The people, or at least Koenigsegg customers, have spoken and they’ve made it clear that: more is better.
Founder Christian von Koenigsegg recently told the Top Gear Magazine podcast that his company will no longer build a three-cylinder version of the Gemera, and will instead only equip the hypercar with a V-8. Thankfully, it sounds like the company hasn’t given up on its insanely powerful three-pot just yet, though.
Automotive observers know to expect the unexpected from Koenigsegg, but few could have seen the Gemera’s powertrain details coming. When the Swedish marque unveiled the “Mega-GT” back in 2020 it said it would be powered by a twin-turbocharged 2.0-liter inline-three called the “Tiny Friendly Giant” and three electric motors. The brand promised that the unique setup would combine to produce 1,677 hp and 2,581 lb-ft of torque. With all that grunt at its disposal, it said the car would be able to rocket from zero to 62 mph in 1.9 seconds and hit a top speed of 249 mph.
Koenigsegg Gemera
Koenigsegg
That much power would be enough for most companies, but not Koenigsegg. Last year, the automaker announced that the Gemera would also be available with a twin-turbocharged 5.0-liter V-8 paired with the company’s “Dark Matter” radial-flux electric motor. This version would make 2,300 horses and 2,038 ft lbs of torque when running on E85 fuel.
It’s admirable that Koenigsegg wanted to offer an even more potent Gemera, but the decision may have ended up killing off any chance the three-cylinder version had. During his appearance on the Top Gear Magazine podcast, von Koenigsegg revealed that no one wanted an inline-three once the V-8 was an option. The executive even ended up convincing the few hold-outs to opt for the more powerful version.
“In a nutshell, they all turn into V8s,” the executive told show host Jack Rix [via CarScoops]. “There were so few left that asked for the three-cylinder, we managed to convince almost all of them [to switch].”
Thankfully, Koenigsegg still wants to try to do something with the Tiny Friendly Giant. The company continues to work on the mill and hopes to include it in a future car. There’s even a possibility that it ends up in a future version of the Gemera. In the meantime, the V-8 version of the hypercar will go into production later this year, with deliveries expected to begin in 2025.
