By the end of the decade, Mercedes will sell only electric cars. Keeping an eye on synthetic fuel, even if it doesn’t really believe in it, the Stuttgart firm continues its work around the electric car.

For this, it turns to the engineers of its Formula 1 team. With their support, Mercedes will be able to increase the efficiency of its electric cars and reduce development time by approximately 25%.

Mercedes intends to catch up with Tesla

With this operation, Mercedes is reviving a little of the original spirit of motorsport, which is essentially a laboratory for the development of technologies that will then be adopted on our production cars. But the strategy adopted by the manufacturer is now slightly different. In effect, Mercedes wants to use the skills of its Formula 1 engineers in the process of designing and developing electric cars for the road.

Stephen Merct, one of the directors of TE Connectivity, the Swiss-American company that works with Mercedes in the field of supplying electronic components, said: “Nobody feels more pressure than Mercedes when it comes to being the leader in innovation. The company has always represented excellence in the field of heat engines and now wants to catch up with Tesla and others in the field of electricity. For this, he also required the joint efforts of all his suppliers. »

Mercedes EQXX as a solid foundation

Last year, Mercedes presented the EQXX, a concept that prides itself on its ability to reduce electron consumption as much as possible. The car coped with the feat of travel more than 1200 km on one chargeconsuming about 10 kWh/100 km.

This is the first example of the positive influence that Formula 1 team members can have on the design of a record-breaking aerodynamic car that was created in just 18 months.

“Thanks to our commitment to Formula 1, we have an advantage over other manufacturers”– said Markus Schäfer, technical director of Mercedes, “Tesla doesn’t have that kind of experience. And other brands don’t have it either. Efficiency is one of the success factors of electric cars”.

From 58 to 30 months

According to Mercedes management, while until now it took an average of 58 months to produce an all-new model, from blank sheet to series production, these new methods will reduce this period to 40 months. Even better, it will even increase to 30 months, or even less, for the production of new similar models built on an already worn platform.

In Brixworth, England, where the Mercedes Formula 1 team is based, engineers are already working on half a dozen electric cars that will appear over the next few years. They are working on batteries, inverters, motors and other components, and we will no doubt see the fruits of these efforts soon.