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Zytek Automotive is a British powertrain and vehicle engineering specialist, which has been part of Continental AG since 2014. Zytek Automotive designs, develops, and integrates electric motors into a range of cars and commercial vehicles. The UK facility can accommodate up to 6,000 E-Drive integrations a year in batches as low as 100.
In 1981 Gibson founded the Zytech Group with two main divisions: Zytek Automotive, based at Fradley, Staffordshire; and Zytek Engineering, based at Repton, Derbyshire.
In 2000, Motorola procured 19% of the Zytek Automotive and in 2006 this passed to Continental AG, a German engineering company, who purchased all of Motorola's automotive divisions & subsequently started raising their stock-holding of Zytek Automotive to 50%. Since 2014, Zytek Automotive has been part of Continental AG after they purchased the whole business. [1] [2]
Zytek Engineering, the other part of the Zytek Group, remained under Gibson's leadership and was renamed Gibson Technology on 1 October 2014 [3] [4]
When Zytek was founded in 1981 the initial company focus was on engine management systems for motorsport.
By 1987 Zytek had expanded its operations to include race car engines as a specialty, working with teams and supporting championships such as the Le Mans Series, Formula 3000, Auto GP and the Renault FR3.5 Series.
During the 1990s, Zytek also developed high power-density electric vehicle drivetrains, creating what was the highest power-density EV drivetrain at the time. Zytek's success in motorsport led to working with road cars on the Proto ESX HEV Series hybrid drivetrain design, and the creation of engine management systems for the Jaguar XJ220 sports car. This led to further collaborations with automobile manufacturers.
Zytek has been developing vehicle electrification and electronics for road vehicles since 1997. Its first notable project was the Aston Martin DB7 engine management system and it has since gone onto collaborate with Jaguar Land Rover, Aston Martin, Rolls-Royce Bentley and Dodge. [5] In 2001 Zytek worked with GM to assist with the creation on a new concept hybrid truck, the electrification system offering fuel efficiency saving in day-to-day use as part of a turnkey hybrid development programme. [6]
In 2006, Zytek converted one hundred Smart Fortwo to fully electric vehicles, which took part in UK market trials as lease vehicles from 2007 to 2009. [7] In 2009 Zytek developed a hydrogen fuel cell concept with Morgan, the EV3. [8] The 70 kW integrated drivetrain installed in the Modec electric vehicle is designed and manufactured in house by Zytek, as well as the drivetrain in the E Vito Taxi. [9] Zytek works with the EV conversion company RBW Classic Electric Cars to provide EV drivetrains. [10]
In the early 2010s Zytek collaborated with Audi on the key electrification technology for the Audi R8 e-tron which set records for the fastest production electric car at the Nürburgring. [11] The car was also featured in the Iron Man movie.
The current family of electric motors ranges up to 170 kW. [12] [13]
Launched in 2011 with Gordon Murray Design, Zytek helped develop the Gordon Murray T.27 all-electric three seater road car. With a total cost of £9m, the T.27 was made possible via £4.5m of investment from the UK government backed Technology Strategy Board. [14] [15] With a total cost of £9m (US$14.4 million in June 2010), the research and development project allowed the consortium to develop a prototype that was unveiled at the Royal Automobile Club in June 2011. The T.27 road debut was held in November 2011 at the RAC Future Car Challenge. [16] As of 2011, Gordon Murray Design was negotiating with three manufacturers for possible production of the T.27. [17] [18]
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Zytek first started working in motorsport in 1981 specialising in engine management systems.
In 1984, for the Toleman-Hart car driven by Ayrton Senna, Zytek developed the first fully electronic engine management system within Formula One.
In 2009, for Mercedes/McLaren driven by Lewis Hamilton, Zytek developed the first kinetic energy recovery system to win an F1 race.
Since 2014 Zytek has developed vehicle electrification technology within Formula E as an electric inverter and motor supplier.
Its customer included 4 out of 6 drivers and manufacturers championships and 16 race wins.
For the Super GT racing series in Japan, Zytek developed an ERS system For the Honda 300/500. The developed hybrid system system was retrofitted to Honda's existing platform.
Zytek also has worked with Formula 3000, Le Mans Series, Renault FR3.5 Series and the Auto GP Championships.
2014 saw Zytek engaged as the electric inverter and motor supplier to a team[ which? ] in the first season of Formula E. This engagement saw Zytek having to deliver race-worthy systems in six months. It was a supplier in further seasons with the Formula E World Champions.
The Kamkorp Group was a privately held holding company, encompassing a wide range of businesses but operates mainly as Frazer-Nash Research Ltd. It was owned by UK-based Indian businessman Kamal Siddiqi. Over the past 25 years, the Kamkorp Group has developed proprietary digital electric and hybrid electric powertrains and products for the transportation and industrial markets. The company has produced various automobile prototypes under the brands Frazer-Nash and Metrocab. Until 2020 it owned Bristol Cars, under which brand the Bristol Bullet sports car was being developed. The Bullet was unveiled on 26 July 2016 and production was to have started in 2017.
Ian Gordon Murray, is a South African-British designer of Formula One racing cars for Brabham and McLaren and the McLaren F1 high-performance road car. Founder and CEO of Gordon Murray Design and Gordon Murray Automotive, he has subsequently designed and built a number of sports cars and a variety of other automotive vehicles.
A diesel–electric transmission, or diesel–electric powertrain, is a transmission system for vehicles powered by diesel engines in road, rail, and marine transport. Diesel–electric transmission is based on petrol–electric transmission, a transmission system used for petrol engines.
The General Motors EV1 is a battery electric car produced by the American automaker General Motors from 1996 until its demise in 1999.
In a motor vehicle, the powertrain comprises the main components that generate power and deliver that power to the road surface, water, or air. This includes the engine, transmission, drive shafts, differentials, and the final drive. Hybrid powertrains also include one or more electric traction motors that operate to drive the vehicle wheels. All-electric vehicles eliminate the engine altogether, relying solely on electric motors for propulsion. Occasionally the term powerplant is casually used to refer to the engine or, less often, the entire powertrain.
BorgWarner Inc. is an American automotive and e-mobility supplier headquartered in Auburn Hills, Michigan. As of 2022, the company maintains production facilities and sites at 92 locations in 24 countries, and generates revenues of US$15.8 billion, while employing around 52,000 people. The company is one of the 25 largest automotive suppliers in the world.
DENSO Corporation is a global automotive components manufacturer headquartered in the city of Kariya, Aichi Prefecture, Japan.
Gibson Technology is an automotive and motorsport company based at Repton, Derbyshire, England. It was founded by Bill Gibson and Brian Mason as Zytek Engineering in 1981.
Hybrid vehicle drivetrains transmit power to the driving wheels for hybrid vehicles. A hybrid vehicle has multiple forms of motive power.
A hybrid electric vehicle (HEV) is a type of hybrid vehicle that combines a conventional internal combustion engine (ICE) system with an electric propulsion system. The presence of the electric powertrain is intended to achieve either better fuel economy than a conventional vehicle or better performance. There is a variety of HEV types and the degree to which each functions as an electric vehicle (EV) also varies. The most common form of HEV is the hybrid electric car, although hybrid electric trucks, buses, boats, and aircraft also exist.
All-electric range (AER) is the maximum driving range of an electric vehicle using only power from its on-board battery pack to traverse a given driving cycle. In the case of a Battery electric vehicle (BEV), it means the maximum range per recharge, typically between 150 and 400 miles. For a plug-in hybrid electric vehicle (PHEV), it means the maximum range in charge-depleting mode, typically between 20 and 40 miles. PHEVs can travel considerably further in charge-sustaining mode which utilizes both fuel combustion and the on-board battery pack like a conventional hybrid electric vehicle (HEV).
Lohner–Porsche is a term encompassing several electric vehicles designed by Ferdinand Porsche and manufactured at Lohner-Werke in the early 1900s. They include the first hybrid electric vehicle and the first commercial hub motor car. The hybrid "Mixed" or "Mixte" racecars are powered by a gasoline engine which drives four electric motors, one in each wheel hub. The battery-powered "Touring" or "Chaise" commercial cars utilize only two front-wheel hub motors.
A kinetic energy recovery system (KERS) is an automotive system for recovering a moving vehicle's kinetic energy under braking. The recovered energy is stored in a reservoir for later use under acceleration. Examples include complex high end systems such as the Zytek, Flybrid, Torotrak and Xtrac used in Formula One racing and simple, easily manufactured and integrated differential based systems such as the Cambridge Passenger/Commercial Vehicle Kinetic Energy Recovery System (CPC-KERS).
A range extender is a fuel-based auxiliary power unit (APU) that extends the range of a battery electric vehicle by driving an electric generator that charges the vehicle's battery. This arrangement is known as a series hybrid drivetrain. The most commonly used range extenders are internal combustion engines, but fuel-cells or other engine types can be used.
A drivetrain or transmission system, is the group of components that deliver mechanical power from the prime mover to the driven components. In automotive engineering, the drivetrain is the components of a motor vehicle that deliver power to the drive wheels. This excludes the engine or motor that generates the power. In marine applications, the drive shaft will drive a propeller, thruster, or waterjet rather than a drive axle, while the actual engine might be similar to an automotive engine. Other machinery, equipment and vehicles may also use a drivetrain to deliver power from the engine(s) to the driven components.
Electric motorsport is a category of motor sport that consists of the racing of electric powered vehicles for competition, either in all-electric series, or in open-series against vehicles with different powertrains. Very early in the history of automobiles, electric cars held several performance records over internal combustion engine cars, such as land speed records, but fell behind in performance during the first decade of the 20th century.
Paice is a hybrid technology company headquartered in Baltimore. The company develops transitory technology for gas-driven and electricity-driven vehicles.
Vitesco Technologies Group AG, headquartered in Regensburg, is a German automotive supplier for drivetrain and powertrain technologies. Vitesco Technologies was a business area of Continental AG until it became independent in September 2021. The company develops devices for electric vehicles as well as internal combustion engines.
The Hyundai Vision FK is a concept car that uses a plug-in hybrid drivetrain with both a large traction battery and a hydrogen fuel cell; the concept vehicle was developed by Hyundai and Rimac Automobili. The mid-motor, rear-wheel-drive sports coupe was unveiled at the Hydrogen Wave Forum in September 2021, an event organized by Hyundai to outline its plans to popularize hydrogen vehicles by 2040 for "Everyone, Everything and Everywhere". Power is delivered through two electric traction motors, both on the rear axle. The Vision FK can be plugged in to recharge its traction battery, which has more than 60 kW-hr of energy storage capacity, and the onboard fuel cell affords it a range greater than 600 km (370 mi).
An electromod is a vehicle that has been restored and modified by converting its drivetrain to operate as an electric vehicle (EV). The term is a portmanteau of electrification and restomod, itself a portmanteau of restoration and modification, a process which traditionally has been associated with classic cars. Most electromods are one-off custom vehicles performed by specialty repair shops and hobbyists, but starting in the late 2010s, automobile manufacturers have been building their own electromods, sometimes with the assistance of specialty shops, to publicize their shift to battery electric powertrains and to build interest in crate engine EV drivetrain products.