Several automakers, notably Ford and Stellantis, are developing range-extended EVs after discovering that many Americans might be interested in battery-electric vehicles but aren't yet ready to fully commit. If consumers have doubts about range, the EV charging infrastructure and how long it takes to recharge, they know that gasoline pumps are everywhere and quick and easy to use, albeit increasingly expensive these days.Chevrolet Dedicated Hybrid Drive Transmission So automakers that spent billions to develop dedicated EVs are now looking for technology solutions to extend their range by incorporating internal-combustion engines not to drive the wheels but to act as a generator to charge the high-voltage battery. The Chevrolet Volt was arguably the first extended-range EV, way ahead of its time.Canada's Magna International, North America's largest automotive component supplier, is marketing a new technology called DHD REX, a dedicated hybrid drive for range-extended EVs.Magna International Magna is deep in the transmission business – making dual-clutch, manual, and 48-volt mild hybrid units for years – so this new product unveiled last month takes the supplier further into the EV space. DHD REX (pictured above) is a single-motor package that mates with an internal-combustion engine (mounted in front, based on images from the company) to enable all-electric driving, parallel hybrid mode for better highway performance, and generating mode to recharge the high-voltage battery.The device can temporarily switch to electric all-wheel drive when more traction is needed, sort of like a classic on-demand hang-on AWD system. The system was designed to work with all vehicle segments from B to E, including all-wheel-drive SUVs.Jetour Flexibility For Multiple Powertrains The supplier has customers around the world, so DHD REX was designed to be affordable, scalable, and flexible enough to meet regulatory requirements everywhere. "It lets OEMs tune powertrain profiles to regional requirements rather than committing to a single configuration globally," the company says.Magna International DHD REX follows another dedicated hybrid drive system from Magna, DHD Duo, which was released in November 2024 as a more robust dual e-motor approach to enable a conventional ICE vehicle for electric and hybrid driving and AWD and 2WD applications, suitable for SUVs, light trucks, towing, and off-roading. (See both configurations above.) The Chinese market is interested in this technology, and the Jetour G700 plug-in hybrid SUV (pictured above) is Magna's first customer to use the DHD Duo.As for the DHD REX, Magna is positioning it in China as an affordable solution for converting BEV platforms to serial hybrid AWD. As for opportunities in Europe and North America, Magna Powertrain's Ulrich Knödel, deputy general manager of engineering in China, says customers recognize the benefits of two e-motor hybrid solutions."We are collaborating with several OEMs developing next-generation hybrid drives, often based on BEV platforms, that use the DHD Duo or DHD REX," he said. "Unlike in China, we also see potential to offer the DHD REX with an additional mechanical drive shaft to enable efficient parallel operation."Propulsion strategy is no longer about automakers picking a lane. It's about maintaining the flexibility to serve all of them.
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