One of the many trends the automotive industry is leaning towards is that of performance hybrids which boost both the go and the eco credentials of a vehicle.
But what if that vehicle was a Chevy Corvette Z06, a car with a big V8 engine, light plastic body boasting good handling, and the kit was an aftermarket one promising to add 265 horsepower into the concoction with not that much extra weight?
It’s the promise being made by a company called Quanta Products, out of Maryland. The QHP770 pack is first one offered by the new Quanta Hybrid Performance division that was recently started with the aim of putting together and selling these kits.
It is made up of two axial flux electric motors that are mounted into the differential at the back, a battery pack and two controllers. When set up, it’s claimed to deliver a combined rating of 770 hp. As you’d expect, the amount of torque on tap also shoots up, but not proportionally, to “over 1500 lb-ft” in total, or 2033 Nm – it should also be instant in its delivery.
The heaviest piece of the kit is the battery pack, but its 127 kg / 282 lbs extra weight will easily be offset by the wall of torque that it promises to deliver.
However, while it isn’t directly mentioned, mounting the electric motors on/in the differential may not allow the all-important “EV mode,” in which the car is able to shut off the (in this case) big V8 and silently drain the battery, before petrol starts to be burnt again.
This is certainly a cooler mod than supercharging one’s ‘Vette, and if there’s interest, it could be adapted to work on the new C7 Stingray, according to company officials. All we want to know now is how much it costs.
By Andrei Nedelea
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