FCA Patents 1,341 HP Three Motor Electric Drive Axle
The American arm of Stellantis has filed a patent for what the company calls a high performance three motor electric drive. Having one, or even two electric motors on a single axle is common, but housing three separate power units is unusual.
Sifting through the long, and often wordy patent, the goal of the three-motor axle is to allow a greater range of speed delivered to the drive wheels. One motor is placed central to the axle while the two other motors are located left and right of the first motor, closer to the wheels. These left and right motors each individually power their respective wheels through their own gear-set. The central motor can also power both wheels when required.
The patent states part of this set-up is to allow a better range of speed. Electric motors are usually not attached to a gearbox, which means vehicle speed is limited by the maximum rpm the electric motor can operate at. By having the left and right motors deliver power through a different gearset, this can allow them to take over at a certain speed and keep accelerating the vehicle. It’s sort of like a big two-speed gearbox.
Perhaps the craziest part of the patent is the fact each of the three motors can be 350 kW units. That’s nearly 470 hp a piece. Combined, the motors reportedly make 1,000 kW of power, or 1,341 hp (!).
Where this sort of set up would be used is a question currently left unanswered. Could it be part of the teased Dodge Charger Banshee super EV? Or, since the patent mentions the axle is capable of tank turns, the RAM 1500 REV all-electric truck? We won’t know for some time yet, but we definitely want to try this system out if it ever makes its way to production.
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A 20+ year industry veteran, Mike rejoins the AutoGuide team as the Managing Editor. He started his career at a young age working at dealerships, car rentals, and used car advertisers. He then found his true passion, automotive writing. After contributing to multiple websites for several years, he spent the next six years working at the head office of an automotive OEM, before returning back to the field he loves. He is a member of the Automobile Journalists Association of Canada (AJAC), and Midwest Automotive Media Association (MAMA). He's the recipient of a feature writing of the year award and multiple video of the year awards.
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Was interested until I saw that it was electric motors. BORING!