#battery-energy-density

#battery-energy-density

Mercedes-Benz has been researching, refining and even reshaping the car that would ultimately be the CLA for years now, teasing us with technical briefings and even showing off a sultry crimson concept car a full two years ago. That was the Concept CLA, and while the production CLA you see here doesn't look quite that good, it is a fine-looking little electric sedan. More importantly, it goes as far as you'd think its slippery, 0.21-coefficient-of-drag body would carry it: up to 374 miles on a charge.

Not for much longer, though, as multiple automakers are racing to bring them to the market. Stellantis and Factorial said that a demonstration fleet of solid-state-powered Dodge Charger Daytona EVs will hit the road next year. But now China's Dongfeng has upped the ante. It's the latest Chinese carmaker to say solid-state is coming sooner than expected. The automaker said that its first production EV powered by a new generation of solid-state batteries will hit the road next September.

A few months ago, I frankly had no idea what a lithium manganese rich (LMR) battery even was. Now, the president of General Motors is saying this new chemistry could unlock the midsize electric trucks that have been a gaping hole in the electric market for years. On this week's Plugged-In Podcast, we asked GM President Mark Reuss: Just how big a deal are these newfangled LMR batteries you're working on?