Electrify

Volkswagen gears up to challenge Tesla's dominance (with help from its friends)

Wednesday, March 17, 2021 by Snacks

Flashback to 2015... That's when the EPA outed Volkswagen for programming its cars to pass diesel emissions tests — while they were actually emitting up to 40X more (outside of the tests). After the Dieselgate scandal, VW earned a rep for being the opposite of green. Flashforward to 2021...

  • Volkswagen is tying its fate to electric cars and taking on Tesla. According to its CEO, VW wants to "get close" to "and then overtake" Tesla. Your move, Technoking.

"Power Day"... VW's not-so-subtly titled event to show how it will overtake Tesla with its new electric tech (sorry, Battery Day). Some highlights:

  • Cost-slashing: VW said it'll slash the cost of batteries (the priciest part of EVs) by up to 50% by 2030 — making its EVs cheaper than gas cars.
  • Convenience-boosting: By 2030, it'll slash battery charging time to 12 minutes — on par with how long it takes you to figure out which side of the car your fuel filler is on (every time).
  • Range-soothing: VW says it'll have 18K fast-charging stations across Europe by 2025, to soothe nagging range anxiety (the fear of running out of e-juice in a gassy world).
  • Battery-building: VW is building six battery factories in Europe.
THE TAKEAWAY

VW is giving a masterclass in delegation... While Tesla tries to do everything itself, VW is going with a partnership strategy. Those battery factories? They're being built alongside suppliers like Sweden's Northvolt. Those 18K charging stations? BP and other companies are providing the electric juice. Volkswagen's EV platform (motor, chassis, etc)? It's sharing with Ford, who plans to use it to build some of its own EVs. In the race to go green, collaboration could be key to scaling faster... and cheaper.

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