Electric cars haven't killed the engine as we know it, yet. In fact, the century-old technology is getting stronger every year With all the focus on hybrids and electric cars, you might assume that the internal combustion (IC) engine was headed for extinction. Yet more than 99 percent of the world's new cars still use one. That includes conventional hybrids, whose batteries and electric motors derive their energy entirely from gasoline. Even those automakers who are most bullish on alternative energy say that the IC engine will remain their primary propulsion system for decades.
And that's not necessarily bad news. Some IC powerplants achieve near-zero emissions of pollution-generating compounds (they will still emit carbon dioxide), and VW has a new 1.4-liter four-cylinder engine delivers up to 172 horsepower, more than many engines that are 50 percent bigger. Yet the Twincharger still manages close to 45 miles per gallon on the highway in European models like the Golf hatchback.
Read more at PopSci The Internal Combustion Engine Is Not Dead