There is no denying it – hybrid->ke147 and all-electric vehicles->ke1030 have made their mark on the automotive market and aren’t going away anytime soon. As such, every manufacturer is trying to get its own piece of the pie. PSA Group, the folks behind cars like the Peugeot 2008 and the Citroen C4, just presented its new strategy for electrification at the Innovation Day event earlier today. They are known as the Common Modular Platform and the Efficient Modular Platform.
Gilles Le Borgne, the Executive Vice President of research and development for PSA, said, “These next-generation hybrid and electric technologies will complement our range of internal combustion engines, thereby enabling PSA Group to offer its customers a diversified line-up of technologies that meet all of their mobility needs. This innovative strategy clearly demonstrates the Group's commitment to global, sustainable solutions that will allow us to take on the energy transition challenge.”
The Efficient Modular Platform – dubbed EMP2 – will be used for compact and premium models and has already been introduced in the Citroen C4 Picasso and the Peugeot 308 back in 2013. Starting in 2019, the platform will be used to deploy the group’s first plug-in hybrid models. The plan includes SUVs->ke145 and crossovers->ke288 that will have electric four-wheel drive and up to 37 miles of all-electric range. The biggest advantage, however, will be that interior space won’t be compromised thanks to the design of the platform and battery location. Furthermore, PSA is claiming there will be efficiency gains of up to 40 percent in urban driving conditions.
The Common Modular Platform, dubbed CMP, was co-developed with Dongfeng Motors and is slated for use in compact city cars, compact SUVs, and core sedan->ke142 models. Claims in the press release point to the development of multi-purpose electric vehicles with a range of up to 279 miles with one minute of charging providing up to 7.45 miles of range. According to PSA’s recent press release, the plan is to introduce four all-electric models by 2021, with the first one hitting showrooms as early as 2019.
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Why it matters
Both platforms announced today look pretty promising. The CMP platform will house a 50 kWh battery in the center of the floor and should have a 115-horsepower electric motor mounted in the front. The platform features a 7 kW on-board charger, a high-performance heat pump, and regenerative braking. The EMP2 platform will feature a 3.3-kW on-board charger and a 13 kWh battery. An 80 kW electric motor will reside in the rear, while a gasoline-powered engine with anywhere between 150 and 200 horsepower will be mounted up front along with another 80 kW electric motor. This platform will benefit from an eight-gear electric transmission.
As I said, these platforms both look promising, by why not offer the EMP2 platform with a 50 kW battery and larger on-board charger as well? This would increase the all-electric range of the hybrid vehicles substantially if engineers are able to shed additional weight elsewhere. Maybe there is something I don’t understand here about hybrids, but it seems to me like some manufacturers are purposely holding by on battery size on most hybrid vehicles. Either way, we’ll see how things go by the end of the decade when PSA plans on dropping the first new models on these platforms. We will update you on those models as soon as more light is shed on the situation.