The current Emira was launched in 2021 on a much modified version of the outgoing Evora platform and has gone on to become Lotus’s best-selling sports car based on annual figures.
However, the V6 from Toyota was due to be replaced because it would have failed to meet upcoming changes to EU regulations, prompting Horse to create its own engine.
New Horse V6 is “powerful and lightweight”
The engine will set new standards in the category, Horse CEO Matias Giannini told Autocar. “Being based on a smaller engine design is also a key reason why the V6 is so compact and light,” he said. “That’s why it’s so competitive, and it is the lightest and smallest hybrid V6 in the world right now. There’s no hybrid V6 engine that fits in the package that ours fits.”
The 3.0-litre unit, revealed at the Beijing motor show last month, is described as a “powerful and lightweight V6 engine” for use in mild- and full-hybrid vehicles.
It is the latest in a wave of new systems revealed by the fast-growing company, which was set up as a joint venture between Renault and Geely in 2024 to develop and supply electrified ICE powertrains for car manufacturers globally. Horse engines are already used in a variety of vehicles from Renault, Dacia, Nissan, Mercedes and others.
Giannini explained that the new motor was not initially in the product strategy when the company was founded two years ago, but has been developed efficiently using existing assets.
He said: “I love the big engines. When I came here, I didn’t think that was ever going to be part of our journey, because there’s so much to be done with that more commoditised powertrain: the three- and four-cylinder, up to 2.0-litre engines.
“But obviously, in a company like Horse Powertrain, there’s a lot of car enthusiasts – so people would come to me and say: ‘When are we going to have a V6?’
“And I would say: ‘It’s not the focus right now.’ But that’s the thing about an innovative company with car lovers: they made a way to convince me, and the way to convince is that the basis of the V6 comes from our simple four-cylinder technology.”
Giannini’s comments highlight the modularity of Horse’s construction methods, which mean that all its engines can essentially be scaled up and down as needed. Such modularity has also allowed for the creation of a new V8, based on the V6, which will power Lotus’s new supercar.
