Skip to main content
Sister Publication Links
  • Automotive News
  • Automobilwoche
  • Automotive News Canada
  • Automotive News China
Subscribe
  • Subscribe
  • Newsletters
  • Login
  • HOME
    • Latest news
    • Automakers
    • Suppliers
    • New Product
    • Environment/Emissions
    • Sales By Market
    • On The Move
    • Auto Shows
    • Munich Auto Show
    • Geneva Auto Show
    • Paris Auto Show
    • Beijing Auto Show
    • Shanghai Auto Show
  • Features
    • Long Read
    • Interview of the Month
    • Focus on Electrification
    • Focus on Technology
    • Segment Analysis
    • Cars & Concepts
    • Supplier Spotlight
    • Europe By The Numbers
  • Opinion
    • Blogs
    • Commentary
    • Guest columnists
  • Photos
    • Photo Galleries
    • Geneva Photo Gallery
    • Beijing Photo Gallery
    • Frankfurt Photo Gallery
    • Paris Photo Gallery
    • Shanghai Photo Gallery
  • Podcasts
  • Car Cutaways
  • EVENTS
    • ANE Congress
    • ANE Rising Stars
    • ANE Eurostars
  • More
    • Publishing Partners
    • Social Media
    • Contact Us
    • Media Kit
    • About Us
    • Capgemini: All or nothing: Why circular business models require a holistic approach
    • Capgemini: Invent Head on automotive takeaways from CES 2023
    • Capgemini: Securing the industry's future through a radical rethink
    • Capgemini: Succeeding with the automated driving journey through AI
    • Capgemini: The circular economy is spurring new thinking on EV batteries
    • Capgemini: Toyota and Capgemini leaders on how OEMs can handle industry changes and succeed
    • HEXAGON: Plugging into data is the only way to make winning EVs
    • TUV Rheinland: Ideas, services and certifications for smart mobility
    • TUV Rheinland: Testing of automated and autonomous vehicles on test tracks
    • Toyota Europe
    • UFI Filters
    • Facebook
    • Instagram
    • LinkedIn
    • Twitter
MENU
Breadcrumb
  1. Home
  2. Focus on Electrification
December 15, 2022 12:00 AM

VW upgrades MEB platform to keep pace with EV rivals

VW will invest in upgrading the MEB platform with longer range and faster charging as software issues reportedly delay a successor until 2028.

Nick Gibbs
  • Tweet
  • Share
  • Share
  • Email
  • More
    Print
    VW ID5.jpg

    The VW ID5 crossover (shown) is one of a dozen VW Group models underpinned by the MEB full-electric platform. VW plans to build 10 million cars on the architecture, which debuted in 2019 on the VW ID3.

    In a strategy shift, Volkswagen Group will pour new investment into making its MEB full-electric platform competitive against increasingly sophisticated rivals as it pushes back the timeline for a direct replacement.

    VW this month announced an upgraded platform, called MEB+, that will offer customers faster charging speeds and longer ranges when it appears in 2026. The overhaul will “leverage the full potential of the successful platform and ensure that it remains competitive,” the automaker said.

    No investment figure was given, but Germany’s Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung newspaper reported that the project will cost 1.5 billion euros.

    MEB was touted as the first globally dedicated electric platform when the first car built on it, the VW ID3 compact, was shown in 2019. VW Group licensed the platform to Ford, in addition to using it to underpin models from the its stable of brands including VW, Skoda, Cupra and Audi. 

    Since then, however, platforms from rivals including Hyundai, Tesla and China’s SAIC have surpassed MEB on measures such as charging speed, cost and packaging.

    The planned successor to MEB, a “super platform” dubbed SSP, or Scalable Systems Platform, was to renew VW Group’s competitive edge, starting in 2025 with the Audi Artemis car, followed by the VW Trinity in 2026 and eventually encompassing nearly all models by 2030.

    But the Trinity project is reportedly delayed until 2028 amid concerns that development of the E3.0 software stack planned for the SSP platform has fallen behind schedule. 

    VW will rely on MEB+ to address its full-electric shortcomings in the midterm, as rivals press their advantages.

    "Hyundai-Kia with its E-GMP (Electric Global Modular Platform) is delivering a much better use of the vehicle footprint in terms of usable space for passengers and luggage compared to Volkswagen Group's MEB architecture-based vehicles such as the ID3 and ID4," one Hyundai Motor official told Automotive News Europe recently on condition of anonymity.

    Hyundai-Kia’s platform, which underpins cars such as the Hyundai Ioniq 5 and 6 and the Kia EV6, trumped VW with an 800-volt electric architecture that allows charging at speeds of up to 235 kilowatts, compared with 135 to 170 kW cars using MEB (see chart, above). 

    Volkswagen will not change the MEB’s 400-volt architecture but said it will increase charging speeds to 175 to 200 kW, getting it closer to Hyundai's, Kia’s and Tesla’s maximums. 

    MEB+ will also have a maximum range of 700 km versus MEB’s 550 km (342 miles), closer to the Tesla Model 3 and Model Y.

    The revised platform underpins a new compact SUV described internally as the electric Tiguan, which would be built at VW’s flagship Wolfsburg plant and launched by 2026. 

    Volkswagen Group

    Cars underpinned by VW Group's MEB+ platform will have a maximum range of 700 km vs. 550 km for vehicles that use the MEB architecture.

    New battery packaging

    MEB+ will use the new “‘unit” or unified battery cells that Volkswagen will source from both a new battery factory in Salzgitter, Germany, as well as partner Northvolt’s planned Swedish plant.

    VW has said that the unified cells can accommodate different chemistries and be able to harness synergy effects that will reduce battery costs by 50 percent.

    Price is one area where MEB cars struggle against rivals, particularly those from China. 

    SAIC, which has a joint venture in China with VW, this year launched the MG4 compact, the first model on its MSP (Modular Scalable Platform) full-electric architecture, which uses less expensive LFP (lithium iron phosphate) chemistry compared with MEB’s nickel manganese cobalt. 

    SAIC benchmarked the ID3 when it developed the MG4, UK commercial director Guy Pigounakis said. The two cars have similar specifications but for one key difference: price. The MG4, which is built in China, starts at 28,240 euros ($28,220) in Germany for a model with a 51-kilowatt-hour battery, compared with 43,995 euros for the cheapest ID3 with a 58 kWh battery. 

    The VW ID Life concept, shown in 2021, previews a smaller, lower-cost model on the MEB platform.

    VW seeks cost reductions

    VW has said it will offer an LFP battery for Chinese models but has not said whether the option will be available to European cars. The chemistry could offset rising battery prices by removing the need for expensive nickel and cobalt.

    The new unified cell could offer packaging and range advantages, allowing a bigger battery in MEB’s 370 liters of available battery pack space, UBS bank estimated in a recent report.

    FOCUS ON ELECTRIFICATION NEWSLETTER: A monthly wrap-up of the latest electric vehicle news, including interviews and global EV sales data, delivered to your inbox.

    VW could also use its scale advantages to reduce production costs. So far, VW brand alone has sold more than 500,000 cars on the MEB platform, which underpins a total of 12 VW Group models wearing badges from VW, Audi, Skoda and Cupra. The automaker plans to build 10 million cars on the platform.
     
    VW brand has promised that the MEB range will be “significantly expanded” with 10 new electric models promised by 2026, including a small car on a cut-down version of the platform selling “for around 25,000 euros.”

    RECOMMENDED FOR YOU
    VW recasts Seat brand for car sharing and subscription role
    Recommended for You
    Seat/Cupra pillar
    VW recasts Seat brand for car sharing and subscription role
    VW Porsche badges
    VW Group's controlling family to get $425M dividend from Porsche SE
    Peugeot badge
    Peugeot dynasty takes hit from deep slump in auto holdings
    Sign up for free newsletters
    EMAIL ADDRESS

    Please enter a valid email address.

    Please enter your email address.

    Please verify captcha.

    Please select at least one newsletter to subscribe.

    You can unsubscribe at any time through links in these emails. For more information, see our Privacy Policy.

    Get Free Newsletters

    Sign up and get the best of Automotive News Europe delivered straight to your email inbox, free of charge. Choose your news – we will deliver.

    You can unsubscribe at any time through links in these emails. For more information, see our Privacy Policy.

    SUBSCRIBE TODAY

    Get 24/7 access to in-depth, authoritative coverage of the auto industry from a global team of reporters and editors covering the news that’s vital to your business.

    SUBSCRIBE NOW
    Connect with Us
    • Twitter
    • Facebook
    • LinkedIn
    • Instagram

    Founded in 1996, Automotive News Europe is the preferred information source for decision-makers and opinion leaders operating in Europe.

    Contact Us

    1155 Gratiot Avenue
    Detroit MI  48207-2997
    Tel: +1 877-812-1584

    Email Us

    ISSN 2643-6590 (print)
    ISSN 2643-6604 (online)

     

    Resources
    • About us
    • Contact Us
    • Advertise with us
    • Advertise with Us
    • Ad Choices Ad Choices
    • Sitemap
    Awards
    • Rising Stars
    • Eurostars
    • Leading Women
    Legal
    • Terms and Conditions
    • Privacy Policy
    • Privacy Request
    Automotive News Europe
    Copyright © 1996-2023. Crain Communications, Inc. All Rights Reserved.
    • HOME
      • Latest news
      • Automakers
      • Suppliers
      • New Product
      • Environment/Emissions
      • Sales By Market
      • On The Move
      • Auto Shows
        • Munich Auto Show
        • Geneva Auto Show
        • Paris Auto Show
        • Beijing Auto Show
        • Shanghai Auto Show
    • Features
      • Long Read
      • Interview of the Month
      • Focus on Electrification
      • Focus on Technology
      • Segment Analysis
      • Cars & Concepts
      • Supplier Spotlight
      • Europe By The Numbers
    • Opinion
      • Blogs
      • Commentary
      • Guest columnists
    • Photos
      • Photo Galleries
      • Geneva Photo Gallery
      • Beijing Photo Gallery
      • Frankfurt Photo Gallery
      • Paris Photo Gallery
      • Shanghai Photo Gallery
    • Podcasts
    • Car Cutaways
    • EVENTS
      • ANE Congress
      • ANE Rising Stars
      • ANE Eurostars
    • More
      • Publishing Partners
        • Capgemini: All or nothing: Why circular business models require a holistic approach
        • Capgemini: Invent Head on automotive takeaways from CES 2023
        • Capgemini: Securing the industry's future through a radical rethink
        • Capgemini: Succeeding with the automated driving journey through AI
        • Capgemini: The circular economy is spurring new thinking on EV batteries
        • Capgemini: Toyota and Capgemini leaders on how OEMs can handle industry changes and succeed
        • HEXAGON: Plugging into data is the only way to make winning EVs
        • TUV Rheinland: Ideas, services and certifications for smart mobility
        • TUV Rheinland: Testing of automated and autonomous vehicles on test tracks
        • Toyota Europe
        • UFI Filters
      • Social Media
        • Facebook
        • Instagram
        • LinkedIn
        • Twitter
      • Contact Us
      • Media Kit
      • About Us