Aion UT Super: a compact EV with 99-second battery swap

3 pointsposted 8 hours ago
by breve

5 Comments

lucideng

7 minutes ago

Finally, a life-sized RC car. In my opinion, fast swappable batteries were always the best way to do an electric car. Comes with its own set of problems, but the approach would make electric cars cheaper... possibly no charging circuits, batteries not included (lol) and the car itself would last longer, with battery degradation no longer being tied to the vehicle. Vehicle might maintain its value over a longer time since there is no battery to degrade. Range and performance could improve with battery technology.

Negatives would include inconsistent KWh/performance between packs; Could you own a pack and charge at home or would you be restricted to renting one? Who is liable when it catches fire or you get in an accident and wreck a pack? A pack swap would probably cost more than just charging. Do you 'buy-in' to a pack separately or is it baked into the cost of the vehicle?

Then you have to get all the auto manufacturers to agree on a pack specification.

andsoitis

8 hours ago

> GAC Aion has officially announced the rollout of the first Aion UT Super, dubbed the “Super National Good Car”.

That naming sounds dystopian. Do people working on these things not see it?

jaggs

6 hours ago

And how is that any different to the "Volkswagen"?

andsoitis

3 hours ago

> And how is that any different to the "Volkswagen"?

Volkswagen was founded in 1937 by a Nazi-controlled labor union.

Even if it weren't, "volks" is more ambiguous than "national", since it means "people's", which you can be interpreted as "a car for the people", not a specific "nation".

jaggs

3 hours ago

You win! :)