One of the most important parts of electric vehicle production is the batteries. Instead of an engine powering the cars, electric cars use batteries. The batteries need to perform in any manner of environment and terrain. To ensure the batteries are ready to perform, automakers thoroughly test them to ensure they can tackle any adventure. Volkswagen is taking this testing to the next level with a new Battery Engineering Lab (BEL) that puts these batteries through a series of tests to ensure they can handle any environment.

These batteries are ready to perform

When shopping for a new electric car, you want to choose a vehicle that can confidently last a few years. One of the most critical aspects of an electric car’s longevity is its battery. The battery not only needs to keep the vehicle running, but it also needs to handle all sorts of weather and climates. Ensuring that the battery can do that results from detailed research, high-tech materials, and outstanding production.

Volkswagen’s new battery testing facility aims to help drivers feel more confident in what the new batteries are capable of. Located at the edge of Chattanooga city limits, Volkswagen began using the new Battery Engineering Lab. Volkswagen can not only test batteries but also research and build more advanced batteries. 

Volkswagen has been working incredibly hard to invest time and money into an electrified future. With this new facility, Volkswagen will have the opportunity to dig into the latest battery technologies and better understand how the latest concepts could work most efficiently in the upcoming electric Volkswagen models. Thus, with better and more efficient batteries, Volkswagen can build new electric vehicles with great range. 

What is this new facility capable of doing?

Here at the new Chattanooga facility, Volkswagen is ready to put the batteries to the test.

This facility puts batteries through intense and thorough testing to give you more confidence in new electric Volkswagen models. The BEL was built to test the batteries to ensure they will be prepared to handle everything. Using the latest testing technologies, such as the Multi-Axial Shaker Table, Volkswagen can simulate an average amount of driving for one year in just one week and see how the battery handles vibration. Additionally, a climate chamber simulates temperatures as low as -94 degrees and as high as 266 degrees. This chamber will ensure that the batteries can perform in even the most insane climates. The final aspect of testing batteries is the ability to add abrasive elements to the air, i.e., sand and water, to ensure that the batteries are adequately sealed and protected.

A big investment with a big payoff

As automakers are quickly focusing more on the future of electric cars, facilities like Volkswagen’s should become more common. This facility and high-tech BEL will allow Volkswagen to get ahead of the curve in battery production. Furthermore, if a battery does not pass these harsh tests, Volkswagen can recycle the materials in-house.

Volkswagen is looking to shift the ideals surrounding battery production and testing. This new facility should help move the needle in the right direction. In conclusion, a more streamlined process of research, testing, and production, prices on EVs could continue to get more budget-friendly.