GKN Supplies Advanced eAxle to Plug-in Hybrid Volvo S90

GKN Automotive and Volvo Cars are taking their successful driveline development collaboration to new heights with the all-new Volvo S90 plug-in hybrid. By manufacturing an eAxle system that fits in the same space as a standard rear drive module, GKN innovation enables Volvo Cars to provide customers with a plug-in hybrid as a simple, high-performance upgrade.

In a statement, GKN Automotive President of Engineering Peter Moelgg said that consumers anticipate premium brands to provide truly advanced driving experiences. He noted that plug-in hybrids with electric power driving the rear-wheels are the ultimate feel-good upgrade for consumers as they provide huge advances in environmental performance, fuel economy, driver enjoyment and refinement. “GKN’s eAxle technology and driveline systems integration expertise is making them a commercial reality.”

GKN’s eAxle gets power from a 65 kW, 240Nm electric machine with a nominal maximum input speed of 13,000rpm and, through a two-stage single speed gearbox with a ratio of 10:1, delivers a nominal output torque of 2400Nm. The system supports both full all-wheel drive capability and pure electric driving where the rear wheels are driven by electric power and the front by a combustion engine.

In AWD and power mode, the engine operates constantly and a 34kW engine mounted ISG guarantees the charge level in the battery pack to supply the eAxle with requested power.

The technology was first unveiled on the new Volvo XC90 T8 Twin Engine plug-in hybrid SUV. Its revolutionary co-axial design suggests that the eAxle is not bigger than the S90’s standard rear drive module. The system comes with a high internal efficiency of nearly 97.5 percent and utilizes a differential with electronic disconnect to decouple the electric motor at times to reduce losses.

GKN has blazed the trail for the development of the eAxle, making the systems smaller, more powerful and easier to integrate into vehicles. Its eAxles help vehicles to provide useful pure electric ranges of more than 32 kilometers, and in the case of the Volvo S90, the vehicle can travel up to 28 miles in pure electric. Moreover, the technology provides vehicles with a huge upgrade in terms of driving performance, dynamics, refinement and all-weather traction.