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Once Considered Passé, Hybrids Roar Back as a Best-of-Both-Worlds Powerhouse
Regardless of the industry, pendulum swings are a challenge to navigate. In 2021, automakers faced one such shift when the European Commission passed legislation requiring a 55 percent reduction in the continent's greenhouse-gas emissions within five years. In response, many marques turned to hybrids as a bridge to an all-electric future. What was once perceived as a temporary fix may, however, prove to be the golden mean.
'The charging infrastructure in most countries is not yet mature enough to support convenient mass adoption of battery-electric vehicles, and in some territories never will be,' says Jonathan Hall, head of research and advanced engineering at U.K.-based consulting group Mahle Powertrain. While Hall stops short of calling hybridization ideal, he notes that 'when extreme performance is needed, then hybrids provide a more compelling answer.'
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Luxury and high-performance automakers seem to agree. Pairing an internal-combustion engine (ICE) with battery power results in more of a complement than a compromise. 'It preserves the sound signature and continuous high-speed power delivery of combustion engines while leveraging electric propulsion's instantaneous torque response and precision,' says Emilio Scervo, CTO of hypercar-builder Bugatti Rimac. Regarding Bugatti's new 1,800 hp Tourbillon hybrid, he adds that 'the electrical system enables sub-millisecond torque vectoring that mechanical differentials cannot match.'
Bugatti's siblings under the Volkswagen Group echo this sentiment. 'Hybrids haven't been a transitory technology in our view, but rather an excellent solution for our customers,' says Thomas Wasserbäch, vice president of Porsche's combustion and hybrid-drive-system division. Porsche, active in this space since 2010, just hybridized its iconic 911 for this model year. Lamborghini also joined the trend with the debut of its 1,000 hp Revuelto hybrid in 2023. 'The company doesn't plan to give up the internal-combustion engine anytime soon,' says CTO Rouven Mohr. 'We are also considering synthetic fuels to keep ICE vehicles running after 2030.'
Hall concurs: 'With the emergence of bio-based and even fully synthetic fuels, the link between the ICE and climate change can be broken.' Combined with the development of better batteries, this progressive hybrid model could offer the best of both worlds for years to come.
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