Details On Renault Zoe ZE 40 Battery Packs

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renault-zoe-next-twoWith the new Renault Zoe ZE now on the market, more information is now available about the updated model’s lithium-ion battery pack, revealing some interesting facts.

Notably, despite possessing an energy storage capacity nearly twice as high as the first-generation Zoe (an estimation), the new battery pack is only 15 kilograms heavier (~9%).

What this means is that battery chemistry and/or packaging improvements are the main driver behind increased energy storage capacity — and thus, the costs for the battery packs (per kilowatt-hour/kWh) were probably notably reduced.

Push EVs provides a nice overview of what’s known about the first and second generation battery-packs:

First generation battery:

  • Total weight is 290 kg (280 kg are quoted in the video, but in every other source is 290 kg)
  • Total capacity is 25.92 kWh (192 x 36 Ah x 3.75 V = 25.92 kWh)
  • Available capacity is 23.3 kWh
  • 192 cells, each with 36 Ah nominal capacity and 3.75 V nominal voltage
  • Total cell weight is 165.12 kg (192 x 0.86 kg = 165.12 kg

Second generation battery:

  • Total weight is 305 kg
  • Total capacity is 45.61 kWh (estimation by knowing the usable capacity)
  • Available capacity is 41 kWh
  • 192 cells, each with 63.35 Ah nominal capacity (estimation) and 3.75 V nominal voltage
  • Total cell weight is 180.12 kg (estimation by knowing the total battery weight)
  • The total battery capacity can be even higher, because last year a LG Chem worker told me that the new cells were 65 Ah, not 63.35 Ah that I estimated in this exercise, as you can see here. If the real capacity of the cells is 65 Ah, this give the battery a total 46.8 kWh capacity.

Very interesting information.

With the solid sales performance of the first-generation Renault Zoe, despite its limited range, I’m very curious to see how well the second-generation Zoe will sell. The updated model really should be able to meet the needs of most European buyers, even without an extensive, easy-to-use fast-charging network (like Tesla’s Supercharger network).


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James Ayre

James Ayre's background is predominantly in geopolitics and history, but he has an obsessive interest in pretty much everything. After an early life spent in the Imperial Free City of Dortmund, James followed the river Ruhr to Cofbuokheim, where he attended the University of Astnide. And where he also briefly considered entering the coal mining business. He currently writes for a living, on a broad variety of subjects, ranging from science, to politics, to military history, to renewable energy.

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