Zenvo’s new hybrid V12 powertrain will produce 1,850bhp

“Now is our chance,” Zenvo boss Jens Sverdup told TopGear.com last summer. “If we’re ever going to do a V12, this is the last chance, and that’s why people are buying these cars.”

So, this is Zenvo very much doing a V12, one that’s now been officially rated at 1,850bhp. Welcome to the powertrain of the new ‘Aurora’.

It’s been designed and built in conjunction with Mahle Powertrain, and we’re assured it is not a racing engine tuned for road use, but instead a fully compliant, street-legal engine set to deliver “a truly special experience with exhilarating performance”.

Yes, fully compliant, because we’re told the new Zenvo V12 will meet both US and European emissions requirements. It’ll also run on net carbon synthetic fuels, too.

It’s a fully bespoke engine, built from the ground-up specifically for Zenvo, and measures 6.6-litres in capacity. It’s made entirely from aluminium and will get Mahle’s ‘Jet Ignition’ system, said to allow it to work across “the entire engine operating range” without over fuelling.

There are four turbos strapped onto this leviathan, with ICE power standing at a heady 1,250bhp at 8,000rpm, redlining at 9,800rpm. There’s more. The Aurora’s V12 will also come with an e-motor and battery setup, giving it four-wheel-drive and a further 600bhp boost.

So on the one hand it’ll have “futureproofed environmental credentials”, but also, more than eighteen hundred horses. Big numbers for a car that we’re told isn’t really about the numbers.

The engine’s a modular design, so there’ll be V8 and V6 versions spun off this unit. Though if what Sverdup told TG last summer still holds, those smaller units will be for offered as crate engines for sale – Zenvo will only ever equip its low-volume hyperthings with V12s.

“As an automobile enthusiast and industry professional, I have always strived to achieve the pinnacle of powertrains in the form of a V12 engine,” Sverdup said. “The unmatched emotions and sensations it evokes are what sets it apart as the ultimate choice for supercars and hypercars.”

We’ll see the full car revealed next month. Prepare thine ears.