Key Takeaways
Plug-in hybrids are saving combustion engines by reducing emissions in zero-emission zones and providing wild performance. Hybridization has unlocked the potential for the wildest combustion engines ever seen, ensuring the longevity of combustion in high-end supercars. Combustion will never die, it will simply become a luxury in the same way horses have.
As of 2024, there are only three V10 engines still in production. V12s are faring a little better, but they’re starting to look like an endangered species, too. At our last check, there were only six or seven V8-powered sports cars available in the United States. EPA emissions standards aren’t getting any more lenient, and electric cars are getting more powerful and making performance more accessible every day.
Related The Last V8 Sports Cars On Sale In America
The V8 is getting close to taking its last breath in the automotive world. Here’s a list of the last V8 sports cars you can buy.
But amid the pressures to rid the earth of the combustion engine, supercar manufacturers have found the secret to keeping combustion alive, and it’s not by going electric, and it’s certainly not through turbocharging the heck out of every engine either. No, the secret to combustion’s survival in the high-end realm, and the reason for some of the best supercar engines ever, is the plug-in hybrid.
How Does Adding Electricity Save Combustion?
It may sound counterintuitive that adding electricity saves combustion, but there’s a method to our madness. To understand why, you first need to know a bit about the push behind mass electrification laws. We won’t bore you too much, but basically, cars as a whole have been earmarked as a major pollutant in built-up areas. Across the world, governments are imposing zero-emission zones in cities aimed at reducing smog in areas where there is no greenery to counter the carbon emissions.
That means when you drive around in these zones, you have to do so with zero tailpipe emissions. That doesn’t mean you can only drive an EV, though – you can have a great big hulking V12 behind you, but if you’ve got a 12-mile electric range, you’re totally safe. But what about outside of these zones? Well here’s the kicker, supercars don’t actually do all that much mileage in general…
Add CarBuzz to your Google News feed.
Supercars Aren’t Being Used As Commuters
It’s difficult to pin down an average mileage estimate for supercars and hypercars, but one thing is certain. Not everyone who owns a McLaren P1, Bugatti Chiron, or Pagani Huayra drives them every day. In fact, most of these cars would be lucky to be driven on weekends out to breakfast and back. The people buying hypercars view their acquisitions differently from the common person; where we might buy one or two cars, these folks have dozens. They don’t choose between one car or another, they buy them both, and then add another rival to the garage to have the whole Top Trumps set.
In 2023, the average number of miles driven per year by the average US motorist was 13,476. Comparatively, most supercar forums see owners reporting between 1,000 and 1,500 miles a year on their cars. Although we came across a few reported instances of owners covering up to 4,500 miles a year, these were rare exceptions. Considering hypercars likely see even less mileage, and considering they make up a fraction of a percent of cars on the road, their overall impact is next to nothing in the greater scheme of things.
And by taking away the bulk of the emissions on short journeys, their impact is reduced even further.
Hybrids Giving Us The Wildest Combustion Engines Since… Ever
But that’s just the political rationale behind why electrification is saving combustion. From a passionate car fan perspective, plug-in hybrids are doing something even cooler, giving us the craziest engines we’ve arguably ever seen.
To be clear, we’re no Luddites, we love a good EV, like the Rimac Nevera. You can’t argue with a 1.74-second 0-60 sprint, and with the brand new Nevera R, there’s even more power and wilder performance. But at the end of the day, those are just numbers. Unless you’re a professional race driver and it’s your job to shave fractions of a second off your quarter-mile or lap time, the whole point of driving a supercar is the feedback, the smell of the exhaust, the sound of a perfectly tuned eight- or ten- or twelve- or sixteen-cylinder engine howling away. Even turbochargers tend to put a damper on the fun and the experience, muting exhaust notes, killing throttle response, and generally numbing the experience in search of efficiency to comply with ill-thought-out regulations.
Not with a plug-in hybrid. Because the electric side of things takes care of the fuel economy and emissions side of things, automakers are now less fussed with turbo technology, and they’re now giving us crazy feats of engineering that titillate the senses.
Examples Of Electrification Giving Us Insane Supercars
Recent examples include the Aston Martin Valkyrie, with a 6.5-liter V12 sans turbochargers capable of revving to 11,000 rpm, and the new Bugatti Tourbillon, which somehow managed to retain 16 cylinders, but ditched the quad turbos and rearranged those cylinders in a vee, creating one of the most unique-sounding cars we’ve ever heard. And then there’s the Lamborghini Temerario, which uses turbochargers on its new V8 engine but flips the script by revving to 10,500 rpm. Wanna know how that’s possible? You guessed it – electricity. Because the hybrid system can torque-fill down low, the turbos can be big monsters that boost big up high, adding character and a heck of a lot of performance to the mix; since when would you ever have labeled 907 horsepower as the output of a baby Lambo before?
Base Trim Engine 8.3-liter V16 hybrid
Base Trim Drivetrain All-Wheel Drive
Base Trim Transmission 8-speed dual-clutch automatic
Base Trim Horsepower 1,775 hp
Lamborghini Temerario
Base Trim Engine 4.0-liter Twin-Turbo V8 Plug-In Hybrid
Base Trim Drivetrain All-Wheel Drive
Base Trim Transmission 8-Speed Dual-Clutch Automatic
Base Trim Horsepower 907 hp
Base Trim Engine 6.5L V12 Hybrid
Base Trim Drivetrain Rear-Wheel Drive
Base Trim Transmission 7-Speed Automatic
Base Trim Horsepower 1,160 hp
None of these would be possible without electrification, and we’ve got a feeling this trend is only just getting started. Low-volume automakers may be exempt from incoming combustion bans, but not every supercar and hypercar comes from a sub-1,000-cars-a-year brand. For the brands that are a little more mainstream – as if you could call Ferrari, McLaren, Aston Martin, Lamborghini, and Porsche mainstream – a plug-in hybrid system is the key to prolonged combustion, and not just prolonged combustion, but the wildest combustion we’ve ever seen.
Related Bugatti Tourbillon Vs. Bugatti Chiron: 7 Biggest Differences Between Bugatti’s Newest Hypercar And The Legend It Replaces
The Bugatti Tourbillon represents a new era for the brand under the stewardship of Mate Rimac, and it’s shaping up to be a special one.
Combustion Will Never Die, And Hybridization Just Gave It A Boost
Contrary to the anti-combustion vitriol, we’re of the opinion that no matter how good electric cars get, combustion will never die. Whether it’s through synthetic fuels, hydrogen combustion, or hybridization, it will always have a future. In much the same way as the motorcar overtook the horse-drawn carriage as the common means of transport, we’re under no illusion EVs will take over the mass market. But just like horses went from being basic tools for transport to a status symbol for the elite and a luxury, so too will combustion cars.
The great thing about hybridization is that it has unshackled combustion, freeing it from the bonds of falsified efficiency. Plug-in hybrid supercars and hypercars are the ultimate double-play, and while governments can be appeased by the zero-emissions driven capability, car enthusiasts can enjoy the sights, sounds, and smells of combustion for years to come. And we don’t have to worry about the weight of an EV battery, either.
Sources:US Department of Transportation, Ferrari Chat, Pistonheads, Hagerty.com