A prototype of a secret electric sedan developed by NEVS has been revealed, despite the Swedish electric vehicle start-up announcing its shutdown in the same month. NEVS, the company that tried to revive Saab after its 2011 bankruptcy, intended to launch its own brand of EVs using top technology developed by many former Saab workers. The vehicle, a large sedan, was named the NEVS Emily GT and development began in 2019, finishing in only 10 months. NEVS acquired a 20% stake in Koenigsegg the same year and planned a yet-to-be-disclosed EV partnership. While the Emily GT was not meant for production, it showcased in-wheel motor technology from protean, a British EV technology firm NEVS bought in 2019. The vehicle may be among the assets of NEVS, which ceased functioning in its ongoing search for buyers, available for sale.
No NEVS specifications for the Emily GT have been released, but the vehicle may support a battery as large as 175 kwh, with each of its four Protean in-wheel motors likely rated at 120 hp, delivering a potential overall output of approximately 480 hp. With each motor housed within a wheel supplying power precisely where and when the driver needs, this eliminates the need for gearboxes, driveshafts and differentials, reducing weight and improving power transfer efficiency. Furthermore, each in-wheel motor can be individually controlled, giving greater control, performance and handling than traditional drive systems allow. In-wheel motors are also used by U.S. EV start-up Lordstown with its electric pickup truck, the Endurance.
Protean in-wheel electric motor
In 2020, NEVS partnered with marketing firm Plint to document the Emily GT’s inception and released related material, including a video of Koenigsegg’s CEO and founder Christian von Koenigsegg testing the prototype. The project was led by Peter Dahl, who joined NEVS after Saab’s bankruptcy in 1994, and former Saab designer Simon Padien was also involved. Padien worked on Saab’s last 9-5 model, which may explain why the Emily GT resembles it.
Will we see in-wheel motors in a future Koenigsegg? Christian von Koenigsegg seems impressed. pic.twitter.com/hoFuxig1LB
— MotorAuthority (@motorauthority) April 28, 2023
