We always see online how long an ICE car does field testing but you never see this with electric cars
For decades we have seen how petrol and diesel powered new cars are field tested in various locations around the globe. Spy-shots are shared showing harsh driving conditions and various weather conditions.
Spy-shots of new vehicles can be seen testing in remote locations, freezing cold locations and also hot and humid locations. This takes months and a lot of ‘miles’ are run in order to ensure the customer gets a new vehicle that is trouble free during the warranty period.
But lately we have noticed that some new electric cars just ‘pop out’ of no where and within months they are in the showroom and soon after on the roads around the world. Also, the left hand drive version gets launched and just months later a right hand derive version for Asia Pacific arrives. (did the right hand drive version get any ‘on the road’ testing?).
Take for example the much published Xiaomi SU7. This fast selling electric sedan made its first appearance towards the end of the third quarter of 2023. That’s just about 9 to 10 months ago.
Then this technology and smartphone manufacturer announced that their first ever electric car, the SU7 will be manufactured under contract with BAIC (very established Chinese auto manufacturer).
Within hours of its launch, thousands of bookings were received and the Xiaomi team celebrated its fantastic response. Delivers commenced and early adopters took to the streets with their much talked about SU7.
In the first week we started seeing news of the SU7 failing and even getting into accidents with drive issues, software issues and more.
It’s a car that will be subjected to various road and weather conditions. Now a smartphone that sits in its owner’s pocket or handbag.
So, battery powered vehicles (EV) need to be field tested extensively before being released for owner use. EV testing should address both functional and functional safety testing, relative to its functional requirements.
So, environmental testing (i.e., temperature, vibration, shock, electromagnetic interference, etc.) is important for EV testing at each level because the vehicles’ battery and subsystem designs will be susceptible to environmental damage. At the same time, it can be difficult to integrate environmental scenarios, even in a controlled environment, because of the uncertainty and variation in real-life scenarios. The challenge in this phase of testing can vary depending on the overall battery and component design of the vehicle being tested for as well.
This is probably why European EV manufacturers have a much higher production costs and selling price. Yes, labour costs in Europe is higher, but field testing takes a lot of time and money. Yes?
So, the next time you look at an electric vehicle for your garage, think about how long it has been field tested. Remember, you will be buying your new EV on loan and it will be over 5 or even 7 years of repayments.
