Well, it might be, if the engineers can iron out some kinks.
In a recent interview with Bloomberg, Panasonic CEO Kazuo Tadanobu gave us a look at the development of the new 4680 battery, destined for Tesla’s new Model Y crossovers.
Panasonic needed “an immense amount of stamina” to tackle this project. The 4680 battery features a revamped shape and size from Panasonic’s earlier EV batteries made for Tesla.
The revamped design of the 4680 increases its power density significantly, which means that fewer cells in the same-sized battery pack are needed to power the car. This means both increased range for the vehicles and lower manufacturing costs.
Panasonic produced these prototype batteries in their facility outside Fremont, California, but plans to begin mass production in 2023 with two new production lines in Japan. Plus, Tesla’s Austin, Texas-based Gigafactory is also preparing to manufacture 4680s. That’s a whole lot of high-power, low-cost batteries entering the world.
We might just be looking at a $25,000 electric vehicle in the near future.
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