• News
  • Guides
  • Reviews
  • Media
  • About
  • News
  • Guides
  • Reviews
  • Media
  • About
Sign up Now (For Free)

Sign up for our newsletter and receive the latest automotive news in your inbox!

Invalid email address
We promise not to spam you. You can unsubscribe at any time.
Thanks for subscribing!
News
Read Now
  • All News
  • Automakers
  • Automobiles
  • Auto Shows
  • Business
  • EVs & Environment
  • Guides
  • Lawsuits/Legal
  • Regulatory
  • Ride-Sharing
  • Safety & Recalls
  • Technology
Recent
  • EPA Releases Alfa Romeo Tonale Ratings
  • First Look: 2024 Chevrolet Colorado ZR2 Bison
  • NHTSA End its Tesla Gaming Inquiry Without a Recall
  • Bridgestone Puts Recycled Plastic into Indy 500 Tires
  • The Rearview Mirror: Triumph of the Bean Counters
  • VW Teases U.S. Version of ID.Buzz — and Here’s What We Know About the Electric Microbus
  • Make Sure You're Good to Go for the Holiday Weekend
  • Hyundai, LGES Building $4.3B EV Battery Plant in U.S.
  • New Vehicle Sales Set to Rise, Used Vehicle Sales Expected to Drop in May
  • Ford Teaming with Tesla to Make Charging Even Easier
Editor’s Choice
    Reviews
    Read Now
    • All Reviews
      • Feeder
    • Classic Cars
    • Concept Cars
    • Convertibles
    • Coupes
    • Crossovers/CUVs
    • Diesel
    • Hot hatches
    • Hybrids
    • Luxury Vehicles
    • Minivans
    • Muscle Cars
    • Pickups
    • Sedans
    • Sports Cars
    • Super Cars
    • SUVs
    Recent Reviews
    • First Drive: 2024 Toyota Grand Highlander
    • A Week With: 2023 Ford Mustang Mach-E Premium RWD
    • A Week With: 2023 Electrified GV70 AWD Prestige
    • A Week With: 2023 BMW XM
    • A Week With: 2023 Mercedes-Benz GLS 580 4Matic
    • First Drive: 2024 Audi Q8 e-Tron Prestige
    • First Drive: 2024 Volvo C40 Recharge Single Motor
    • A Week With: 2023 Ford Bronco Everglades Edition
    • First Drive: 2024 Kia Seltos
    • A Week With: 2023 Volvo V60 Cross Country B5 AWD
    Editor’s Choice
      Guides
      Car Warranty
      • Endurance Warranty Reviews
      • BMW Extended Warranty
      • Extended Warranty For Cars Over 100k Miles
      • Extended Car Warranty Cost
      • Subaru Extended Warranty
      • CarShield Reviews
      • CarShield Cost
      • Aftermarket Car Warranty
      • CARCHEX Warranty Reviews
      • Reputable Extended Car Warranty Companies
      • Used Car Warranty Companies
      • Best Car Warranty
      • Is CarShield A Scam?
      • Mercedes Extended Warranty
      • CarShield Plans
      Insurance
      • How To Identify A Car Insurance Company
      • Geico Mechanical Breakdown Insurance
      • How Far Back Does A Car Insurance Company Look
      • Mechanical Breakdown Insurance For Used Cars
      • State Farm Mechanical Breakdown Insurance
      • Mechanical Breakdown Insurance From Progressive
      • Dollar A Day Insurance
      • Auto Insurance For SSI Recipients
      • Car Insurance Rates After A Suspended License
      • Auto Insurance For Salvage Vehicles
      • Average Cost of Dodge Ram 1500 Car Insurance
      • Car Insurance Florida
      • Full Coverage Auto Insurance
      • GrubHub Insurance
      • Amazon Delivery Auto Insurance
      Shipping
      • Car Shipping Companies
      • uShip Reviews
      • Auto Shipping From California To Hawaii
      • Montway Auto Transport Reviews
      • Cheap Car Shipping
      • Easy Auto Ship Reviews
      • Auto Shipping Miami
      • Auto Shipping To Alaska
      • Car Shipping Cost
      • Auto Shipping Hawaii
      • Auto Shipping Puerto Rico
      • Sherpa Auto Transport Reviews
      • Auto Shipping Atlanta
      • Auto Shipping Boston
      • Auto Shipping. Chicago
      About
      • About Us
      • Contact Us
      • Terms of Use
      • Privacy Policy
      • Affiliate Disclosure
      • Sitemap
      TheDetroitBureau.com

      More than just “another” place to find news, reviews, spy shots, commentary, features, and guides about the auto industry. TheDetroitBureau doesn’t stop with the press releases or confuse a few lines of opinion with insightful, in-depth reporting.

      Contact Us

      Like what you see? Have some ideas for making The Detroit Bureau.com even better? Let us know, we’d love to hear your voice.

        Media
        Listen Now
        • Headlight News: All Episodes
        More from TheDetroitBureau
        • Guides
        • Latest News
        • Auto Reviews
        • Podcasts
        Headlight News

        TheDetroitBureau.com’s Headlight News offers a look at the past week’s top automotive news stories, as well as what’s coming up in the week ahead. Check out the week’s top story and our latest review…along with a dive into the past with this week in automotive history.

        home > news > Automobiles > BMW, Daimler, Ford, VW Team Up on Pan-European Fast-Charge Network

        BMW, Daimler, Ford, VW Team Up on Pan-European Fast-Charge Network

        System will “reduce charging times significantly” and simplify long-distance travel.

        Paul A. Eisenstein
        Paul A. Eisenstein , Publisher & Editor-in-Chief
        Nov. 03, 2017
        The Ionity chargers will use a common plug and deliver enough power to slash charging times.

        Four of Europe’s largest automakers are teaming up to create a network of fast-charging stations across Europe, a move they believe will play “an essential role” in increasing the appeal of battery-electric vehicles by making long-distance travel quick and easy.

        The new venture, Ionity, will open 20 high-power charging stations in Austria, Germany and Norway by the end of this year, spaced out at 75-mile intervals along major roads. The goal is to have about 400 of the Level 3 and 4 chargers in place by 2020.

        Electrifying!

        “The first pan-European (high-power charging) network plays an essential role in establishing a market for electric vehicles,” said Ionity CEO Michael Hajesch, adding that a critical goal is “to facilitate long-distance travel” by making it possible to charge up quickly, much as motorists currently can do while driving vehicles powered by internal combustion engines.

        Today, the vast majority of plug-based vehicles are charged at home overnight or while at work. That is likely to remain the primary process going forward, said Xavier Mosquet, the author of a new study on the future of automotive electrification, but having high-speed public chargers will be essential to mass acceptance, he stressed, even if the typical EV owner only uses such chargers a couple times a year.

        One of the partners, VW, plans to bring dozens of BEVs to market over the next decade.

        The new study, released Thursday by the Boston Consulting Group, predicts demand for electric vehicles – and thus for charging stations – will grow dramatically between now and 2030 when as much as half of the vehicles sold worldwide will use some form of electrification. That will range from microhybrids up to pure battery-electric vehicles.

        (For more on the new BCG electrification study, Click Here.)

        Typical home chargers, and a large share of the chargers currently available for the public, rely on 240-volt current at relatively low amperage. For an electric vehicle with a 200-mile range and a drained battery, it can take the better part of a day to fully recharge.

        The Ionity network will focus on Level 3, and potentially even Level 4 charging systems using DC current at up to 350 kilowatts. With today’s lithium-ion batteries that could yield a vehicle could get as much as an 80% top-off in under an hour. And, with the new solid-state batteries expected to start phasing in during the early to mid-2020s, that could be cut down to 15 minutes or less, according to industry experts.

        With range continuing to increase and battery prices expected to fall by at least half by 2023, according to the BCG study, the next critical step in making EV ownership competitive with a gas- or diesel car will be fast charging.

        The Ionity chargers are adopting the Combined Charging System, or CCS, which uses a standardized plug, rather than proprietary plugs unique to each of the manufacturers. That approach has gained acceptance in other parts of the world, including the United States.

        (Waymo gives the low-down on its autonomous vehicle tech. Click Here to come along for a ride.)

        Fast charging will be critical for driving battery-cars like this Mercedes EQ concept over long distances.

        The four manufacturers that have launched Ionity said in a Friday morning statement that “other automotive manufacturers are invited to help expand the network.”

        The push to make fast chargers readily available has been gaining traction around the world. In the U.S., private firms like EVgo and Chargepoint are setting up public networks and, in some cases have agreed to work together to make it easier for one firm’s customers to access and pay at a competitor’s chargers.

        The California battery-carmaker Tesla has also been setting up its own network of “Superchargers” across North America and in several other parts of the world. The strategy is meant to enhance the appeal of products like the new Tesla Model 3. But the Superchargers use a proprietary plug that cannot be accessed by other manufacturers’ electric vehicles.

        (Tesla takes a tumble; Q3 earnings collapse as snags limit production of new Model 3. Click Here for the story.)

        How to Care for Your Car

        Cheap Car Warranty

        Editor's Choice

        Best Extended Car Warranty

        Editor's Choice
        Recently Published

        EPA Releases Alfa Romeo Tonale Ratings

        Today
        2024 Chevrolet Colorado ZR2 Bison - racing in sand

        First Look: 2024 Chevrolet Colorado ZR2 Bison

        Today
        Tesla game on video screen

        NHTSA End its Tesla Gaming Inquiry Without a Recall

        Yesterday

        Leave a Reply Cancel reply

        Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

        Share this article:
        © The Detroit Bureau 2023
        • Guides
        • Privacy Policy
        • Terms of Use
        • Affiliate Disclosure
        • Contact Us
        • Sitemap
        Follow Us: