British motor supplier to Ferrari opens first e-motor ‘super factory’
British e-motor specialist Yasa has opened a new facility in Oxfordshire to help it become the go-to brand for high-performance electric and hybrid cars.
The firm, which already supplies Ferrari, Lamborghini and McLaren with motors for their hybrid supercars, has invested £12 million upgrading its production centre in Yarnton, as it plans to almost double its output.
The new 60,000 square foot facility will be able to produce up to 25,000 of Yasa’s unique axial flux motors per year, with every element of production brought under one roof for the first time.
Yasa’s motors are already used in models such as the Ferrari SF90, Lamborghini Revuelto and McLaren Artura. Later this year, the all-electric Mercedes-AMG super saloon will employ them, offering an expected 1,000bhp.
Yasa’s axial flux technology uses a completely different stator construction method to traditional radial flux motors commonly used in EVs. As a result, its units are around a third of the thickness of regular motors but, according to Yasa, have four times the energy density, allowing for huge power outputs in a compact package. The motors due to appear in the Mercedes-AMG can produce up to 480bhp each.
Yasa grew out of an Oxford University start-up based on the PhD project of co-founder Tim Woolmer. The firm was acquired by Mercedes-Benz Group in 2021. Woolmer commented: “With a multi-million-pound investment into our Yarnton facility, we have transformed our manufacturing capability and significantly accelerated our production capacity.
“This latest initiative will enable us to apply our technology with even greater accuracy, pace and scale. Combined with YASA’s position as part of the Mercedes-Benz Group, the factory transformation consolidates YASA’s role as a global leader in developing high-performance, high-efficiency axial-flux e-motors.
“As a company, we have come a long way since our humble origin as an Oxford University start-up. However, we are still driven by the same passion, spirit and determination to create the world’s most advanced electric mobility technology solutions.”
