AUTO: LUXURY AND ELECTRIC
Automakers are strongly drawn to the premium electric car industry. Indeed, the electrical industry particularly values luxury by investing in technological innovation and technical performance. Manufacturers like Tesla, Mercedes, BMW and even Porsche are now competing to launch the best premium electric car in terms of speed, range and on-board technology. Each of them wants to offer a new experience of the electric car by making it luxurious and ultra-equipped.
Electric is even more advantageous at the top of the range
Paradoxically, the top of the range is a very advantageous sector for the electric car. Thanks to their larger dimensions, the luxury models allow a larger battery to be carried on board and therefore have a much greater autonomy. In addition, the daily cost of electric compared to thermal is also lower. Indeed, the price of the accumulator (approximately 40% of the value of the vehicle) is compensated by the margin made on such a model by the brand. In addition, electric vehicles naturally combine all the advantages reserved for luxury. With a cabin resembling that of a machine from the future, they are extremely quiet, ultra-connected and therefore feature cutting-edge technology.
Porsche is betting big on electrics
Tesla is the first manufacturer to focus solely on the luxury electric car. As for the CEO of Porsche for North America, Klaus Zellmer, he affirms with conviction that "the future is electric". He announced that more than half of the vehicles produced by the manufacturer will use electrical energy from 2025. Porsche will thus build more than 50% of its annual volume with an electrical outlet, in one form or another, that it it is a plug-in hybrid technology or entirely on battery. In Frankfurt, in September 2019, the German manufacturer announced its new Taycan, the brand's first 100% electric sports car. Capable of going from 0 to 100 km / h in less than three seconds, it was designed as an anti-Tesla weapon.
Electricity therefore appeals to brands concerned about not being definitively outstripped in technological terms by Elon Musk's company at the top of the world market, especially in the United States. This country is the second largest market for Porsche (more than 57,000 vehicles sold in 2018). Next year, Porsche is due to bring to market a 100% electric version of its famous Macan SUV, which is supposed to compete with rival Tesla's Model Y.
Exclusive equipment for any model
Inside any premium model currently on the market, the driver is immersed in an atmosphere that is both understated and luxurious. The electric Taycan is thus equipped with a very futuristic digital panel. Audi, for its part, has nothing to be ashamed of with its e-tron, an SUV offering great range (between 300 and 400 km) and maximum comfort. At Mercedes, we are banking on the EQC, an electric SUV of impressive dimensions with a fully digitalized dashboard for displaying infotainment and essential navigation information. Jaguar is not left out with its I-Pace, an SUV with aggressive curves with a remarkable interior design.
The charging station becomes a relative constraint
Like Tesla, which has already installed 70 superchargers in France, the Ionity network located along European highways can quickly recharge a growing number of electric vehicles, in particular premium models from Audi, BMW, Mercedes and from Jaguar. After the deployment of 43 stations in France alone and 294 throughout Europe since October 2019, the milestone of 400 terminals will soon be crossed at the end of 2020.
Lecobel Vaneau
lecobel@lecobel.be
02 346 33 55