Meanwhile in Malaysia, not a single Volkswagen ID vehicle is on sale despite the tax structure.
Volkswagen’s ID. family is about to get a performance boost with the launch of the new APP550 rear-wheel drive motor. This marks a major improvement in efficiency and performance for the ID. models. The new power unit will be based on the modular electric drive (MEB) matrix, Volkswagen’s vehicle architecture designed specifically for electric models.
Karsten Bennewitz, Head of Powertrain and Energy Systems in Development, said, “We were compelled to develop a new drive that achieves significant improvements in performance and efficiency in spite of being subject to the same constraints. That was a great challenge for the team of Technical Development and Group Components. The result shows that we were able to reduce the use of raw materials, while at the same time achieving a considerable increase in vehicle efficiency.”
More power and significantly more torque will be available with the new powertrain. It has an output of 210 kW (286 PS) with a maximum torque of around 550 Nm, providing superior power development both from standstill and at higher speeds. The enhanced stator with a higher effective number of windings and a larger wire cross-section, combined with a rotor equipped with more powerful permanent magnets, enables the new APP550 electric drive to achieve high torque.
The inverter is also a crucial component in the powertrain. It was developed to supply the high phase currents needed for greater power and efficiency, acting as the controlling “brain” in the powertrain.
The functional software ensures efficient system processes, such as the modulation methods for the generation of the alternating current for the electric drive motor. This ensures that the drive motor can operate more efficiently, depending on the load phase.
To increase the efficiency of the electric drive, Volkswagen optimised a number of components in the powertrain, including the thermal management system. The new drive has an energy-saving cooling system that operates without an electrically driven oil pump. The system cools itself via the gear wheels of the gearbox and specially formed components for oil supply and distribution. The outside of the stator is equipped with a water heat sink, ensuring that the drive is kept at operating temperature.
The production of the drive system with gearbox, rotor and stator will take place at the Volkswagen Group Components plant in Kassel. Alexander Krick, Head of Technical Development E-Drive, Power Electronics & Transmission at Group Components, said, “Drawing on our many years of experience, we optimised the overall system through, among other things, the use of special electrical sheets and customised machining processes, and were thus able to significantly increase efficiency.”
