Volkswagen Leads Innovation in Electric Drive Systems Among Volume Brands

Volkswagen has been honored with the AutomotiveINNOVATIONS Award 2024 for being the most innovative volume brand in the realm of electric drives. This prestigious award, presented annually by the Center of Automotive Management (CAM), recognizes Volkswagen’s impressive advancements in electric mobility technology. CAM highlighted Volkswagen’s achievements in enhancing vehicle range, optimizing power consumption, and improving charging capacity. The Volkswagen brand also excelled in creating a robust electric ecosystem, significantly enhancing charging convenience for users. Notably, the Volkswagen ID.7, the brand’s first electric vehicle in the upper mid-sized segment, received positive reviews.

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Volkswagen’s CEO, Thomas Schäfer, accepted the award in Wolfsburg, stating, “Exceptional vehicles are crucial for the success of electric mobility. This esteemed award underscores the innovative strides we have made with our new ID. models. Our electric cars are now more appealing, offering customers notable improvements in comfort, performance, and dynamics. Whether for electric or conventionally powered vehicles, we will continue to drive forward with technical innovations on a broad scale, as this remains a core aspect of the Volkswagen brand.”

Key innovations assessed by CAM include:

Range Improvements

• Volkswagen ID.5: Optimized range up to 556 km as per WLTP standards.

Consumption Optimization

• Volkswagen ID.7: Achieves the lowest consumption in its segment.

Charging Capacity Enhancements

• Volkswagen ID.3: Increased maximum charging capacity from 135 kW to 170 kW.

Electric Ecosystem Innovations

• Volkswagen ID. Buzz: Features battery preconditioning, which automatically activates when a fast-charging station is set as the navigation destination, a first for its segment.
• Volkswagen ID. Buzz: Integrated Plug & Charge functionality.

Additional Innovations

• Volkswagen ID.7: Equipped with an AP550 permanent magnet electric motor offering 210 kW output and 550 Nm torque, consuming 50% less power than the previous 150 kW drive motor.
• Volkswagen ID.7: Marked its debut in the upper mid-sized segment.

CAM, led by Professor Stefan Bratzel, has been evaluating automotive innovations from global companies since 2005, using both quantitative and qualitative criteria. For the 2023/24 period, CAM analyzed innovations from 30 global vehicle manufacturers and newcomers, assessing around 100 automotive brands. This analysis covered 709 individual OEM innovations across Electric Drive, Autonomous Driving & ADAS, and Infotainment & Connectivity fields. These included nearly 200 highly-rated world firsts. The scientific evaluation considered factors such as maturity level, originality, customer benefit, and degree of innovation. Additionally, about 300 pre-series innovations or concept vehicles were examined to forecast future trends in the automotive industry.

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