By ATN Editorial Team
Summary: Horse Powertrain has unveiled its new Amorphous Motor, a hybrid transmission motor that achieves a reported 98.2% efficiency, positioning it among the most efficient motors of its type. First shown at IAA Summit 2025, the motor uses amorphous steel, a material with high magnetic permeability and low energy loss characteristics. By exploiting these properties, Horse Powertrain reduced the thickness of the stator laminations to 0.025mm—around one tenth the thickness of conventional electrical steel used in traditional motor designs. The thinner laminations reduce stator iron losses by around 50%, enabling the motor to deliver 140kW and 360Nm while improving overall hybrid system efficiency.
Key engineering takeaway: The Amorphous Motor demonstrates how advanced magnetic materials and ultra-thin stator laminations can significantly reduce electromagnetic losses in electric machines. By cutting iron losses in half compared with conventional designs, the motor achieves higher efficiency without fundamentally changing motor architecture or output capability, highlighting the role of materials engineering in next-generation electrified powertrains.
Why it matters: Even marginal efficiency gains at the motor level can translate into measurable reductions in vehicle fuel consumption and emissions across hybrid fleets. A 1% reduction in overall fuel use may appear small per vehicle but becomes significant at scale, supporting OEM efforts to meet tightening global emissions targets while maintaining performance in hybrid, plug-in hybrid and range-extended EV platforms.
New Amorphous Motor achieves a reported 98.2% efficiency
Horse Powertrain, a global leader in innovative and low-emission powertrain systems, has made the global debut of its groundbreaking “Amorphous Motor” technology. This dedicated hybrid transmission motor achieves industry-leading efficiency of 98.2%, enabling a 1% reduction in whole-vehicle fuel consumption.
First showcased at IAA Summit 2025, the Amorphous Motor uses amorphous steel – a steel alloy with incredibly high durability, strength, and magnetic permeability.
By leveraging these properties of amorphous steel, Horse Powertrain has been able to dramatically reduce the thickness of the steel layers required that make up a motor stator. As a result, the sheets used to assemble the Amorphous Motor are just 0.025mm thick – one tenth the thickness of steel used in traditional motors.
Using this highly conductive material, the Amorphous Motor’s losses to stator iron are reduced by 50% compared to equivalent designs. This allows the motor to achieve industry-leading efficiency of 98.2%. This is achieved while outputting a maximum power of 140kW at 360Nm.
These efficiency gains mean that hybrids using the Amorphous Motor in their powertrains will see a 1% reduction in fuel and power consumption compared to those using existing motor designs, helping automotive OEMs deliver a new generation of low-emission vehicle models.
Ingo Scholten, Deputy Chief Technology Officer of Horse Powertrain, said: “This latest innovation demonstrates Horse Powertrain’s continued commitment to research and development, providing suppliers and OEMs with the tools to raise the bar on when it comes to fuel economy and emissions performance. The Amorphous Motor is an ideal tool to power a new generation of high-efficiency range extended EVs, hybrids, and plug-in hybrids, ensuring these technologies continue to play a substantial role in automotive’s decarbonization journey.”
Horse Powertrain’s continued innovation across the hybrid and combustion component stack is powered by a global footprint of 17 manufacturing plants, five R&D centers, and 19,000 employees. This latest innovation follows the recent announcement of several new high-efficiency technologies that form part of Horse Powertrain’s global strategy, focusing on a technologically neutral approach to decarbonization.
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