Mercedes-Benz
- Mercedes-Benz announced at the IAA auto show in Munich that it has achieved a breakthrough in electric vehicle charging with its prototype AMG GT XX concept.
- Using a single liquid-cooled charging cable, the AMG GT XX concept reached a peak charging speed of over 1 megawatt, holding the power for several minutes.
- The achievement wasn’t just for showing off, as the automaker is looking to implement aspects of the technology into production soon.
Mercedes-Benz is looking to revolutionize the EV charging landscape. When it comes to electric cars, conversation often turns to driving range—and while that’s one piece of the puzzle, it’s not always the most important factor. Using the same prototype Mercedes-AMG GT XX concept that set dozens of records in August, Mercedes just achieved 1-megawatt charging speeds. Typically, when we talk about DC fast-charging, we’re referring to cars and charging infrastructure designed to reach peak speeds up to around 350 kW. More recently, that number has started to climb to 400 kW. During testing of its AMG GT XX concept, Mercedes ramped speeds up to the 1-megawatt mark (1000 kW) in under one second and managed to hit a peak charging speed of 1014 kW.Mercedes-BenzPerhaps as impressive as the peak speed is that the concept was able to sustain more than 1000 kW for roughly two and a half minutes. Put in plain terms, Mercedes said the AMG GT XX received 17.3 kWh of energy in one minute—that’s about the equivalent of a Toyota RAV4 PHEV’s full battery capacity.
The secret behind the ridiculously fast charging is twofold. The first is the concept’s battery, which, according to Mercedes, uses a new direct cooling technology to keep the battery from overheating. The system uses electrically nonconductive oil to maintain an optimal temperature in the more than 3000 cylindrical NCMA cells that make up the battery. The second is in the charging cable itself. Designed originally for large electric trucks, the charging station was converted to use a liquid-cooled version of a CCS charging cable.Mercedes-BenzIt would be easy to dismiss the results as unimportant, given that the AMG GT XX is just a concept car and that reaching the charging figure, however impressive, required a prototype charging station and charge cable. But Mercedes assured us that technologies from both sides of the test are headed for production. ➡️ Skip the lot. Let Car and Driver help you find your next car.Shop New Cars Shop Used CarsThe direct-cooled battery from the prototype will make its way to the production version of the AMG GT and the AMG.EA platform it rides on. As for the charging infrastructure, a new crop of 600-kW chargers that the brand is planning to bring to North America is directly related to the prototype from the test. Widespread adoption surely won’t happen anytime soon, but the arguments against road-tripping electric cars continue to wear more thin. More on the AMG GT XX
- 2027 Mercedes-AMG GT EV: What we Know so Far
- Mercedes Concept AMG GT XX EV Shatters Lots of Records
- We Experience AMG’s New EV and Its Fake Sounds
Source: caranddriver.com
