JonBoy

The issues haven't gone away, to the best of my knowledge. What has been detailed here is not new. SSBs have been able to do this for a while. The problem popped up when they moved to MECHANICAL testing, where the battery actually sees mechanical loads applied in varying ways.

I'm not saying QS hasn't solved the issue. I'm saying that they haven't said they've solved the issue because they haven't addressed the issue. They're touting their electrical performance but we've had batteries that had similar performance for a while now (in a development environment) but real-world testing in an actual chassis, with mechanical loading, is where the challenges were realized. I'll be curious to see if they actually do commercialize this in the next few years.

To put it in perspective, Toyota and others announced similar results in the last five years and not a single one of them is commercialized yet with their SSBs. Think about that! The link I shared in my earlier post was from 1.5 years ago and they were still in RESEARCH at that point. Going from research to try and understand the problem and its mechanisms, to producing a solution, to proving a solution, to fully scaling a solution, takes years (literally). Automotive testing is some of the most rigorous out there and they know that if they get it wrong, they'll go into bankruptcy under the liability of replacing these batteries under warranty. Again, I'm not saying they haven't done it, just saying that it's unlikely they've actually solved the issue with a cost-effective solution and it is commercially ready.

My interpretation is that VW is using this investment to buy the right to use this technology, should it prove itself. $130MM is chump change for VW and way cheaper than doing the work themselves. This is a business move, pure and simple, to access a PROMISING technology, not a COMMERCIALLY READY technology. Happens all the time!

zeroptzero

I'm starting to wonder if the people making these decisions high up in the Corporate structure have ever driven a Porsche and heard and felt the mechanical goodness ? is it possible that they never have driven their best products ?

darcyw

yes- the neighbours in the area of St. Thomas are not entirely pleased with this development- more traffic, higher home prices. I fear this will be another power plant fiasco by the Ontario government where they have to pay out the contract, whether it's completed or not. Oh, and it's our tax dollars being used to buy the land for this battery plant at inflated MF prices.

darcy

Bullwings

Not doubting that the challenges still exist with SSBs. Semi solid state (S-SSB) as a stepping stone.

IM L6 has launched with it as an option. Base models being delivered now, the S-SSB available in Sept of this year. Chinese battery tech far outpaces anyone else, let's see how this does internationally, and how soon for them to come out with an SSB.

https://carnewschina.com/2024/05/13/...-at-30400-usd/

WolfpackS2k

Vinfast has cleared hundreds (thousands?) of acres of wooded land to build a production facility in Moncure, NC (about 30 minutes away from me). Vinfast has been on shaky ground...forever. I fear that this factory will never be built, and all that will remain is the destroyed (former) forest land.

zeroptzero

Yeah the current production numbers of some of the smaller companies are really low, I can't imagine how they can be competitive. They are surely banking on a significant uptick in demand, I don't know if that is enough.

vader1

Wow. Sad. The reviews for the Fisker products were outright worship compared to what was written about Vinfast products. You would need to be crazy to buy one.