2020 Koenigsegg Gemera
According to Christian von Koenigsegg, the name of the new car can be explained by a family dinner at which his mother had the idea of creating a name for the new car from the Swedish 'Ge', which means 'give' and
the
'mera', which means 'more'. What else is there on this vehicle? First of all the rear seats, which are celebrated as an absolute innovation in hypercars. And then the 1,250 kW (1,700 PS) added by four engines.
One of them is a three-cylinder engine that doesn't really deserve the attribute 'small', as it has a capacity of two litres. Nevertheless, the output of 147 kW (200 hp) per cylinder is remarkable. Now you could say that
with turbocharging almost anything is possible, but in this case that would be unwise.
If you want you can take a look at the video below, which does not show the advantages, but unique shots of the 'Camless' motor control. Origin of the control of the valves is exclusively pneumatic, hydraulic and, of
course,
electronic, never seen before in a series vehicle, not even in Fiat.
Imagine a valve with valve spring and cup tappet. Instead of the camshaft, the bucket tappet is moved by compressed air at the appropriate time. The valve opens. Now you might think that it would be possible to
close the
valve as soon as the pressure is released. However, that would be too easy and those who have failed so far have already tried this.
| The second combustion engine from Koenigsegg completely without camshaft(s). |
Presumably the full disclosure is also deliberately blocked by the sister company Freevalve. Obviously, the valve can also be partially opened. The oil hydraulics plays an important role in immobilising the valve. This
allegedly also prevents the valve from slamming into its seat when closing and causing permanent damage.
These functions, including the lines to be opened electrically, are combined in a compact block above each valve. There are two separate ports for the inlet and two for the outlet side. The head of a 1.6L turbo
modified for
the Chinese company Qoros is 50 mm lower than the original. The explanations of the Christian von Koenigsegg and the increased performance data in the video below.
But these are by no means all the advantages. If only one intake valve per cylinder is opened, a tumble effect of better mixing of air and fuel is achieved. This type of engine returns to intake-manifold injection, thus
saving
more expensive components and energy for high-pressure, which more than outweighs the advantages of direct injection in this case.
On the exhaust side, only one exhaust port per cylinder is sent to the turbocharger. This is then neither a VTG turbocharger nor does it have a wastegate valve. Here, the boost pressure is regulated via the inflow of
exhaust
gas by the opening times of the respective exhaust valves. And since the other ports end up directly in the catalytic converter, it reaches operating temperature much more quickly, otherwise it is always the Achilles'
heel of
the gasoline engine.
The engine without camshafts already existed in the Regera. There you can also see the effect of the
direct
drives at the front and the rear including a video there. The Gemera is also a hydride, even with a plug-in function, but completely different from the Regera, and not just because it only has two seats.
So how did they get the four-seater? It sounds relatively easy at first. The concept of the engine longitudinal in front of the rear axle with an electric motor on the crankshaft has remained. Only the engine itself is
significantly shorter with just three cylinders. Even the individual cubic capacities are similar. However, there is now a forward powertrain.
| The company Akrapovic has successfully taken care of an appropriate sound. |
You have to let that melt in your mouth, a vehicle with a combustion engine at the rear that only drives the front axle. Who would have ever thought that something seemingly senseless would ever be built. But the
whole thing makes sense if you take note of the two powerful electric motors on the rear axle.
The electric motors for the two sides of the rear drive already existed, but in combination with the internal combustion engine. In contrast to the Regera, the Gemera has become a more electrically powered vehicle. It
also fits that the capacity of the battery has been doubled. Because of this and because of the drive train to the front, it could no longer be accommodated in the middle tunnel, but lies very flat in the front footwell.
Although it is not particularly large, it can absorb and, above all, release a lot of electrical energy in a very short time, e.g. because of its 800V technology.
| But the wheelbase had to grow to 3 meters. |
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