BYD may supply VW with batteries for plug-ins

Volkswagen has a test fleet of 20 plug-in Twin Drive Golfs on the road, but no word on an exact production date.

(Credit: Volkswagen)

Volkswagen may be late to the gate with hybrids and electric cars, but its recent partnership with Chinese automaker and lithium ion battery producer BYD shows that the German car company is a serious contender in the race to supply the masses with an electric car.

Volkswagen has already signed letters of intent with Sanyo and Toshiba as suppliers for electric batteries, and the company is currently exploring an arrangement with BYD to supply VW with lithium ion batteries for its upcoming plug-in and all electric vehicles, according to an article in the Wall Street Journal.

BYD is one of the largest manufacturers of lithium ion batteries. High demand and cost has made these batteries one of the road blocks to building affordable plug-in and electric vehicles.

However, the battery-maker-turned-car-manufacturer has been able to make stable and durable lithium ion batteries at half the cost of batteries produced in the west and Japan due to its safer, most cost-effective iron-phosphate-based lithium-ion technology

Volkswagen Eos White Night : 2009

The new Eos White Night embraces the contrast of black and white: the body is white, while elements such as the roof, radiator grille and mirror covers are black. This special model can be ordered starting now.

Upcoming Volkswagen Models, Lineup to get Less German - Car News

With Chrysler sales dropping off a cliff, VW hopes to reposition itself as a quasi-American brand and take over the Pentastar’s place in the market. Therefore, production of the “new mid-size sedan”—VW’s Toyota Camry fighter—in its new, $1 billion plant in Chattanooga, Tennessee, can’t happen soon enough.

The new mid-size sedan due in 2011 will be larger but less expensive than the current Passat and will emphasize size and value over autobahn breeding. A VW executive in Wolfsburg told us: “U.S. customers look at size and engine displacement. They won’t pay an extra dollar for a Passat over a Camry just because of its finesse and attention to detail.” It is this “size matters” thinking that has the diminutive VW Up in peril. The second vehicle to be produced in Chattanooga—beginning in mid-2011—will be a new medium-size crossover to compete with the Toyota Highlander.

Keep Reading: Upcoming Volkswagen Models, Lineup to get Less German - Car News