The Volkswagen group announces its desire to design its own propulsion systems for its electric cars. And that will change many things for the different brands of the German company, with enormous available power, reduced consumption, greater autonomy and faster recharging.
Although electric car sales are accelerating, to the point of overtaking diesel in France, certain points continue to block certain customers. This is particularly the case for autonomy but also for the price that remains high, while parity with thermal vehicles has not yet been reached. And it may not get better as the price of lithium continues to rise.
cost reductions
While all new cars sold in Europe will have to be electric from 2035, manufacturers are now working on solutions to make their cars more affordable. This is particularly the case for Volkswagen, which is working on a new strategy that should offer many advantages.
In a press release, the German group based in Wolfsburg announces that it is currently in the process of develop a completely new powertrain, which will be entirely designed by him. Because until now, the firm, which owns Volkswagen, but also Porsche, Audi, Skoda or even Seat and Cupra, has turned to subcontractors and external suppliers to equip its electric cars. But that’s about to change, as the manufacturer set up its own battery factory in Germany this summer.
Therefore, the company will manufacture the entire powertrain in-house, from batteries to electric motor, thermal management systems and inverters. These will then be compatible with the entire range of the group’s engines, from high-volume models to the most exclusive. Volkswagen then evokes motors that can reach 500 kW, which is equivalent to almost 700 horsepower.
As a reminder, the most powerful electric model in the bunch currently is the Porsche Taycan, which tops out at 625 horsepower, though it can hit 761 horsepower for a few seconds in Boost mode. But this is not the only interest in the design of this house, which must also result in greater autonomy.
Longer range and faster charging
Precisely, Volkswagen announces in a press release “ an efficiency gain of up to 20%thanks in particular to a new pulse width modulation (PWM) inverter. Simply put, an inverter converts the direct current supplied by the battery into alternating current for the motor, in order to supply the latter to drive the wheels and move the vehicle forward.
If the manufacturer does not yet reveal all the details of this new propulsion system, he explains that it will allow the cars that equip it to considerably improve their autonomy and their ability to quickly recharge, thanks in particular to the new thermal management system. The module will then be more compact, also making it possible to reduce the costs normally generated by very long ducts and numerous accessories.
The group also mentions a very high power per motor, since these inverters are prescribed for ” from engines for large-volume models of the brand to engines for sports cars with a power of more than 500 kW we can read in the press release. Which corresponds to almost 700 horsepower.
A few days ago, Ford, for example, had noticed that the excessively long cables on his Mustang Mach-E were losing him $300 per vehicle. With this new engine, the German firm plans to reduce its expenses, which could result in lower prices for its cars. If you say you don’t want to get into the price war launched by Tesla with its ID.3, ID.4, ID.5 and ID. Buzz, you might still consider offering cheaper models.
It will be the case, for example, of the Volkswagen ID.2, whose price should be around 25,000 euros. Current models should not be equipped with this new technology, although the group announces that it is compatible with the next generation of vehicles based on the MEB platform. The future redesigned ID.3 could benefit from it, as well as the next ID. Golf, ID Tiguan and ID.7.
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