In-wheel motors are now a much-discussed topic for performance electric vehicles, but Ferdinand Porsche, the founder of the Porsche engineering company and father to Ferry Porsche, the founder of the Porsche sports car brand, worked on them over 100 years ago.
At the turn of the 20th century, electric cars gave internal combustion a run for its money, and Ferdinand Porsche was experimenting with both technologies. On Apr. 14, 1900, an EV that the 24-year-old Porsche helped develop was unveiled at the Paris World’s Fair—and notably featuring in-wheel hub motors.
Having previously designed an electric car in 1898, Porsche designed motors to be integrated with the front wheel hubs of a vehicle built by the Austrian firm of Jacob Lohner & Co. in a period of only 10 weeks. The electric motors each generated 2.4 hp, which got the vehicle, referred to as a Lohner-Porsche, up to a top speed of 19.8 mph. The Lohner Porsche also featured four-wheel braking—a rarity at the time.
Replica of in-wheel electric motor used in 1900 Lohner-Porsche
Working with Ludwig Lohner, Porsche continued development of hub motors, creating three sizes with outputs up to 11.8 hp. Intended for use in trucks and buses as well as passenger cars, these motors were powered by lead-acid batteries that provided a claimed 31 miles of range.
Porsche also designed an all-wheel-drive electric race car named La Toujours Contente (French for “the one who’s always happy”), with one 13.8-hp motor powering each wheel. But the engineer’s in-wheel motors saw the most use in a hybrid.
The Lohner-Porsche Semper Vivus (Latin for “always alive”) combined hub motors with a gasoline engine to extend range and address lack of charging infrastructure (two problems EV drivers of today are still familiar with). Porsche claims that about 300 vehicles using this powertrain were built, including 40 for the Viennese fire department, as well as some taxis.
Lohner-Porsche Semper Vivus hybrid
In-wheel motors are now finding their way into modern vehicles—gradually. In 2023, Chinese automaker Dongfeng claimed to have the first production-ready passenger car with in-wheel motors, and prior to that they’d been slated for use in the Lightyear 0 and Lordstown Endurance pickup that didn’t quite make it to full-scale production, as well as the NEVS Emily GT prototype.
Ferrari has also patented an in-wheel motor design, while Lexus in 2019 said it would pursue in-wheel motors for future EVs. A more recent patent filing from parent Toyota appears to back that up.
