VOLKSWAGEN GOES ELECTRIC

VOLKSWAGEN WAS DELAYING THE INEVITABLE

EV's (electric vehicles) has been around as long ago as the mid 1930's, but back then, they were called trolleybuses or  trams. As can be seen in the two images below, these EV's served as mainstream transport for the masses and believe it or not, are still in use in many places in Europe today. The technology though very old, is of long standing and proven, which is essentially a high voltage  electric motor that can deliver high horsepower at high RPM, connected via a gearbox to the drive train. Talking about trains, trains are in fact also EV's but with a slight difference. These EV's of days gone by, both trams and trains are attached to some sort of umbilical from which it received its electrical power to propel whereas modern EV's rely on portable battery power which until now hasn't been very efficient. 

But according to Elton Musk, CEO of  Tesla motor company, this isn't strictly true because they have an entire range of Tesla cars that can do as much as 265 miles (426 km) between battery recharges. He is also of the opinion that the maximum limit of what’s possible with diesel and gasoline has been reached and that the time has come to embrace a new generation of technology.

Trams in Alexandria Eqypt.

Trams in Vienna by Martin Otner

Frankly speaking,  I don't think its about the battery's inefficiencies but rather about the lack of facilities to charge your EV's battery when enroute or at your destination. But in the same breath I need to add that the charging problem is easily surmountable because a solar panel driven charging system (green technology) can easily be sold as an accessory with every EV and can be installed in your home garage. An overnight charge would give the average vehicle user sufficient power to commute virtually all day.

Admittedly, getting high efficiency from a high-voltage motor powered by a lithium-ion battery pack is not easy because there are many factors that effect efficiency, non of which I believe would have been too difficult for Volkswagen to solve. It just kinda seems that Volkswagen was delaying the inevitable even tough they've been flaunting their all-electric, minicar, e-up concept for the past number of years. Yet whilst still grappling  with the global fallout that originated from its diesel emissions scandal, VW recently reaffirmed the brand’s commitment to electrification. Sharing that they are working on a "standardized electric architecture" for all VW vehicles  with motors and flat battery design components that can fit in the various VW vehicle body shapes and vehicle types. 

Adding that VW is  also creating a new business segment called “New Volkswagen” to bundle modern development of digital features for Internet connected vehicles and other related mobility services. This announcement was  based on the  fact the  Silicon Valley firms like Apple Inc. and Alphabet Inc. are planning to make inroads into the automotive segment with software development and battery production. 

Vw even released a photo of its brand new all-electric concept car with an expected  driving range of 155–186 miles, scheduled to debut at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas in Jan of 2016. But the main surprise was the news that the next generation Phaeton super-luxury sedan will be an EV—only and not available in nether diesel or gasoline. Its going to have  a pure electric drive with long-distance capability, connectivity, and next-generation assistance systems as well as an emotional design.