Hyundai and Kia have both come a long way from being "those cheap cars" that no one really wanted to drive. Now, both brands are producing world-class cars with world class engines, such as the twin-turbocharged V6 found in the Kia Stinger and Genesis G70. Hyundai and Kia make some impressive engines, but patent images obtained by AutoGuide show that the Korean automakers may be working on something big. The images show the design for a high compression four-cylinder engine with two electric superchargers.

Hyundai and Kia filed the patent with the United States Patent and Trademark Office back on June 19, 2017, but the information just became public this week. The patent describes an engine "including one or more cylinders for generating a driving torque, a plurality of intake lines for supplying external air to one or more cylinders and one or more electric superchargers disposed on, or in, the plurality of intake lines." Put simply, Hyundai and Kia are looking to replace the traditional turbocharged engine with a twin-supercharged one, citing reasons such as turbo lag, weight, and limited compression ratio. This new layout could provide more low end torque than a conventional turbo engine.

The patent also explains that the engine can deactivate cylinders and function as a two-cylinder, independently of the superchargers. It seems like the goal of this engine is efficiency, but a twin-supercharged setup does sound like it would be fun in a performance car. Of course, we have no indication of whether this engine will end up reaching production, but it would be exciting to see.