- BYD has revealed their second-generation blade battery.
- Works with ultra-fast flash chargers to deliver speedy results.
- Can go from a 10% to 97% charge in as little as nine minutes.
BYD is seeking to address complaints about electric vehicles by launching their second-generation blade battery and flash charging technology. These developments promise to make recharging almost as fast as refueling a gas-powered car.
According to the automaker, their new battery and charger can take cars from 10% to 70% in as little as five minutes. While that’s blazing quick, fast charging is nothing new.
More: BYD’s New EV Chargers Are So Fast They’re Arranged Like Gas Station Pumps
However, the second-generation blade battery and flash charging system is notable for being able to take vehicles from 10% to 70% in just 5 minutes, and 10% to 97% in nine minutes. That’s unheard of and BYD said it sets a “new world record for the fastest mass-produced charging speed.”
Even in sub-zero temperatures of -22° F (-30° C), BYD says charging will be impressively quick. In particular, vehicles will be able to go from a 20% to 97% charge in 12 minutes.
Details are still a little hazy, but the automaker implied the battery will give vehicles a range of up to 1,036 km (644 km). As for the flash charger, they have a capacity of 1,500 kW, which is well over 1,000 kW higher than traditional chargers.
The company intends to deploy 20,000 flash chargers across China by the end of the year and they already have 4,239 in place.
BYD noted the new battery should retain its capacity better than the first-generation. As such, they’ve increased warranty coverage to ensure the battery will retain at least 87.5% capacity after two years or 31,069 miles (50,000 km).
After six years or 93,206 miles (150,000 km), the capacity should be at least 77.5%. At eight years, it should retain 72.5%. The company noted the retention rate increased 2.5% for each stage compared to the first-generation battery.
