The timing mightn’t have been better. Production of the VW ID 4 started in Chattanooga in the US state of Tennessee almost simultaneously with the new requirements for the promotion of electric vehicles in the USA passed in Washington – which are tax breaks of up to 7,500 dollars.
The discounts for electric vehicles produced in the USA are part of the Inflation Reduction Act passed in August, which primarily promotes investments in sustainable products in the USA. Hein Schäfer, Head of Marketing at Volkswagen of America, explained in a webinar that “there are already 30,000 pre-orders” for the ID 4. According to Schäfer, this makes the ID 4 the “fastest-selling” model in the USA.
So far, the model has been imported into the USA from Europe.
The US version of the ID 4, which consists of more than 75 percent parts from North American suppliers, will be followed by other electric models in the coming years. In 2024, the ID Buzz will roll onto the US market as the successor to the much acclaimed VW Microbus with a third row of seats, from 2026 further all-electric SUV models are planned, and in 2030 American customers will be able to choose between more than 25 all-electric vehicles . According to plans, 55 percent of all Volkswagen models sold in the USA will then be electric vehicles.
The ID 4 has already received a positive assessment from the US consumer organization Consumer Reports. In a test of the all-wheel drive version, the testers attested to the model’s “rapid acceleration, comfortable ride and a quiet interior”. The space in the rear and the luggage compartment were rated as “generous”, and the handling was also praised.
The aim of Wolfsburg is a ten percent share in the US market. This also includes the further expansion of Electrify America’s high-performance charging network. The subsidiary currently operates almost 1,000 charging stations with more than 3,500 DC charging points, and the network is expected to more than double in the next three years.
In Chattanooga, Volkswagen has now also started the Battery Engineering Lab for high-voltage batteries. This includes, among other things, a climatic chamber in which temperatures from arctic minus 70 degrees to 130 degrees can be generated. The humidity can also be simulated accordingly for each climate zone. The new battery test center is part of Volkswagen’s network of global facilities. The Group maintains comparable facilities in Germany and the People’s Republic of China.
Batteries are significantly more sensitive than internal combustion engines, and the test requirements are therefore correspondingly high. On a two-tonne vibrating table, for example, the energy stores are subjected to extreme loads. “The table, which is set up on a 270-ton concrete foundation, simulates driving on different route profiles. It can generate forces up to 25 times the acceleration due to gravity. It’s almost like a small earthquake,” explains Wolfgang Maluche, Vice President Engineering at Volkswagen of America. Each run lasts 14 minutes.
Volkswagen has invested $22 million in the Battery Engineering Lab, and the facility represents the company’s transformation in the Canada, US and Mexico region. In addition to the test center in Tennessee, there is already a Center of Excellence for cell technology in California, which works with the two start-ups Quantum Scape and 24 M and is researching the next level of battery technology (solid-state and semi-solid-state technology). The new cell technologies developed there will then also be tested in the new high-voltage laboratory in Chattanooga.
Volkswagen is investing around 800 million dollars in the electrification of the plant and is creating additional jobs in the region. So far, 4000 people work at the site, the group plans to hire another 1000 employees. (Walther Wuttke/cen)
