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BMW Announces Cylindrical Cell Formats: Not 4680, But Rather 4695 and 46120

BMW decided to release two updates about batteries in a single announcement. The first one confirms that the carmaker will help Solid Power develop all-solid-state batteries (ASSB). When they are ready for production, BMW will make them in Parsdorf, near Munich. The second is about the cylindrical cells the Neue Klasse architecture will use.
BMW's cylindrical cells will have two new formats: 4695 and 46120 16 photos
Photo: BMW
BMW's new round cell is nothing more than the 4680 cylindrical cell format Tesla introducedBMW's new round cell is nothing more than the 4680 cylindrical cell format Tesla introducedBMW's new round cell is nothing more than the 4680 cylindrical cell format Tesla introducedBMW's new round cell is nothing more than the 4680 cylindrical cell format Tesla introducedBMW's new round cell is nothing more than the 4680 cylindrical cell format Tesla introducedSolid Power Reveals Test Results for Its High-Content Silicon Solid-State CellsSolid Power Reveals Test Results for Its High-Content Silicon Solid-State CellsSolid Power Reveals Test Results for Its High-Content Silicon Solid-State CellsSolid Power Reveals Test Results for Its High-Content Silicon Solid-State CellsSolid Power Reveals Test Results for Its High-Content Silicon Solid-State CellsSolid Power Reveals Test Results for Its High-Content Silicon Solid-State CellsSolid Power Reveals Test Results for Its High-Content Silicon Solid-State CellsSolid Power Reveals Test Results for Its High-Content Silicon Solid-State CellsSolid Power Reveals Test Results for Its High-Content Silicon Solid-State CellsSolid Power Reveals Test Results for Its High-Content Silicon Solid-State Cells
BMW and Ford invested in Solid Power years ago, so we already expected their EVs to come with the startup’s technology. The surprising bit is that the German automaker plans to make its own cells at the Cell Manufacturing Competence Center (CMCC). At first, it will be a prototype line, but BMW will probably prefer to make its own batteries when the technology is mature enough for production.

To do so, the automaker signed a Joint Development Partnership (JDP) with Solid Power that broadens the agreements the companies already had in place. Reuters anticipated it in December 2022, but the official confirmation came only now. With that, BMW will have an active role in the development of Solid Power’s ASSB. We’d bet that the developments made by BMW will remain exclusive to its vehicles. Otherwise, Ford and future clients of Solid Power could also have them.

The battery startup said it would deliver “full-scale automotive cells to BMW Group for testing purposes in 2023.” The company is probably talking about A-samples, which it said were getting closer to reality in October 2022. If everything goes according to the plan, BMW will prepare its first demonstration vehicle with them before 2025.

The second announcement represents a significant strategy shift from BMW. The company has used prismatic cells in its plug-in hybrids and battery electric cars since it started offering them. For the Neue Klasse vehicles, it will adopt a very different approach: cylindrical cells, just like Tesla. If that was not similar enough, these cells would have 46 millimeters in diameter. That’s what gives the newest Tesla cells their name: 4680.

In September 2022, BMW said its cells would have two different heights. We bet one of them would be 80 mm – like Tesla’s cells – but we were wrong. The cylindrical batteries will be 95 mm and 120 mm tall, which will classify them as 4695 and 46120 cells. Both are taller than Tesla’s format, making us wonder what the advantage of having them like that is.

BMW said these cells would “significantly increase the range of the highest-range model by up to 30 percent (according to WLTP).” However, it is not clear if that’s all due to more energy density or to other gains the company achieved with the new battery format. We’ll probably only know what explains that when the first vehicle based on the new platform is released. That is expected to happen only by 2025. The demonstration car with Solid Power ASSBs may arrive earlier than that.
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About the author: Gustavo Henrique Ruffo
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Motoring writer since 1998, Gustavo wants to write relevant stories about cars and their shift to a sustainable future.
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