Volkswagen Developing Advanced Flat Batteries For Future Electric Models

Volkswagen is currently developing advanced flat battery packs for its future electric models on the back of the ongoing diesel emissions scandal.

In an interview with a company newspaper obtained by Bloomberg, Volkswagen brand chief Herbet Diess revealed that with costs declining of electric vehicles and all-electric ranges extending, the German automaker is developing a new architecture to support flat batteries.

Specifically, Diess said: “We are developing a special vehicle architecture that foresees the installation of flat batteries. This will be a breakthrough for us.”

Perhaps Volkswagen’s most recognisable electric car is the e-Up. It utilities an electric motor at the front end delivering 81 hp and 155 lb-ft of torque. That motor is then joined with an 230 kg, 18.7 kWh lithion-ion battery pack sitting in the floor of the small hatchback. While installing the batteries into the floor improves the vehicle’s center of gravity, making the batteries themselves flat will allow VW to achieve even better center of gravity figures. Moreover, flat batteries are flat are inherently much thinner than current ones, therefore saving on weight.

There is no word on which VW Group model will receive these flat batteries first. Given that Diess said that a new vehicle architecture talked about a small hatchback, we think it’ll be either the Polo or Golf – unless they choose a model built by the likes of Skoda or Seat.