Video: the Koenigsegg Regera's engine sounds incredible

Koenigsegg has very kindly sent TopGear.com some footage, and you must watch it. It is footage of the Swedish firm's upcoming Regera ‘mega car’ engine running through its paces, spinning – says Koenigsegg – from an effective 31mph to 217mph on a dyno.

And it sounds bloody amazing.

Now, if you're thinking, 'How can they say an engine's done 217mph on a dyno? Doesn't that depend on gearing and the like?' then normally you'd be right. But the Regera's gearing doesn't work like normal gearing.

Let us explain as best we can. See, at the Regera’s heart sits a 5.0-litre twin turbo V8, producing 1100bhp and sending all its power directly to the rear wheels.

As if that wasn't enough, the Regera also gets a pair of electric motors, one strapped to each rear wheel, along with a small, crank-mounted motor to fill the ICE's torque gap (and act as a starter motor) together with a hydraulic coupling.

When combined, this triplet of motors and monster V8 produce in the region of 1800bhp – again, all to the rear wheels – with a ‘direct drive’ system in place of a normal gearbox.

Earlier this year, Christian explained to TG that it works something like this: at take off, with the coupling open, the Regera powers off purely on electric drive, with no need for a gearbox. As soon as it gains a few more revs, the hydraulic coupling begins to close, and the smaller crank-mounted electric motor joins in to help the bottom part of the torque curve.

And then, once the engine gets up to speed, that kicks in from around 30mph upwards. “We managed to take a heavy, expensive lump out of the equation [the transmission], without sacrificing the ability of the combustion engine to provide drive to the rear wheels,” Christian tells TG.

0-62mph takes 2.7 seconds. “We can’t go any faster than that because of traction,” Christian says. 0-186mph takes 12 seconds flat, while 0-250mph takes under 20 seconds. It’ll go from 93mph to 155mph in just 3.2 seconds, and top out at 255mph. Let those numbers swirl around your head for a moment.

Why no gearbox? “I’ve been wanting to create something like this without a CVT’s horrible elasticity, and the weight and complexity transmissions bring,” Christian says.

Just 80 Regeras will be built. Each will cost just over £1.2m. They’ve already sold four. If you want one, better get your order in quick…

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