KOENIGSEGG DIRECT DRIVE

As many of you have heard, Christian is not a fan of hybrids, as they are generally
compromised when it comes to weight, complexity, cost, packaging and efficiency.
Given this, the Regera is not what we at Koenigsegg would call a hybrid, as it does not
have the traditional shortcomings of a hybrid. Instead, the Regera is a new breed of
Koenigsegg and car for that matter.
Traditional, so called parallel, hybrids are compromised and heavy, as they have two
independent propulsion systems. Alternatively, series hybrids are less compromised
when it comes to weight, complexity and costs, but instead they are compromised when
it comes to efficiency, as there is too much energy conversion going on.
This brings us to the Koenigsegg Direct Drive Transmission or KDD for short invented
by Christian von Koenigsegg and developed for the Regera by the Koenigsegg Advanced
Engineering team.
The patent pending KDD system replaces the combustion engines traditional
transmission and gives the added benefit of pure EV mode. What is unique is that the
KDD manages to create direct drive to rear axle from the combustion engine without
the need of multitude gears or other traditional types of variable transmissions, with
inherently high energy losses.
During highway travel, for example, the KDD reduces drivetrain losses, compared to
traditional transmission or CVT by over 50%, as there is no step up or step down gear
working in series with the final drive just direct power transmission from the engine to
the wheels.
To supplement the energy from the combustion engine and to allow for torque
vectoring, regenerative braking, extreme drivers response, reverse and energy
conversion, there are three YASA developed electric motors. YASAs axial flux motors
are extremely power dense and allow for direct drive, making them a key-ingredient for
the KDD. One YASA for each rear wheel, giving direct drive this time electric and one
on the crankshaft, giving torque-fill, electrical generation and starter motor functionality.
The three electric motors constitute the most powerful electrical motor set-up in
production car history, replacing the gears of a normal transmission while adding;
power, torque, torque vectoring and yet still able to remove weight.

The battery pack and PDU for the KDD were developed and manufactured together with Electric
Supercar virtuoso Mate Rimac and his engineering team. The 620 V battery pack is of the latest fully
flooded type and is the most power-dense battery pack ever created for a road going car with 9,27
kWh of energy, 67 liters of volume, and 115kg of weight. Still, a full 500 kW can momentarily be
drawn during acceleration and over 150 kW can be absorbed by the battery-pack during regenerative
braking and ICE power generation mode.

Every cell of the pack is carefully monitored for voltage, state of charge, health and temperature. The
cells are enclosed in a fully machined aluminum casing for safety and stability. The battery is located
in the most protected area of the car the carbon-aramid chassis tunnel. The whole battery pack is
actively cooled by external radiators and the Regeras all new electrical air-conditioning system,
which also can pre-cool the car via the Koenigsegg app on a warm day.
The complete KDD system, including the battery, adds a mere 88kg to the Regeras weight,
compared to what the Regera would have weighed with a traditional ICE, coupled to a 7 speed DCT
transmission instead of the KDD. Presently no other hybrid Hypercar even comes close to this type
of weight ratio for their electrification. This is interesting, as they all have smaller battery capacity and
less electric power than the Regera.
To put it into perspective, the Regera has almost triple as many electric Bhp (700 Bhp) and over 300
Bhp more than its closest hybrid rival. Still the Regera manages to be very competitive weight wise,
while including unusual features such as a six way adjustable electrical seat and a fully robotized
body work. This is no small feature and it is a testament to the meticulous nature of the Koenigsegg
engineering team.
The combination of electrical and combustion power is just mind boggling. When you get up to
speed, the system really comes into play How about 3.2 seconds between 150 to 250 km/h and
under 20 seconds from 0 to 400 km/h?

POWERTRAIN STATS

1100 Hp of combustion engine power on 91 octane DIN or 95 octane RON (a bit

more on E85)

1250 Nm of combustion engine torque

700 Hp of electric propulsion

900 Nm of electric torque

9 kWh 620 Volt, flooded liquid cooled battery pack

COMBINED NUMBERS

Over 1500 BHp or 1.11 MW

Over 2000 Nm of torque

Dry weight 1420 kg

1628 kg curb weight (including all liquids and full fuel tank)

When it comes to transmissions, the car community can be a bit picky.

The general consensus seems to be that manuals > DCTs > Planetary
Autos > CVTs. CVTs get a lot of unwarranted hate, despite the fact
that theyre quite efficient, have been used in Formula 1 (and were
banned), and based on my own experience are far better suited for
paddle shifters than planetary autos. Regardless, Koenigsegg has
said enough with this debate, and has removed the whole thing for its
new Regera hybrid hypercar. No rev matching, no millisecond
counting, and no elastic feel. Just a direct link between the engines
hydraulic coupling and the rear axle. To understand how this system
works, lets first go over the components involved.

Battery
Yep, its a hybrid. A 620 V 9.27 kWh battery rests between the two
occupants allowing the car to run on pure electric (up to 50km) if
desired.
Electric Motor/Starter
Resting between the battery pack and the engine, a 160 kW (~215hp)
motor mounts up to the engine crank, acting as a starter motor, but
more importantly providing additional torque to the crank, especially
useful when the engine is at low speeds.

Engine
A 5.0-litre twin-turbocharged V8 engine producing 820 kW (~1100hp).
Peak power is reached at 7800rpm, while redline is at 8250rpm. The
engine has a desirable torque curve, producing 1000 Nm (738lb ft) or
more from 2700 to 6170rpm.
Hydraulic Coupling
There seems to be little verbiage about this currently, but by definition
a hydraulic coupling is a device which uses a fluid to transmit
mechanical power. This coupling has the ability to both open and
close, meaning the output shaft can be connected or disconnected
from the power sent from the engines crank. The wording seems to be
attempting to avoid comparison with a locking torque converter, which
is certainly how this device is described as acting.
Final Drive
Power is sent to the rear differential which has a final drive ratio is
2.85:1. This is the only gearing between the engine and the wheels,
and the gearing does not change.
Driveshaft-Mounted Motors
Each of the rear wheels have driveshaft-mounted electric motors.
These motors produce 180 kW each (~240hp), and are what initially
provide torque from a standstill.
The process of reaching the top speed:
1. The two electric motors on the rear axle start acceleration, pulling
their energy from the cars battery. The hydraulic coupling is open at
this stage, so the engine can charge the battery if necessary, but does
not provide any power to the rear wheels. Why not? At this point, the

vehicle is traction limited, so putting down more power is not an option.

The Regera reaches 62mph in 2.7 seconds, which is pretty impressive
considering its RWD only.
2. As the speed of the vehicle increases (from 0mph) the hydraulic
coupling begins to close up. This means not only is the engine
providing torque to the rear wheels at this time, but the crank-mounted
electric motor is as well.
3. At around 30mph, the hydraulic coupling can lock up, so now the
engine is directly driving the rear wheels without the interference of a
transmission. 30mph correlates with about 1000rpm. Where does
1000rpm come from? Heres some maths:
30mph)/(((((345mmx0.30/(25.4 mm/in))x2+(20 in))x(pi))/((12
in/ft)x(5280 ft/mi)))x(60 min/h))x(2.85) = 1021 RPM (crank speed at 30
mph).
Essentially, youre trying to calculate the number of times the tyre
rotates (345/30R20 size) at 30mph, and then this number is multiplied
by 2.85 (the final drive ratio) to determine the engine speed.
4. Once the hydraulic coupling is closed up, the car will reach its top
speed once it reaches the engines redline at 8250rpm. Its really that
simple!

Since the vehicle is traction limited from a standstill, engine use

at low vehicle speeds is not needed, and the engine produces so
much power (in combination with the electric motors) that a gear
reduction for additional wheel torque is unnecessary once higher
speeds are reached.

 Parallel hybrid systems will have additional energy lost through

the transmission linking the engine to the wheels. A direct drive
allows for less energy loss through the drivetrain.
Series hybrid systems convert energy from mechanical to
electric, and back to mechanical. These conversions waste
energy; KDD does not operate this way.