Both models use the same type of rechargeable lithium-ion battery, which is popular because of its high energy density compared to weight. Less weight means greater potential range, so the lighter the battery is, the better.
Which type of EV battery is right for you?
These EV batteries are also designed for a high kilowatt-hour (kWh) battery capacity, which means you’ll get more hours of energy out of them, which is important if you want to drive long distances.
The kWh rating will tell you precisely how much power can be stored in a battery pack, but it’s not to be confused with the kilowatt (kW) rating for your EV’s motor power.
The term kilowatts, as with petrol cars, refers to how much power you’re getting from an engine, or an electric motor. Kilowatt-hour refers to battery capacity, and will largely determine how far your vehicle can travel (i.e. the range) on a single charge.
The logic goes that the higher kWh battery capacity the greater the range of the vehicle, but you also need to take into account the kW of the motor and its efficiency. If it’s a high-performance motor it’ll be using up more of the battery capacity, by drawing more power to use for propulsion and acceleration, and thus reducing your range.
It’s pretty important, then, that you figure out exactly what you’re going to want your EV for: will you be driving short or long distances?
Do you want a larger car that will require a more powerful engine, or are you happy with a smaller vehicle (such as the recently unveiled Mercedes-Benz EQA) that requires less power?
By narrowing down your requirements you’ll be able to figure out which type of electric vehicle battery is right for you, which in turn helps you determine just how often you’ll need to hook your vehicle up to a charging station.
And while there are a number of factors that will determine your electric vehicle battery lifespan, current predictions hover between 10 and 20 years.
Cost-wise, replacing a lithium-ion battery currently runs in the low thousands, which isn’t too bad considering the cost of lithium-ion batteries was 80 per cent higher a decade ago. And the price of batteries will only shrink due to economies of scale as more and more cars are fitted with them.
The future of EV batteries
With EVs now clearly the way of the future, a lot of time and money is being spent developing new batteries that will power the vehicles we’ll be driving over the next few decades.
In 2022, Mercedes-Benz announced that it will work with Sila, a next-generation battery materials company, to incorporate Sila’s silicon anode chemistry in batteries which are optionally available for the first time in the forthcoming electric Mercedes-Benz G-Class. The innovative high-silicon anode material will increase the energy density of batteries without compromising safety or other performance parameters, thus increasing range of its future vehicles by a significant amount.
Beyond that there’s solid-state battery technology, which will see liquid electrolytes replaced with solid electrolytes, resulting in a weight reduction and a predicted efficiency improvement of 35 per cent.
Regardless of what’s to come, one thing is clear: EVs are the way of the future, and with more people becoming aware of environmental concerns, you’ll want to stay up to speed.
