When first encountering electric mobility, you inevitably find yourself confronted with a certain very specific component - the battery. It is something like the beating heart of every electric car, as it stores the electricity that powers the vehicle’s engine. Naturally, no electricity means no movement which is why many want as much of it as possible. Thus begins what is often referred to as ‘range anxiety’.
A quick example - as I sat in my hairdresser’s a few days ago, the radio was playing in the background. The station was organizing a ‘theme week’ based around electric mobility. The presenter was talking to the station’s transport expert about range and kilowatt hours. Referring to the upcoming Whitsun holidays in parts of Germany, the presenter queried whether it would be possible to drive such an electric car from Munich to Lake Garda in one go. That’s about 400 km.
The current range of electric cars permitted in Germany is around 340 km - unfortunately not quite enough, explained their colleague. However, this being said, this technology is constantly under development and in five years this will no longer be an issue. The presenter replied that maybe it would be better to focus on hybrids for now. A pretty conservative review, to say the least, for a programme about electric mobility.
How irritating to have to stop once on a 400 kilometer journey, to over-exaggerate somewhat, and on the way to your holiday at that! That starts to infringe on my freedom. Stop, load the car, take a break and relax, but absolutely no sooner than we’ve reached the shores of Lake Garda. Driving a car means freedom and don’t you dare take that from us.
So, what does this story have to do with today’s blog post? Well, it shows the importance of the battery and its specifications for people. There’s constant debate around this technology. How sustainable are batteries? How problematic is the mining of certain metals? Are batteries literally fire hazards? The answers to these questions I would ask far more knowledgeable people to give. People who have dealt with various myths regarding batteries and shone the light of truth on them.
Nevertheless, we are very happy to announce to you today that we have made great progress in terms of battery.
Another advantage this new battery has over others is that “it is, in addition, extremely safe”, explains Arvind. “ Even in the event that it is pierced with a nail, there are no problematic temperatures that could cause a fire. Last but not least it is also more resource-friendly. Elements such as cobalt and manganese are obsolete in this battery technology.”
If you want to find out more about the new battery, I have a whole host of recommendations for you. You can find all technical information and the new specifications on our website. Arvind and our CTO, Markus, have also summarized everything important for you in this video. They also explain why this development step is so important for Sono. Happy learning!