Electric vehicle batteries can vary dramatically in their capacities and capabilities — and that can have a big impact on the vehicles themselves. Honda executives sound confident that a move to solid state batteries can significantly increase the range of their EVs — and to that end, the automaker now has a solid state demonstration production line set up in Sakura City.
“The all-solid-state battery is an innovative technology that will be a game changer in this EV era,” said Keiji Otsu, President and Representative Director of Honda R&D Co., Ltd., in a statement. He also embraced the sentiment that batteries could be more significant to EV performance than the engines themselves. “Replacing engines that have been supporting the advancements of automobiles to date, batteries will be the key factor of electrification,” he added.
Honda revealed that the demonstration production line is set to begin operations in January of 2025, with two goals: determining the ideal way to manufacture a solid state battery and determining the specifications for EV battery cells. If all goes according to plan, Honda will begin manufacturing solid state batteries in the second half of this decade.
Just how big a deal could solid state batteries be to the automotive world? Car expert Sandy Munro told Motor Trend last year, “When these batteries are in production, there will be no comparison between the current technology or anything petroleum based.”
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Can this acclerate a growing industry?Still, the industry has also seen advances in other forms of battery technology in recent years as well. That prompted CNBC’s Sam Meredith to observe that solid state batteries are looking like less of an overall game changer than they did a few years ago. Honda’s new factory setup does sound like a tangible step forward for the technology, however — but for now, industry observers will have to wait a little while longer.
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