Toyota Europe Newsroom lifted the lid on three key aspects of Toyota battery technology on September 14, 2023. The company is clearly on the electric vehicle comeback trail, and this is how it plans to achieve that goal:
- Deploy not one, but three powerful liquid electrolytes for superior performance.
- Shift from development to mass production following a ‘solid state breakthrough’.
- Reduce electric vehicle battery height to improve drag coefficient and driving range.
The company announced these improvements at the launch of its next-gen battery electric vehicles.
Three Key Approaches to Toyota Battery Technology
ONE: Improve Performance of Lithium Vehicle Batteries
Toyota’s tweaked lithium-ion batteries will increase driving range, in tandem with improved aerodynamics and reduced vehicle weight. From 2026 onward its ‘Performance’ battery will feature:
- 20% cost reduction compared to its current 2023 bZ4X.
- Rapid recharging process taking ‘20 minutes or less’.
- 500-mile driving range between battery recharges.
However, Toyota battery technology improvements will not be stopping there. The company plans to introduce a ‘Popular’ lithium-iron-phosphate version the following year, promising:
- 40% cost reduction compared to its current 2023 bZ4X.
- Rapid recharging process taking ‘30 minutes or less’.
- 375-mile driving range between battery recharges.
Looking down the line, Toyota has a third innovation up its sleeve. This is a ‘High Performance’ lithium-ion battery available from 2027 / 2028 onward. Its special features will include:
- 10% cost reduction compared to the ‘Performance’ version.
- Rapid recharging process taking ‘20 minutes or less’.
- 625-mile driving range between battery recharges.
TWO: Diversify Toyota Battery Technology with Solid State
Toyota has developed a solid state lithium-ion battery with a non-liquid electrolyte. This facilitates faster movement of ions, and is more tolerant of higher voltages and temperatures. We don’t know by when the‘Solid-State 1’ version will appear. However, Toyota Europe Newsroom predicts the following benefits:
- Rapid recharging process taking ‘10 minutes or less’.
- 625-mile driving range between battery recharges.
THREE: Optimize Battery Height to Increase Driving Range
The third strategy extracts more driving range from Toyota battery technology, by reducing the wind resistance of its electric vehicles. In hindsight this is almost a no-brainer. The company is developing flatter lithium batteries under the vehicle floor, to reduce the roof height of its electric vehicles by 20% or over one inch!
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