor, the D20 Methanol’s motor is 46% shorter and can output 63% more power per unit of volume. Along with efficiency gains, this means that the D20 Methanol benefits from some significant packaging opportunities owing to the system’s compactness.
It’s no coincidence this motor is featuring in a REEV powertrain: these generators are an ideal first application for axial flux systems, since the powertrain will be operating at a narrow and consistent power level of around 105kW. This means that the control systems for the motor can be optimized to ensure safe operations at that level, whereas a motor connected to the wheels needs to be able to handle a far wider range of conditions.
“The D20 Methanol is a bold statement of intent by the Horse Powertrain team,” said Fortune Zhao, CTO of Horse Powertrain. “Along with the exciting use of an axial flux motor, the engine and control technology present in this new powertrain open up some exciting opportunities for alt-fuel REEVs – allowing drivers to enjoy all the benefits of a full EV experience, with none of the downsides when it comes to range or flexibility.”
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