XPeng Embraces Extended Range EV Strategy – CleanTechnica

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Since its inception, Chinese automaker XPeng has manufactured only battery-electric cars. But China is ground zero for the extended range electric vehicle (EREV) movement. In fact, EREVs are the fastest growing segment of the Chinese new car market, so if you are looking to be in with the in-crowd, you have to have EREV models in your lineup or watch potential customers walk by on their way to someone else’s showroom. XPeng has decided that if you can’t beat ’em, join ’em is the best policy.

At an event billed as XPeng AI Day, founder and CEO He Xiaopeng did talk about AI somewhat, but also used the occasion to announce that the company is now planning to get on the EREV bandwagon by offering models that have an onboard range extender engine. There were no actual models of the new EREV cars present, but the audience was told that the extended range cars would have a battery-only range of 430 kilometers (about 250 miles) and a total range of up to 1,400 kilometers (870 miles). Readers should bear in mind that Chinese test cycles are significantly more generous that the EPA test standards, so those numbers should be reduced by about 25% to arrive at a US equivalent.

The XPeng Extended Range Pivot

Despite the absence of actual cars that people could touch and sit in, the announcement that an EREV system is being developed is of great significance for XPeng, which has not used any combustion engines to date because it was focused on selling battery-electric cars exclusively. The new EREV powertrain is called XPeng Kunpeng Super Electric System, and is reported to have some special features, according to the announcement. For example, the noise level in the interior should only increase by one decibel when the combustion engine is running as a generator. The engines in other EREV vehicles are often quite noisy, which detracts from the enjoyment of driving an electric car.

XPeng also wants to solve the performance problem of current systems. Electrive explains that in a vehicle with a range extender engine, the wheels are driven exclusively by electricity and the combustion engine acts solely as a generator that charges the battery. As a result, its output is designed more for a constant load to gently charge the battery, not to provide the greater power needed when accelerating from rest or driving uphill. With the EREV powertrain offered by other companies, if the battery state of charge level is low, the battery cannot provide enough electricity to meet the power requirements drivers expect from their cars. In that case, the combustion engine must run at full load to generate enough electricity, but here’s the thing.

The output of the generator powered by the range extender engine is often not enough to meet the power expectations of the driver, which is why today’s range extender cars often have a significantly lower output when the battery is empty than when it is full. For instance, the EREV version of the Neta S estate has an electric rear motor with a peak output of 200 kW. It is equipped either with a 31.7 or 43.9 kWh battery, depending on the model selected. However, the 1.5-liter gasoline engine only delivers 70 kW. What that means is that if the battery is empty and the only power available is coming directly from the generator, then by lightning like calculation, only 70 kW is available to move the car forward, no matter what the horsepower rating of the motor might be.

The BMW i3 Experience

Readers may recall that this phenomenon affected US drivers of the BMW i3, which offered a small two-cylinder range extender engine as an option at a time when charging infrastructure was in its infancy (or nonexistent in many places).While the engine was programmed to turn on when the battery reached about a 20% state of charge, US regulators insisted BMW alter the control algorithm to prevent it from being activated until the battery was nearly depleted. The engine was never designed to provide enough electricity to power the car on its own, and so there were numerous accounts of i3 owners chugging up mountain roads in the breakdown lane at 15 mph while being passed by school buses, cement mixers, and fully loaded dump trucks. It was intensely embarrassing for the owners and left an indelible stain on the reputation of cars with range extender engines among US drivers. BMW i3 drivers in other countries, where the cars were able to operate as the factory intended, liked their cars just fine and encountered no such issues. XPeng  intends to address the issue with a battery for its Kunpeng Super Electric System that has sufficient power.

In addition to the 430-kilometer range mentioned at the AI Day presentation, the company also said a 5C charging capability would permit drivers to charge the battery at a Level 3 DC fast charging station from 10 to 80% in just 12 minutes. The battery supplier was not named, but Chinese media couldn’t help but notice the obvious connection to the CATL Freevoy battery unveiled just a few weeks ago, which is said to provide more than 400 kilometers of range and is specifically designed to be installed in EREV cars. CATL claimed the Freevoy battery could charge at 4C. Either XPeng is using a different battery supplier, or CATL was just being modest in its claims for the Freevoy battery.

Extended Range For Rural Drivers

In China, many people, especially in rural areas where charging infrastructure is not well developed, want long ranges but cannot charge as frequently as necessary with a traditional plug-in hybrid vehicle. For them, an extended range EV makes more sense. Some manufacturers, such as Li Auto, have enjoyed success in the new car market by specialized in EREVs almost exclusively. There are rumors in Chinese media that Nio is also considering a move to add extended range EVs to its offerings with its Firefly brand.

In his presentation, He Xiaopeng acknowledged that battery-electric vehicles do not offer a “very good experience” in areas where the charging infrastructure is not fully developed or in colder regions where battery performance is reduced in winter. If you are wondering what exactly artificial intelligence had to do with it, XPeng says it uses AI to optimize the operation of its Kunpeng Super Power System in order to optimize the operating strategy “based on the road conditions.”

One question that readers may have is, what will Tesla do to respond to the EREV craze in China? Is sticking a range extender engine in the frunk too horrible an idea to even consider, or will some sort of EREV need to be introduced to stay competitive with Tesla’s rivals? We will leave you to contemplate that question at your leisure.