Re-create a popular MEB platform for the public to interpret the new energy trend.

　　Faced with increasingly stringent fuel consumption and emission requirements, the production of new energy vehicles has become the most effective solution for major automobile manufacturers. Electrification will be the core strategy of Volkswagen in the next 10 years. To this end, from 2020, Volkswagen will produce pure electric vehicles on MEB platform, taking into account plug-in hybrid vehicles, and will become the main production platform for new energy vehicles. This article will show you in a simple way: what technical characteristics the Volkswagen MEB platform has, which models will be born here, and how to understand the MEB platform for consumers and even the automobile industry.

　　What you need to know about platform concept

　　From the earliest PQ platform to the current MQB modular platform production mode, Volkswagen has become the first manufacturer in the automobile industry to put forward the concept of platform. In addition, its great success in the China market has not only made it the largest automobile company in the world, but also revolutionized the entire automobile industry with the concept of platform production. Modular platform production mode can keep the convenience of product technology upgrading, and can help the public shorten the development, production and listing cycle of automobiles and reduce manufacturing costs. The universality of MQB platform saves 20% of the manufacturing cost for Volkswagen Group.

　　Under the general trend of new energy, MEB platform will be built for the production of pure electric vehicles and plug-in hybrid vehicles from 2020, and become the main production platform for Volkswagen new energy vehicles. Compared with other brands’ practice of launching a single model, it is obvious that Volkswagen intends to achieve comprehensive coverage of all levels of models. In the next five years, Volkswagen expects that the pure electric vehicles produced can account for 20%-25% of the total sales, and the return on capital of the automobile business department will be raised to over 15%. According to the official data of Volkswagen, the manufacturing cost of the first model ID.3 of MEB platform is reduced by 40% compared with the e-Golf pure electric golf of MQB platform.

　　Technical characteristics of MEB platform

　　MEB platform is called "Modular Platform for Electric Vehicles", which is short for "Modular Electrification Toolkit" in German. MEB has many similarities with the current MBQ, which is based on the concept of Volkswagen modularization, and has strong expansibility. It can build different body wheelbase and different adjustment and cruising range according to the demand and positioning, but it has its own characteristics in layout structure due to the removal of the traditional internal combustion engine and the increase of power batteries.

　　The core components of MEB platform, such as battery pack and motor, are all set with fixed positions and modes. The battery is embedded in the bottom of the vehicle as a whole, and the axle module and the transmission system module are moved forward and backward as far as possible, so that the produced vehicle has a longer wheelbase and a shorter front and rear suspension, which maximizes the space and brings more cockpit space and a higher sitting posture.

　　The most important part of the power battery, Volkswagen independently developed the design of the battery Package. The basic structure of this battery Package can be used on all MEB platform models, and the number of battery modules can be freely allocated according to the size of the models. Each module is divided into 24 groups of batteries, and the modules, together with the cooling device and the junction box of the high and low voltage vehicle system, are wrapped in aluminum casings. The power battery voltage of the original MEB platform was fixed at 408 volts, which was much higher than the 230 volts of the existing new energy vehicles on the Volkswagen MQB platform.

　　The new platform takes into account the compatibility of the current mainstream flexible battery cells and prismatic batteries, so Volkswagen has maintained a very high degree of flexibility in cooperation with battery suppliers. Taking ID.3 as an example, the battery pack can accommodate up to 12 modules, and the usable capacity exceeds 77KWh；; The initial capacity of ID. which will be listed at the end of next year can reach 83KWh, and the future Volkswagen electric flagship ID.Vizzion can even reach 111KWh.

　　MEB modular platform processing has brought about changes in production technology, and will also configure the required software systems for its models to realize digitalization, networking and fully automatic driving. At present, it can achieve high compatibility with MQB platform models, and the upcoming Golf 8 is the latest model with digital and networked equipment.

　　What models will be available under MEB platform?

　　Volkswagen Group plans to launch more than 80 new energy vehicles by 2025, including 50 pure electric vehicles and 30 plug-in hybrid vehicles. The annual sales will reach 3 million vehicles, accounting for 20%-25% of the company’s total sales. Volkswagen’s three joint ventures in China, FAW-Volkswagen, SAIC-Volkswagen and JAC-Volkswagen, will be important supports to boost sales in China market.According to the planning of Volkswagen Group, by 2022, Changchun, Qingdao, Anting, Foshan and Yizheng will each have a new energy factory.

　　In 2020, it will be the first to launch ID.3 and ID. At first sight in the domestic market, and then it will launch Audi Q4 e-tron and Skoda VISION IV production version. Among them, ID. At first sight, it will be manufactured in Shanghai Anting Factory together with brothers of Audi and Skoda. As the flagship of the family, the production version of I.D.VizzionID.5It will be the first to be listed in China in 2022. This car is positioned as a medium-sized car. Foreign media speculated that ID.5 is likely to be the successor of Volkswagen Passat.

　　Volkswagen regards ID.3 as the third groundbreaking product after Beetle and Golf. ID.3 is the first pure electric vehicle developed by Volkswagen based on MEB platform.It can be seen as a pure electric version of golf.In the future, smaller models than ID.3 will be named ID.1 and ID.2, and larger models will continue to use this naming method until ID.9. It is reported that Volkswagen has also applied for trademark protection of the letter "X", which will be used for SUV models.

　　The I.D. series has appeared in a number of concept cars, namely, ID CROZZ II, ID Vizzion and ID BUGGY concept cars, except for domestic ones.ID.3, ID. Beyond the first sight,There will be many models in the I.D. series, among which the ID CROZZ II corresponds to the ID.4GTX. It will be an SUV with a dual-motor layout and a standard Tesla Model X.

　　At the latest, by 2030, more than 300 models of the Group’s brands covering all levels of the global market will launch at least one electric version. The "Roadmap E" strategy is an extension and upgrade of the electric product planning in the "2025" strategy, which will not only promote the electric product planning of Volkswagen Group, but also greatly accelerate the electrification process of the group’s vehicle lineup.

　　Not only MEB but also high-end PPE/JI.

　　Just as Volkswagen’s high-end luxury cars use MLB platform at present, in order to cope with future electrification, if MEB platform is the MQB platform for standard gasoline vehicles, then Volkswagen’s high-end gasoline vehicle platform MLB should also have a pure electric cousin-it is called PPE(Premium Platform Electric).

　　The PPE platform is jointly developed by Audi and Porsche. Its predecessor is Taycan, the first pure electric vehicle model of Porsche, and the Audi e-tron GT which will be mass-produced soon. In addition, there is a higher-end Bentley J1 pure electric platform. The PPE platform is expected to be launched in 2021, and its main technical highlights are also more advanced, including supporting air suspension, dynamic torque distribution, unsprung lightweight, 800-volt high-voltage power battery, and 350kW ultra-high power fast charging.

　　MEB will promote the upgrading of China auto parts industry.

　　China is undoubtedly Volkswagen’s largest market in the world, and Volkswagen also needs to accelerate the development of new energy vehicles on the basis of the existing product system. The brand-new platform can be completed not only by Volkswagen itself, but also by completely innovating the whole supplier system, which not only brings more new vehicle choices to domestic consumers, but also promotes the upgrading of China’s electric vehicle industry.

　　Just like the reform and development in the past, the introduction of the concept of automobile joint production has promoted the development of automobile supporting industries in an all-round way and made China the largest automobile production and consumption market. By 2025, Volkswagen and joint ventures will invest a total of about 10 billion euros in electrification, including the research and development and production of electric vehicle products and the update and application of equipment, production lines and battery modules, but excluding the purchase of batteries. Volkswagen also plans to invest 75 million US dollars to start the motor production and transformation work in the Volkswagen gearbox Tianjin factory in December 2018.

　　Summary: In the MQB era, Volkswagen has proved the advanced nature of modular production. Compared with Volkswagen, the brand-new MEB modular platform not only embraces the development trend of new energy, but also starts a new business for Volkswagen in the new period and continues to lead the development of Volkswagen. Every technological innovation will bring about the industrial upgrading of the whole industry. Compared with some brands that only introduce a few pure electric vehicles, Volkswagen’s approach is more systematic. The investment in research and development in the early stage and the turnaround of giants will bring greater domino effect, which will have a far-reaching impact on domestic auto parts industry and consumers, but also on future travel.