Lotus has unveiled an ultra-fast 450kW charger

[Tesla2.0]

https://www.topgear.com/car-news/electric/lotus-has-unveiled-ultra-fast-450kw-charger-and-no-its-not-lightweight

 

[Tesla2.0]

“…the ultra-fast charger could provide the Eletre R SUV with a very specific 88.5 miles of range in just five minutes,…”

Up to 480kW charge speed

 

[xponents]

A lot of foreign manufacturers are deploying these above 350 chargers, such as that aerodynamic minivan bullet train thing we talked about earlier.


What voltage are they extracting this speed from?

 

[scal_air]

Well, I'm not sure of the exact voltage but it seems like it was designed for cars using 800V architecture.

"The automaker said the system will be "particularly effective" on EVs equipped with 800V charging hardware, such as the Lotus Eletre." and Lucid Air .

Lotus' 450 kW DC Charger Can Add 89 Miles Of Range In Five Minutes

The powerful liquid-cooled DC fast charger is already available in China and will arrive in Europe and the Middle East in Q2 2024.

insideevs.com

 

[DeaneG]

Any newly designed charging hardware will be capable of at least 920v operation, as it it required by EU regulations and also by USA's NEVI funding requirements. These will only achieve their highest power output on high voltage cars, as the charging cable copper area, connector, and cooling etc place an upper limit on maximum current. This maximum possible current for CCS used to be specified as no more than 500 amps (giving 200kW at 400v for example). Seems that a few manufacturers are pushing beyond that 500A CCS spec limit though. At the other end, some manufacturers hamstring their charging hardware with 200A non-cooled cables. These can only supply a reasonable amount of power when charging an 800-1000v car.

 

[EVCar]

WSJ just published a review of the Lotus.
The concluding excerpts:
"Above all, the Eletre brings a refreshing wave of the New, finally. Consider infotainment systems. It’s been painful to watch legacy automakers rely on sluggish, dated software when every other device in people’s lives offers brilliant graphics that respond at the speed of thought. A key part of Tesla’s success has been its UX game.
The Eletre levels up with the new Lotus Hyper OS, running the Unreal Engine graphics software borrowed from the gaming industry. It’s thoroughly amazing. With a finger on the 15.1-inch high-definition OLED touchscreen you can spin 3-D images of the car as easily as stirring ice in a glass. Note: Our tester was missing some navi update so I was not able to take advantage of the 29-inch head-up display with augmented reality and traffic guidance. Maybe next time.
If I were running a globally competitive car company, the Eletre R would terrify me. So many things about it are 2.0: the 800V battery system; the high-capacity charging; the Level 4-capable ADAS; the intelligent UX; the all-enabling 48V accessory system. The curb weight of 5,808 pounds belies the sheer stuff onboard."

 

[MoniputerLM]

WSJ just published a review of the Lotus.
The concluding excerpts:
"Above all, the Eletre brings a refreshing wave of the New, finally. Consider infotainment systems. It’s been painful to watch legacy automakers rely on sluggish, dated software when every other device in people’s lives offers brilliant graphics that respond at the speed of thought. A key part of Tesla’s success has been its UX game.
The Eletre levels up with the new Lotus Hyper OS, running the Unreal Engine graphics software borrowed from the gaming industry. It’s thoroughly amazing. With a finger on the 15.1-inch high-definition OLED touchscreen you can spin 3-D images of the car as easily as stirring ice in a glass. Note: Our tester was missing some navi update so I was not able to take advantage of the 29-inch head-up display with augmented reality and traffic guidance. Maybe next time.
If I were running a globally competitive car company, the Eletre R would terrify me. So many things about it are 2.0: the 800V battery system; the high-capacity charging; the Level 4-capable ADAS; the intelligent UX; the all-enabling 48V accessory system. The curb weight of 5,808 pounds belies the sheer stuff onboard."

I have an Eletre R reservation but it looks like the final price, with options, will be close to $180K and I am not sure if it's worth that.

 

[EVCar]

I have an Eletre R reservation but it looks like the final price, with options, will be close to $180K and I am not sure if it's worth that.

Especially in the current EV market, where demand has been reported as weak by all major news outlets.
At this price, it'd better perform as well as the Sapphire.

 

[joec]

WSJ just published a review of the Lotus.
The concluding excerpts:
"Above all, the Eletre brings a refreshing wave of the New, finally. Consider infotainment systems. It’s been painful to watch legacy automakers rely on sluggish, dated software when every other device in people’s lives offers brilliant graphics that respond at the speed of thought. A key part of Tesla’s success has been its UX game.
The Eletre levels up with the new Lotus Hyper OS, running the Unreal Engine graphics software borrowed from the gaming industry. It’s thoroughly amazing. With a finger on the 15.1-inch high-definition OLED touchscreen you can spin 3-D images of the car as easily as stirring ice in a glass. Note: Our tester was missing some navi update so I was not able to take advantage of the 29-inch head-up display with augmented reality and traffic guidance. Maybe next time.
If I were running a globally competitive car company, the Eletre R would terrify me. So many things about it are 2.0: the 800V battery system; the high-capacity charging; the Level 4-capable ADAS; the intelligent UX; the all-enabling 48V accessory system. The curb weight of 5,808 pounds belies the sheer stuff onboard."

I’m still trying to figure out what spinning 3D models has to do with great UX.

 

[DeaneG]

Glad to see more high-powered chargers being developed and deployed. I wonder who will buy and install these?
Not likely in the USA soon, as we're all still fixated on Tesla's 350kW (rumored) v4 product.