For years, carmakers have been trying to combine the best parts of electric vehicles and gasoline-powered cars to create hybrid systems that promise long driving range, strong performance, and freedom from charging anxiety.
Yet most hybrid and plug-in hybrid systems come with a trade-off. Their powertrains are often mechanically complex, expensive, and sometimes slow to respond when switching between different power sources.
Now, California-based EV company Faraday Future says it has developed a new transmission architecture designed to tackle these long-standing problems. The company has received US Patent No. 12,630,004 for a “Range-Extending Hybrid Transmission System,” a design that separates the engine, electric generator, and drive wheels so they can operate more flexibly and efficiently.
“This approach enables strong range extension with weak hybridization, improving power efficiency and performance while reducing the overall complexity of the powertrain,” the Future Faraday team notes.
The significance of the patent lies less in the engine itself and more in how power moves through the vehicle. Traditional hybrids often rely on intricate arrangements of gears, motors, and clutches to blend gasoline and electric power.
As engineers add more functions, these systems can become heavier, more expensive, and harder to optimize. Faraday Future’s new design aims to simplify that relationship while still allowing multiple power sources to work together.
At the heart of the patent is a transmission system that uses multiple shafts and clutches to separate the roles of the engine, generator-motor, and wheels. In many existing hybrid systems, these components are tightly linked through complex mechanical arrangements.
This can limit flexibility and create inefficiencies when the vehicle switches between electric, hybrid, and engine-assisted modes.
Faraday Future’s approach is different. The patented system includes a rotary power source (typically an internal combustion engine), a generator-motor, a differential connected to the drive wheels, and multiple shafts and clutches that control how power flows through the vehicle.
The key innovation is that these components can be decoupled from one another. “The present FF patent disclosure provides a simplified hybrid transmission system that decouples the engine, generator-motor, and drive wheels, allowing all power sources to participate in the drive at the same time,” the FF team added.
In simple terms, the engine does not always have to be mechanically tied to the wheels. The generator-motor can contribute power independently, and the engine can either generate electricity, help drive the vehicle directly, or work alongside the electric motor.
As the system can mix and match these operating modes, all power sources can contribute simultaneously when maximum performance is needed, or operate separately when efficiency is the priority.
An easy way to think about the design is as a team where every player can switch positions depending on the situation. Instead of forcing the engine, motor, and wheels into a fixed arrangement, the transmission allows them to cooperate in different ways.
According to the company, this flexibility enables what it calls “strong range extension with weak hybridization”—meaning the vehicle can achieve long driving range without requiring an overly complicated hybrid system.
The patent is expected to become part of Faraday Future’s AIHER (AI Hybrid Extended-Range Electric Powertrain) platform. Launched in 2025, AIHER aims to blend the strengths of conventional hybrids and range-extended EVs.
The real test is still ahead
If the technology performs as intended, it could help address several challenges facing extended-range electric vehicles. A simpler transmission architecture could reduce manufacturing complexity, improve reliability, and lower costs.
Plus, the ability to draw power from multiple sources simultaneously may improve acceleration and driving performance while extending range. Faraday Future further argues that the system could be particularly useful in very cold climates, where battery performance often declines, and additional range support becomes valuable.
However, the proposed system is still only a patent. It demonstrates that the company has secured intellectual property protection for the concept, not that the technology has been proven in large-scale commercial vehicles.
Real-world testing, durability validation, and cost targets will ultimately determine whether the design delivers on its promises. The company plans to integrate the technology into future AIHER-powered models, including versions of its proposed Super One vehicle.
If successful, it could offer a different path toward extended-range electric vehicles (EREVs), a category that is gaining attention because it combines electric driving with an onboard generator that can recharge the battery during long trips.