When Zytek was founded in 1981 the initial company focus was on
engine management systems for motorsport. By 1987 Zytek had expanded its operations to include race car engines as a specialty, working with teams and supporting championships such as the
Le Mans Series,
Formula 3000,
Auto GP and the Renault FR3.5 Series. During the 1990s, Zytek also developed high power-density electric vehicle
drivetrains, creating what was the highest power-density
EV drivetrain at the time. Zytek's success in motorsport led to working with road cars on the Proto ESX HEV Series hybrid drivetrain design, and the creation of engine management systems for the
Jaguar XJ220 sports car. This led to further collaborations with automobile manufacturers. Zytek has been developing vehicle electrification and electronics for road vehicles since 1997. Its first notable project was the
Aston Martin DB7 engine management system and it has since gone onto collaborate with
Jaguar Land Rover,
Aston Martin,
Rolls-Royce Bentley and
Dodge. In 2001 Zytek worked with
GM to assist with the creation on a new concept hybrid truck, the electrification system offering fuel efficiency saving in day-to-day use as part of a turnkey hybrid development programme. In 2006, Zytek converted one hundred
Smart Fortwo to fully electric vehicles, which took part in UK market trials as lease vehicles from 2007 to 2009. In 2009 Zytek developed a
hydrogen fuel cell concept with Morgan, the EV3. The 70 kW integrated drivetrain installed in the
Modec electric vehicle is designed and manufactured in house by Zytek, as well as the drivetrain in the E Vito Taxi. Zytek works with the EV conversion company RBW Classic Electric Cars to provide EV drivetrains. In the early 2010s Zytek collaborated with
Audi on the key electrification technology for the
Audi R8 e-tron which set records for the fastest production electric car at the
Nürburgring. The car was also featured in the
Iron Man movie. The current family of electric motors ranges up to 170 kW.
Gordon Murray collaboration Launched in 2011 with
Gordon Murray Design, Zytek helped develop the Gordon Murray T.27 all-electric three seater road car. With a total cost of £9m, the T.27 was made possible via £4.5m of investment from the UK government backed
Technology Strategy Board. With a total cost of £9m ( in June 2010), the research and development project allowed the consortium to develop a prototype that was unveiled at the
Royal Automobile Club in June 2011. The T.27 road debut was held in November 2011 at the
RAC Future Car Challenge. As of 2011, Gordon Murray Design was negotiating with three manufacturers for possible production of the T.27. == Motorsport ==