Photo: Stefan Baldauf/Guido ten Brink
If you think about it, the so-called traditional carmakers have actually played their cards very well when it comes to electric vehicles. For the past years, they've been contesting their viability while continuing to milk the internal combustion engine, and now that somebody else has done most of the hard work, they're quick to jump on board.
Sure, Tesla is a few years ahead, but that's not something a big manufacturer can't overcome with a little effort and not so little financial investment. How "not so little?" Well, in Daimler's case at least, it could go up to $11 billion, according to Thomas Weber, the company's head of the Research and Development department.
"By 2025 we want to develop ten electric cars based on the same architecture," he told the Stuttgarter Zeitung, quoted by Business Insider. "For this push, we want to invest up to 10 billion euros," he revealed, while also talking about such things as batteries capable of offering 434 miles (700 km) of all-electric range.
It has become impossible to question Daimler's dedication to coming up with competitive electric vehicles after what happened in Paris - the launch of the EQ sub-brand - and the recent announcement of the joint venture with BMW Group, Ford, and VW Group that will see them build a high-power charging network throughout Europe. This should be ready just in time for the company's first next-gen EVs.
And Daimler isn't alone in this. Volkswagen is actually upping the ante by promising no less than 30 EVs by 2025 in its attempt to erase the Dieselgate incident from the collective mind of the public and concentrate on zero-emission vehicles.
BMW, on the other hand, after deciding for a very short time to cut its EV program and focus on developing autonomous technology, is now revisiting that decision and constantly improving its i3 electric mini-car. And who knows what other things involving electrons are happening in Bavaria right now?
After Tesla and the Nissan LEAF have been almost alone in the EV market, that place is getting more crowded than ever. And it's not just small startups that are showing up, but also the big boys with their big money. $11 billion - if you counted one number per second, it would take you 127,315 days to finish. That actually means your great-great-grandson would do it, because we're talking about almost 349 years.
"By 2025 we want to develop ten electric cars based on the same architecture," he told the Stuttgarter Zeitung, quoted by Business Insider. "For this push, we want to invest up to 10 billion euros," he revealed, while also talking about such things as batteries capable of offering 434 miles (700 km) of all-electric range.
It has become impossible to question Daimler's dedication to coming up with competitive electric vehicles after what happened in Paris - the launch of the EQ sub-brand - and the recent announcement of the joint venture with BMW Group, Ford, and VW Group that will see them build a high-power charging network throughout Europe. This should be ready just in time for the company's first next-gen EVs.
And Daimler isn't alone in this. Volkswagen is actually upping the ante by promising no less than 30 EVs by 2025 in its attempt to erase the Dieselgate incident from the collective mind of the public and concentrate on zero-emission vehicles.
BMW, on the other hand, after deciding for a very short time to cut its EV program and focus on developing autonomous technology, is now revisiting that decision and constantly improving its i3 electric mini-car. And who knows what other things involving electrons are happening in Bavaria right now?
After Tesla and the Nissan LEAF have been almost alone in the EV market, that place is getting more crowded than ever. And it's not just small startups that are showing up, but also the big boys with their big money. $11 billion - if you counted one number per second, it would take you 127,315 days to finish. That actually means your great-great-grandson would do it, because we're talking about almost 349 years.
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