Koenigsegg has confirmed that it is working on a 1.6L turbocharged 4-cylinder engine, but don’t expect to see it in any of their vehicles any time soon. In an interview, Christian von Koenigsegg, the company’s founder, confirmed that the Swedish supercar maker is working on a high-performance 4-cylinder engine on behalf of Chinese automaker Qoros.
“We are currently working on a 1.6-litre engine with Chinese carmaker Qoros that will have the potential to produce 400hp (298kW) or more,” von Koenigsegg said. “The same principles with which we designed the Agera and Regera engines can be applied to these smaller engines.”
That means that for now, Koenigsegg will stick to producing insanely powerful supercars with their large displacement engines. So the Koenigsegg/Qoros engine collaboration is only intended as a proof of concept at this stage, with the Swedish car maker keen to show that through careful engineering heat dissipation in such a small engine can be kept in check.
To improve the engine’s efficiency, Koenigsegg has employed forged pistons and connecting rods, and high quality valves. Although von Koenigsegg considers electric compressors interesting, it was ruled out for this project as it was deemed too “clumsy, expensive and heavy”.
Koenigsegg and Qoros are working together on other projects. At the recent Beijing motor show, Qoros and Freevalve, Koenigsegg’s sister company, unveiled the ‘Qamfree’ engine that does away with camshafts in favour of Freevalve’s Pneumatic-Hydraulic-Electric-Actuator technology.
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That engine is going to go through a lot of stress and strain Also I’d expect some profound turbo lag, but if it work properly they need to stick one in a Lotus Elise or Exige.