Electrified gasoline engines may be the powertrain of the future

In 1966, General Motors built the Electrovair II, an electric version of the Chevrolet Corvair packed with the latest technology from the aerospace and electronics industries.

The car’s acceleration nearly matched the 110-hp gasoline-fueled Corvair, but without the noise and vibration of a combustion engine. Still, the Electrovair II lacked the driving range and rapid fill of its gasoline sibling.

In a promotional video, the narrator says: “Electrovair II can only travel 40 to 80 miles depending on how you drive it before its silver zinc batteries must be recharged. Recharging takes almost six hours. Obviously, a better battery must be found to make a practical car, but Electrovair II has demonstrated for the first time what electric car performance could be like when that better power source is found.”

Six decades later, scientists are still looking for that better battery — one that charges as fast as a pump fills a gasoline tank and propels the vehicle for well over 350 miles before recharging.

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As Automotive News celebrates its 100-year anniversary, we are taking a look at today’s topics through both a historic and future lens. This installment looks at the future of powertrains.

Combustion engines still rule

The effort to displace gasoline as the primary fuel for automobiles is as old as the car itself. Steam, turbines that could run on anything from french fry grease to perfume, hydrogen and natural gas have all been looked at as replacements.

Until recently, battery-electric vehicles looked to be the successor. But a flurry of announcements from various automakers in recent years saying they wouldn’t invest heavily in new combustion engines has turned into a false alarm for those who like the roar and vibration from putting the pedal to the metal.

Toyota is working to improve the thermal efficiency of its engines, a move that increases fuel economy and reduces emissions by converting more of the heat generated in the combustion process into work.

Toyota’s Dynamic Force engines can achieve 41 percent thermal efficiency. Most combustion engines run at about 30 percent efficiency. (EVs operate in the 70 percent range, according to the Department of Energy.)

Porsche plans a combustion-engine SUV that could be a replacement for its gasoline Macan as the automaker boosts investments in gasoline models amid slower-than-expected EV sales.

Mercedes-Benz said this year that is it developing a new combustion engine, a reaction to its tepid EV sales.

Twin power

But even as they start to invest in new engines, automakers are also looking at how to pair electricity with gasoline motors.

“I believe that the most cost effective gains can be made by modifying the internal combustion engine’s operation through the use of electrification,” said Greg Davis, director of the advanced engine research laboratory at Kettering University in Flint, Mich.

“Internal combustion engines do not have broad regions of high efficiency, so combining them with electric drives in hybrid electric vehicles is a great way to limit the use of the engine to operating regions with better efficiency,” Davis said.

The early Toyota Prius and Honda Insight were the first step in this direction. They used electricity to launch from a stop — the portion of the drive cycle that needs the most power — and then let the gasoline engine take over. What may emerge, at least in some global markets, is a permanent marriage between gasoline engines and electric motors.

Range-extended hybrids

Even early tinkerers, including Ferdinand Porsche, recognized the benefits of electrifying the gasoline powertrain. In the early 1900s, Porsche installed electric wheel hub motors in a giant wagon called the Lohner-Porsche. That vehicle debuted in 1900 at the World Exposition in Paris. But the excessive weight of the 80-volt lead-acid batteries and electric motors severely limited driving range.

On his next vehicle, the Mixte, Porsche added a gasoline engine to power a generator to recharge the batteries. It was the first range-extended hybrid.

Fast-forward 125 years and the range-extended gasoline-electric powertrain that Porsche pioneered is on the cusp of making a comeback.

Ram is launching the extended-range Ramcharger truck this year. Scout plans to offer a range extender in its SUVs and pickups. Ford CEO Jim Farley said a range-extender powertrain in the company’s SUVs and pickups is coming in 2027.

Nissan’s e-Power engine, used in a range-extended vehicle sold overseas, achieves 50 percent thermal efficiency and will launch in U.S. versions of the Rogue in 2026. Mazda and Subaru are also working on a new generation of engines geared specifically for hybrid powertrains. And Mercedes-Benz’s AMG division is working on a “highly electrified” V-8.

Davis believes we’ll see electric motors not just bolted to a gasoline engine but integrated into its design.

“This also allows the use of smaller displacement engines, lowering costs, as the engine output can be combined with the electric output during transitory high-demand situations,” he said.

Don’t count out EVs

Nonetheless, EVs are a potent challenger to the combustion engine’s reign.

EVs made up 8 percent of new-vehicle registrations in the U.S. last year, or 1.28 million vehicles, according to S&P Global Mobility. That was an 11 percent gain from the prior year and outpaced the 2.5 percent gain for all light-vehicle sales last year.

Those vehicles all rely on forms of lithium ion battery chemistry. For most models, that allows a range of at least 250 miles, high-voltage charging in 45 to 60 minutes and easy overnight home charging.

Two emerging battery chemistries, sodium ion and solid state, have the potential to replace today’s lithium ion cells in most EVs, allowing them to match combustion engine convenience.

Sodium ion batteries could be less expensive to manufacture because the raw materials they use are abundant. But lower power density and a shorter life are two major issues battery engineers are working to solve.

Solid state batteries, which could be on American roads by 2030, promise faster charging, lower risk of fires and greater energy density. But solid state batteries have challenges, too. They are expensive to manufacture.

In China on March 17, BYD announced that its Super e-Platform batteries can deliver 248 miles of range in just five minutes, bringing an EV into parity with the speed at which a gasoline-fueled car can be refilled.

Still an electric future

Chris Borroni-Bird, a research scientist who worked on fuel cell development at Chrysler and General Motors, said he sees a very different type of automobile on the road a century from today.

Powertrains will be battery electric, getting most of their energy from solar panels, he said. Advanced wheel motors will improve maneuverability and provide greater design flexibility.

The powertrain won’t be the only part of the car with a smaller environmental footprint.

“Right-sized vehicles made of recycled and natural materials and having a solar panel roof can be used to complement public transport and make moving people and goods easier on the wallet and on the planet,” he said.

Throughout 2025, we will honor our legacy by connecting topics of today with our historical coverage as we look ahead to the next 100 years.

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