Horse Powertrain has unveiled the X-Vary C15 Direct Drive at Beijing Auto Present 2026, an built-in hybrid powertrain that replaces the rear electrical drive unit of BEV platforms. The unit packages a 1.5-liter four-cylinder engine, transmission, twin electrical motors, and energy electronics right into a single housing, enabling BEV platforms to assist HEV, PHEV, and REEV derivatives with minimal car redesign.
Horse Powertrain, headquartered in London, UK, has revealed the X-Vary C15 Direct Drive, an built-in hybrid powertrain designed to switch the rear electrical drive unit of current battery electrical car (BEV) platforms, enabling them to underpin hybrid electrical autos (HEVs), plug-in hybrid electrical autos (PHEVs), and range-extended electrical autos (REEVs) with minimal modification to car design or manufacturing tooling.
The system was unveiled at Beijing Auto Present 2026 on April 20 and is the most recent addition to the corporate’s X-Vary household — a toolkit geared toward permitting automakers so as to add hybrid functionality to devoted BEV platforms by substituting electrical drive items.
The X-Vary C15 Direct Drive packages a four-cylinder, 1.5-liter engine, transmission, energy electronics, and two electrical motors right into a single shared housing with a flat profile, designed to mount to a car’s rear subframe. Horse Powertrain says the dual-isolated mounting configuration is meant to optimize noise, vibration, and harshness (NVH) efficiency.
The engine is on the market in two configurations: naturally aspirated, producing as much as 70kW and focused at B- and C-segment autos, and turbocharged, producing as much as 120kW for D-segment autos and light-weight business autos (LCVs).
The 2 electrical motors are organized in a P1 and P3 configuration. The P1 motor sits on the finish of the engine’s crankshaft and features primarily as a generator, producing 70kW within the naturally aspirated variant and 110kW within the turbocharged model. The P3 motor is mounted on the transmission’s output shaft and offers electrical traction, working both independently in serial mode or alongside the engine in parallel mode. Horse Powertrain states that the direct mechanical connection between engine and wheels in parallel mode improves complete system effectivity in contrast with purely serial or range-extended hybrid architectures.
Relying on automaker necessities, the unit can drive the rear axle independently or work alongside a entrance electrical drive unit in an all-wheel drive configuration. The rear-axle location additionally permits the exhaust and aftertreatment methods to be packaged on the rear of the car, liberating up flooring house for battery packaging or passenger cabin use.
The powertrain features a full suite of energy electronics and is designed to combine with supplementary parts together with a DC/DC converter, an on-board charger, and an 800V charging booster.
The X-Vary C15 Direct Drive joins two current members of the X-Vary household: the HORSE F15, which substitutes the entrance electrical drive unit of a BEV platform, and the HORSE C15, an ultra-compact engine and generator that features as a standalone vary extender.
Matias Giannini, chief govt officer of Horse Powertrain, says: “The X-Vary household of powertrains is about reflecting as we speak’s market realities, permitting automakers to pivot from BEVs to hybrids and vary extenders on a single platform, shortly and at scale. The X-Vary C15 Direct Drive is an ‘all-in-one’ powertrain, permitting BEV platforms to be transformed to HEVs, PHEVs, and REEVs with little redesign or tooling adjustments required, dramatically lowering time-to-market, amortizing BEV investments, and catering to the various array of mobility wants in as we speak’s international market.”
Horse Powertrain will host a press convention at Beijing Auto Present on April 24, 2026, at 11:40 CST, in Corridor A1, Sales space A111.
