Here’s a closer look at the upcoming Aurora hypercar’s new hammer of a hybrid V-12, developed with engine specialist Mahle.
- The Zenvo Aurora hypercar is set to get the most powerful V-12 ever fitted to a production road car.
- It’s called the Mjølner, and it features four turbochargers and hybridization.
- Co-developed with engine specialist Mahle, this 1250-hp, 6.6-liter V-12 could spawn smaller V-6s and V-8s for other applications.
Were time travel possible, the actual Vikings would probably be a little surprised to find many modern humans fluent in Norse mythology. Although they might be a bit confused about all the space alien stuff. Thanks to the Marvel Cinematic Universe, there is thus no need to explain the name Danish automaker Zenvo has chosen for its new, stupendously powerful V-12: Mjølner. We all know it’s going to hit like Thor’s hammer. Displacing 6.6 liters and with no fewer than four turbochargers, this new 12-cylinder engine brings the thunder and the lightning. It redlines at 9800 rpm, producing 1250 horsepower all by itself, and is paired with a hybrid system incorporating three electric motors for an additional 600 horsepower. At full throttle, it’ll scream like Loki stepping on a Lego brick.
The Mjølner V-12 was developed in partnership with German engine specialist Mahle, using the latter’s expertise in modular engine technology and ignition systems. It’s set to use something Mahle calls “jet ignition,” where the combustion event is set off by pre-chamber ignition, which then ignites the mixture in the cylinder, rather than having a conventional spark plug in the chamber. The V-12 will be capable of running on synthetic fuels, and it meets all strict current European emissions regulations by way of operating at Lambda 1, according to Zenvo.
All four turbochargers sit in the V of the engine, a layout already used by the likes of Audi, BMW, and Mercedes-AMG, albeit with just one or two turbos. This setup keeps exhaust and intake systems from getting too bulky, as the engine will be required to slip into the svelte carbon-fiber chassis of the Aurora, Zenvo’s upcoming hypercar. Two versions of that will be available: an all-wheel-drive road car that gets the full power output, and a rear-wheel-drive variant with a little less electric assist that’s tuned for track use.
There do seem to be a lot of hypercars around these days, so perhaps more exciting is Mahle’s aforementioned expertise with modular engine design. Mjølner’s 12-cylinder layout could be offered in a smaller-displacement six- or eight-cylinder configuration, whether for a future Zenvo project or supplied to another automaker. Imagine popping the hood on your sports sedan to see “Thor’s Hammer” written on your motor. Fun stuff.
Meantime, you’re going to have to sell a lot of collector-grade Marvel comics if you’re a fan of ultimate V-12 power, as the Zenvo Aurora is set to cost nearly $3 million. But then again, Mjølner was only ever forged to be wielded by a select few.
