Swedish supercar manufacturer Koenigsegg told Car & Driver that they are engineering their twin-turbo V8 engine to run without a camshaft. The far-flung world of infinitely variable engines will soon be upon us.


While regular engines use a camshaft and a valve spring, Koenigsegg's camless engine will shoot the valve open with pneumatically driven actuators. It's expensive, it's loud and it's crude, but it's infinitely variable as well as significantly lighter than a camshaft. In the end, you have an engine that is 30% more efficient than what is in road cars (and nearly all race cars) today.

Working with Sweden's Cargine Engineering, Koenigsegg is on the cutting edge of engine tech, so it's no surprise they admit they're working through noise and reliability issues. The thrill remains that for decades this technology has existed only in the secretive world of Formula One. Now it's finally coming to the world of road cars, even if it is just for monstrously expensive Swedish hypercars.


A detailed explanation of pneumatic valves and camless engines can be found here at ScarbsF1.com.

Photo Credit: Eddy Clio