In the future, Hyundai electric cars won’t have just one or two electric motors – they could have four, inside the wheels allowing its zero emissions vehicles to “turn on a penny”.
The company has plans to commercialise the technology, which has been developed by its parts and components arm Hyundai Mobis, allowing for better turning capabilities at the same time as reducing the weight (and therefore the efficiency of the vehicle).
“We’re going from having electric motors with drive shafts to having in-wheel motors of the future,” public relations manager for Hyundai Motors future mobility division Scott Nargar said at the Zero Emissions Transport Conference in Sydney.
“This is some of our vision for the future with electrification that we’re working on now and seeing in R&D centres.
“[Hyundai is] taking all the components of a normal vehicle out and putting in wheel electric motors and four wheel steering, so potentially the car can sit on the spot and drive in circles,” Nargar said.
“So parking, manoeuvring, everything in the future becomes a lot easier.”
To read the full story on RenewEconomy’s electric vehicle dedicated site, The Driven, click here…