BMW anticipates next-gen Power eDrive PHEV platform will support about 80% of daily driving in all-electric mode
11 May 2015
At the Vienna Motor Symposium, Klaus Fröhlich, member of the Board of BMW AG, Development, outlined the direction the company is taking with its next-generation Power eDrive plug-in hybrid electric vehicle platform (earlier post).
One of the principles of the development work, first discussed last November, is to maximize the amount of time the vehicle spends in electric mode. The Power eDrive systems, Fröhlich said, will offer a total range of some 600 kilometers (373 miles) with around 80% of the daily traffic of a typical commuter being able to be completed in pure electric driving mode.
A Power eDrive technology demonstrator vehicle has already been set up in order to gain insights for potential use in future vehicle architectures of medium and higher vehicle segments.
Fröhlich said that the positive response to the BMW i3 shows that a purely battery-electric drive in small- to medium-sized vehicles for urban mobility with typical daily driving cycles represents an attractive solution today. However, longer distance requirements can be best met with plug-in hybrid drives—i.e., Power eDrive.
In future there will be different drives for different requirements.
—Klaus Fröhlich
Very encouraging news from BMW. 80% electric operation with no range limitation. Sounds like the Volt could have some competition.
Posted by: electric-car-insider.com | 11 May 2015 at 08:22 AM
The Volt owners are doing 63% of their miles as electric miles on an EPA rated range of 35 miles and 18kWh. So for BMW or others to get to over 80% electric miles in a PHEV they need a bigger battery possibly 30kwh. Small range extenders have not been a succes as in the i3 where the underpowered range extender is too noisy and simply cannot operate the car in comfort on a depleted battery.
My point is if we need a full size motor or 200 to 300 hp for a proper range extender and a 30kwh battery then maybe Tesla can make it at less cost using a 70 to 85 kwh battery without the range extender. We how know that right now Tesla is at 250 USD per kwh as that is the price for their industrial powerpacks. In 2020 when that 50Gwh factory is at full speed we should expect 150 to 200 USD per kwh everything included gross margin, insurance allowance etc. And an electric motor at 300 hp is 1/3 the price of a similar powerfull gasengine with transmission. I hope BMW start to focus on BEVs instead.
See http://media.gm.com/media/us/en/gm/news.detail.html/content/Pages/news/us/en/2014/Jun/0617-volt.html
Posted by: Account Deleted | 11 May 2015 at 09:08 AM
I personally prefer BEVs, but a lot of people are not going to make the leap without the safety net of still being able to make it home even if you've exceeded your AER, and driving a few hundred miles in a urgent or emergency situation, or frankly on a whim.
2016 Volt will have 50 mile AER and plenty of power, for $32k before up to ~7-9k in incentives, a net of $23-25k, and really cheap leases.
That's quite a bargain.
Posted by: electric-car-insider.com | 11 May 2015 at 01:56 PM
A PHEV-FC with a 30 kWh battery pack and a small 20KW to 30 KW fuel cell could supply a 500 KM Extended range together with a 80+ KM on battery only.
This PHEV-FC could normally run 80% of the time on electricity only and use the on-board FC charger on an as required basis only. Refilling the H2 tanks could be done twice a month or so. Recharging the 30 kWh battery pack could be done mostly over night at home with a regular Level II charger.
Posted by: HarveyD | 15 May 2015 at 07:39 AM