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The fairest verdict is that Donut may have improved the power-to-mass and torque-to-mass balance enough to make in-wheel motors commercially interesting. It has not publicly demonstrated that conventional EV motors are obsolete, more efficient in every use case, cheaper to manufacture, or more reliable across vehicle classes.
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The short answer: promising hardware, oversized conclusion
Donut Lab is not claiming to have invented electric motors or even the in-wheel-motor concept. Its proposed breakthrough is more specific: make a wheel-integrated motor light and powerful enough that the traditional disadvantages of putting propulsion inside the wheel become much less important.
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That matters because in-wheel motors can simplify the mechanical drivetrain. A conventional battery-electric vehicle usually places its motor or motors inside the sprung body and transfers torque through reduction gearing, differentials, half-shafts, and other components. Donut’s direct-drive architecture puts propulsion at the wheel and is designed to eliminate much of that path.
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In principle, the result is a simpler layout with more chassis freedom and independent control of each wheel. In practice, the motor must still deal with the hardest parts of the concept: unsprung mass, heat, water and road debris, vibration, wheel-end impacts, bearings, sealing, wiring, braking, service access, and long-term durability.
What Donut Lab’s published motors actually claim
Donut Lab presents a family of direct-drive in-wheel motors for automotive, motorcycle, commercial, industrial, construction, and drone applications. The company’s product figures are labeled up to, so they should be read as maximum or peak capability—not as a complete operating envelope or guaranteed continuous road output.
| Published model | Maximum power | Maximum torque | Published mass | Stated positioning |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 17-inch enclosed motor | 150 kW | 1,200 Nm | 21 kg | Primarily automotive, with other proposed uses |
| 17-inch open motor | 150 kW | 1,200 Nm | 21 kg | In-wheel applications, including the Verge motorcycle case study |
| 21-inch motor | 630 kW | 4,300 Nm | 40 kg | High-performance automotive and heavy-duty applications |
| 12-inch motor | 150 kW | 300 Nm | Not stated in the reviewed material | Automotive applications |
| 5-inch drone motor | 3 kW | 20 Nm | 1.5 kg | Drone propulsion |
On the listed figures alone, the 17-inch unit works out to roughly 7.1 kW per kilogram and 57 Nm per kilogram. The 21-inch unit works out to roughly 15.8 kW per kilogram and 108 Nm per kilogram. Those calculations are striking, but they are not yet a fair ranking against conventional motors because the measurement boundaries are not fully published.
The public material reviewed does not establish whether each mass includes the inverter, cooling hardware, wheel-end structural components, bearings, wiring, or other hardware required for installation. It also does not specify the voltage, current, test procedure, duration of the power or torque measurement, continuous rating, efficiency map, or thermal conditions. A peak motor-only figure and a complete continuous drive-unit figure are not equivalent.
Why the architecture could outperform a conventional EV drivetrain
1. Fewer mechanical transmission components
With a motor at each driven wheel, the vehicle may not need the usual driveshafts, half-shafts, differential, or reduction gear between the motor and tire. Donut describes this as direct drive: torque reaches the road without a conventional mechanical transmission path.
Removing those components can reduce mechanical losses, free space in the chassis, and eliminate parts that require assembly, lubrication, alignment, and service. It may also make unusual vehicle layouts more practical. A low-floor commercial vehicle, compact urban platform, trailer, robotic machine, or specialized work vehicle could benefit more from packaging freedom than a conventional passenger car would.
However, fewer mechanical parts do not necessarily mean a simpler whole vehicle. The architecture shifts more responsibility toward the wheel-end motor, power electronics, cooling system, suspension, control software, bearings, seals, and high-voltage wiring. Simplicity in one subsystem can create demanding requirements in another.
2. Independent wheel control
Each driven wheel can be controlled separately rather than receiving torque through a shared differential. That opens the door to torque vectoring, wheel-by-wheel traction control, more precise regenerative braking, and new stability-control strategies.
Independent propulsion can be particularly useful when a vehicle is cornering, driving on surfaces with unequal grip, or managing a low-traction wheel. It can also give designers more freedom to place the battery and cabin because the central drivetrain occupies less space.
These are genuine potential advantages recognized in research on in-wheel-motor vehicles. They are not, by themselves, proof that the motor is more efficient or faster than every conventional alternative. A vehicle still needs effective control software, suitable tires, a capable brake system, and suspension calibration to turn wheel-level control into a real-world benefit.
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3. High torque without a reduction gear
A geared EV motor can spin at high speed and use a reduction gear to multiply torque at the wheel. An in-wheel direct-drive motor has to produce the required wheel torque at the wheel’s own speed, which traditionally makes the motor larger or heavier.
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Repair Windows errors before they cause bigger problemsFix Now →Fix the driver behind crashes, sound loss and screen glitchesFind Drivers →Donut’s published torque figures suggest that it is targeting this central compromise. A 17-inch unit rated at up to 1,200 Nm and 21 kg is an ambitious specification for a wheel-mounted product. The 21-inch model’s claimed 4,300 Nm and 630 kW are even more dramatic, although that model is presented for high-performance and heavy-duty uses rather than as a typical family-car drive unit.
More peak torque does not automatically make a vehicle quicker. Tire grip can become the limiting factor, and the control system may deliberately reduce torque to prevent wheelspin. At higher speeds, power and the motor’s torque curve matter more than a headline torque number. Acceleration also depends on vehicle mass, gearing—or the lack of it—traction, aerodynamics, battery output, and software calibration.
The biggest unresolved issue is unsprung mass
Unsprung mass is the mass that the suspension must control directly: typically the wheel, tire, brake, hub, and parts attached near the wheel rather than supported by the vehicle’s springs. Adding a motor at the wheel can make it harder for the tire to follow bumps and can affect ride comfort, handling, braking stability, and road contact.
This has been the classic objection to in-wheel motors. Donut argues that its high power density makes the added motor mass so small that the unsprung-mass penalty becomes effectively imperceptible. That is an engineering hypothesis worth taking seriously, but it remains a company claim unless supported by complete vehicle testing.
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The correct comparison is not simply 21 kg versus the mass of an inboard motor. Engineers would need to measure the complete wheel end, including:
- the motor and any integrated power electronics;
- the wheel, tire, hub, bearings, and structural mounting hardware;
- the brake rotor, caliper, and parking-brake equipment;
- high-voltage cables and cooling lines;
- any extra suspension reinforcement or altered suspension components.
They would then need standardized ride, handling, braking, road-load, durability, and tire-contact measurements against a conventional vehicle. A light motor can substantially improve the situation without eliminating the underlying physics. Whether the penalty is acceptable depends on the complete vehicle and its suspension design.
Cooling could decide whether the numbers are useful on the road
High power density also concentrates heat. A motor that produces its advertised output for a short acceleration burst is not equivalent to one that can sustain that output while towing uphill, climbing a mountain road, operating on a racetrack, or moving a heavy commercial vehicle.
Donut emphasizes optimized cooling for selected models, but the reviewed public information does not show a standardized continuous-power curve or explain how much output is available before thermal derating. It also does not provide the full thermal boundary conditions needed to compare the motors with conventional liquid-cooled drive units.
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Repair common Windows errors and clear accumulated junk for a smoother, more stable PC - no reinstall needed.Free scan · no reinstallWheel location makes thermal management especially important. Cooling hardware must fit in a confined, moving wheel assembly, while the motor is exposed to changing ambient temperatures and road contaminants. The system must remove heat without adding so much mass and complexity that the original packaging advantage disappears.
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For a meaningful comparison, buyers and engineers should ask for:
- continuous power and torque ratings, not only peak values;
- the duration and conditions behind each peak rating;
- temperature limits for windings, magnets, bearings, inverters, and seals;
- thermal-derating curves during repeated acceleration and sustained grades;
- the required cooling hardware and its mass;
- efficiency maps at realistic speeds and loads.
Could Donut motors improve EV range?
Possibly, but no universal range percentage follows from the motor specifications.
Direct drive can reduce losses associated with gears, shafts, and differentials. Independent wheel control may also improve torque allocation and regenerative-braking control. Modeling research on in-wheel-motor vehicles has found energy savings in particular driving conditions; one modeled autonomous EV study reported savings of up to 17.5% on slope driving compared with a conventional vehicle using a commercial in-wheel motor.
That modeled result does not validate Donut Lab specifically, and it should not be converted into a guaranteed range increase. Real-world range depends on the battery, aerodynamics, tires, vehicle mass, auxiliary loads, thermal systems, route, weather, speed, and control strategy. A motor with better peak torque can still produce little range benefit if the complete vehicle is heavier or less aerodynamic.
The relevant measurement is battery-to-wheel efficiency over representative drive cycles—not just motor efficiency at one operating point. A fair test would compare otherwise similar vehicles with the same battery, tires, mass, software strategy, and route, while recording energy use and thermal behavior.
Road exposure creates a different durability challenge
An in-wheel motor lives close to the conditions that conventional inboard motors largely avoid: standing water, salt, mud, stones, pothole shocks, vibration, brake heat, wheel impacts, and rapid temperature changes. Its seals, bearings, connectors, housing, and structural mounts must all tolerate those conditions for years.
That does not make wheel motors impractical. It means durability must be demonstrated at the wheel end rather than assumed from a promising laboratory specification. Serviceability is another consideration. Replacing a conventional inboard motor and replacing a motor integrated into a wheel may involve very different labor, lifting, alignment, and parts requirements.
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Donut Lab says its motors have demonstrated durability and reliability through continued Verge production use. That is more meaningful than a static prototype, but the public record reviewed here does not include an independent fleet dataset, mileage distribution, failure rate, warranty-claim rate, bearing-life data, corrosion testing, or a long-term comparison with conventional EV drive units.
The Verge TS Pro is the clearest production reference
Verge Motorcycles identifies its TS Pro as a hubless electric motorcycle built around the Donut Motor. The company says the motor sends torque directly to the road and eliminates chains and belts. Verge has said series production of the TS Pro began in 2023, and it publishes official reservation and test-ride information.
In November 2025, Verge announced a second-generation Donut Motor 2.0, claiming the same power and torque as its predecessor with 50% less motor weight. If independently confirmed in production testing, that would be important evidence that Donut is improving the specific mass problem that has limited in-wheel designs.
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But the motorcycle is not a passenger car. It has different suspension travel, tire loading, cooling needs, wheel packaging, brake requirements, regulatory tests, and durability loads. The TS Pro supports the narrower conclusion that Donut technology has reached a production-oriented motorcycle program. It does not establish superiority in four-wheel EVs, trucks, construction equipment, or every other application shown in Donut’s product family.
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1Fix the driver behind crashes, sound loss and screen glitches2Repair Windows errors before they cause bigger problems3Scan for outdated or missing drivers - takes under a minuteFor readers who want a real vehicle example rather than a product-sheet claim, the Verge TS Pro is the most relevant named demonstration. Current availability, pricing, delivery timing, and any commercial relationship should be checked directly with Verge before making a purchase decision.
Donut’s vehicle-platform strategy
Donut Lab is presenting more than a standalone motor. Its broader platform includes motors, batteries, control hardware, software, and vehicle-integration services. Donut and WATT Electric Vehicles have publicly described collaboration on an ultra-lightweight EV skateboard using integrated motors, inverters, software, and battery architecture.
That platform approach could matter to manufacturers that do not want to design every part of an electric vehicle from scratch. Donut also invites qualifying early-stage EV companies to use its technology and engineering support through its Donut Lab Global Innovators Program.
This is a B2B development route, not a consumer product recommendation or a verified affiliate program. For an engineering team, the practical questions would include production capacity, integration responsibility, certification support, software ownership, warranty obligations, replacement strategy, test data, and commercial terms.
How Donut compares with “traditional” electric motors
The phrase traditional electric motor is too broad to support a simple winner. Conventional EVs use several motor families, including permanent-magnet synchronous, induction, switched-reluctance, radial-flux, and axial-flux designs. They may be paired with different reduction gears, inverters, cooling systems, and one- or two-motor layouts.
A credible comparison should report all of the following under equivalent conditions:
- Peak and continuous power: measured at the same voltage, cooling capacity, and operating temperature.
- Torque across the speed range: not one maximum value disconnected from the torque curve.
- Mass boundaries: motor-only, complete drive unit, and complete wheel-end mass should be identified separately.
- Power and torque density: calculated using the same mass and volume definitions.
- Efficiency maps: measured over realistic speeds and loads rather than at a single favorable point.
- Battery-to-wheel efficiency: including inverter, cables, gearing, bearings, and control losses.
- Thermal behavior: including sustained output, derating, cooling requirements, and recovery time.
- Vehicle dynamics: ride, handling, braking, traction, road contact, and noise.
- Durability: sealing, corrosion, impact resistance, bearing life, vibration, and service requirements.
- Economics: manufacturing cost, assembly time, repair cost, parts supply, and end-of-life considerations.
Donut’s public material supplies selected power, torque, and mass figures and points to company-described case studies. It does not yet publish all of the information needed for this comparison. That is why the evidence supports highly promising claimed performance more strongly than it supports proven superiority over conventional EV motors.
Who could benefit first?
Specialized and low-floor vehicles
Vehicles designed around unusual dimensions may gain the most from eliminating a central drivetrain. More open space can improve cabin layout, cargo volume, accessibility, or modularity. Commercial and industrial vehicles may also value independent wheel control and direct packaging more than a typical family crossover does.
Electric motorcycles
The Verge program shows why motorcycles are a logical early application. A wheel-integrated motor can eliminate chains and belts, create distinctive packaging, and deliver direct torque. Motorcycle dynamics are still demanding, but the vehicle’s scale and layout differ substantially from a passenger car.
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Independent wheel torque can enable advanced torque vectoring and fast traction control. The challenge is proving that the gains outweigh wheel-end mass, thermal demands, unsprung-mass effects, and the durability requirements of high-performance driving.
Mainstream passenger cars
This is the hardest category in which to declare victory. Passenger cars require quiet operation, excellent ride quality, long service life, crash compatibility, low cost, efficient manufacturing, and predictable performance in all weather. Donut’s specifications are intriguing, but the public evidence does not yet show a complete, independently tested passenger car that beats a well-developed centralized EV drivetrain on those measures.
What a skeptical buyer or engineer should ask next
- Is the quoted power peak or continuous, and for how long can it be sustained?
- What exact components are included in the published mass?
- What are the motor, inverter, and battery voltages and current limits?
- What cooling system is required, and how much does it add?
- What is the complete wheel-end mass compared with the conventional alternative?
- How does the vehicle perform over rough-road ride and handling tests?
- What sealing, corrosion, impact, and bearing-life standards have been met?
- What happens after a pothole strike or wheel-end failure?
- What are the replacement, repair, and warranty procedures?
- What independent test data exists for efficiency, range, and sustained power?
If you want to experiment with wheel-integrated propulsion
Consumers cannot generally buy a Donut Motor as a normal aftermarket car component. A related, accessible category is an electric bike hub motor kit. Such a kit can demonstrate the basic idea of placing propulsion in or near a wheel, but it is not a Donut Motor, is not equivalent in power or engineering, and should not be described as Donut-compatible.
Generic bicycle hub kits also operate under entirely different voltage, load, cooling, sealing, braking, and regulatory requirements. They are useful only as an educational or small-vehicle experiment, installed according to the manufacturer’s instructions and local electric-bike rules.
What is verified—and what remains unproven
Supported by the public record
- Donut Lab publicly markets a family of direct-drive in-wheel motors.
- The company publishes model-level maximum power, torque, and mass figures.
- Verge publicly identifies the TS Pro as using a hubless Donut Motor and says series production began in 2023.
- Donut and WATT Electric Vehicles have announced collaboration on an EV platform using in-wheel motors.
- Research recognizes packaging flexibility, independent wheel control, drivetrain simplification, torque vectoring, and regenerative-braking control as potential advantages of in-wheel propulsion.
Not established by the reviewed evidence
- That Donut motors have the world’s highest power density or torque density.
- That their unsprung-mass effect is negligible in every vehicle class.
- That they outperform the best conventional EV drive units in efficiency over representative cycles.
- That their headline ratings are continuously sustainable under road-vehicle thermal conditions.
- That they cost less to manufacture at scale.
- That they have superior long-term reliability across cars, trucks, construction vehicles, drones, and other advertised applications.
- That conventional EV motors have been broadly rendered obsolete.
Frequently Asked Questions
Are Donut Motors really better than conventional EV motors?
They may be better for selected applications because they can simplify the drivetrain, free chassis space, and provide independent wheel control. The public evidence does not yet prove that they are more efficient, cheaper, lighter as complete systems, or more reliable than conventional EV drive units in every vehicle class.
What is the main disadvantage of an in-wheel motor?
Unsprung mass is the classic concern. The motor, wheel-end hardware, and related components are controlled directly by the suspension, which can affect ride, handling, and tire contact. Cooling, sealing, road impacts, bearings, and serviceability are also major engineering issues.
What is the most powerful Donut Motor listed publicly?
Donut Lab lists a 21-inch motor with up to 630 kW, 4,300 Nm, and 40 kg. Those are maximum published figures, not necessarily continuous ratings, and the public material does not provide enough test detail to compare them directly with conventional motors.
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Which vehicle uses a Donut Motor?
Verge Motorcycles identifies its TS Pro electric motorcycle as using a hubless Donut Motor. Verge has said series production began in 2023 and announced a second-generation Donut Motor 2.0 in November 2025. Motorcycle results should not automatically be generalized to passenger cars.
Can consumers buy a Donut Motor for a DIY car project?
Donut Lab’s motors are presented primarily as B2B and OEM technology rather than ordinary consumer aftermarket parts. A generic electric-bike hub motor kit can demonstrate the basic wheel-motor concept, but it is not a Donut product and is not suitable as a direct substitute.
The Bottom Line
Bottom line: Donut Lab’s motors could be one of the more credible attempts to make in-wheel propulsion practical by attacking its two biggest problems—mass and power density. The 17-inch and 21-inch published figures are genuinely attention-grabbing, and the Verge production connection gives the technology more substance than a show-car prototype. But without standardized continuous ratings, complete wheel-end mass, vehicle-level efficiency and range tests, ride data, and independent durability results, “blow away traditional electric motors” is still a marketing claim—not a settled engineering conclusion.
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