Yamaha continues to bet on electrification, producing a very compact electric motor that could be a part of an 1876 HP hypercar in a four-motor configuration.
The Japanese brand is famous for motorcycles, but engineering is what makes it great. Throughout history, Yamaha has created some great internal combustion engines. The first gasoline engine manufactured by Yamaha dates back to 1967, and was made for Toyota. It was a twin-cam straight-line four-chambered unit built for the 2000GT. Meanwhile, Yamaha also helped Toyota in building the stunning V10 engine for the Lexus LF-A.
Other automakers, namely Ford and Volvo, also got a few of their engines from the Japanese giant. The units, majorly V6 and V8s, were specially made for their performance car lineups.
Now, Yamaha wants to transfer its engineering prowess into making electric motors. The company already takes orders for numerous units, ranging from 35 kW to 200 kW.
However, it just showcased an even more powerful 800V unit producing an impressive 469 hp, making it the highest output-producing unit (single motor) in its segment. The motor’s main advantage is its compact design, with the electrical and mechanical components put together as a single assembly. Besides, the motor can connect with other motors to raise the output levels even higher.
Yamaha released an installation image showing 4 of 350 kW units fitted to each wheel. Such a vehicle would produce 1876 HP and have real torque vectoring, making it one of the fastest hypercars out there.
The Japanese giant is now taking orders for commissioned prototype units by other EV makers. Since Toyota owns 5% of the company, we might see the electric motors in its upcoming EVs at some point. However, Yamaha will surely sell the units to other manufacturers, although we don’t know which one yet.
Yamaha intends to manifest its prototype designs at the Automotive Engineering Exposition 2021 in Yokohama. More details are expected soon. We’ll keep you posted!
