Audi has announced that it has launched serial production of electric motor axles for its upcoming Audi E-Tron crossover at its Hungarian plant, the company’s highest-volume plant.
Peter Kössler, Board of Management Member for Production and Logistics at AUDI AG, commented at the event for the start of production:
“Audi Hungaria has been involved in writing the growth story of the Four Rings for 25 years. Our Hungarian subsidiary is now entering a completely new field of expertise with the production of electric motors. This exclusive know‑how makes Győr into our main plant for electric motors and embodies our strategic transformation into a provider of sustainable mobility,”
Currently, 100 employees will work on the production and they will be able to build 400 electric motor axles per day. By the end of the year, Audi Hungaria plans to increase the number of workers to 130, working on three shifts. Additionally, the company plans to gradually increase the output of the plant.
Each E-Tron crossover will need two of these axles, thus, the plant will produce axles for 200 vehicles daily.
Audi describes the production of electric motors at the plant in their statement :
“The electric motor from Győr offers numerous new features. With the stator – one of the core components of the motor – the aim is to insert as much of the thin enameled copper wire into the casing as possible: the tighter the winding, the more efficient the power delivery. A new winding and inserting center at Audi Hungaria makes it possible to wind the optimal amount of enameled copper wire particularly compactly and then insert it into the casing. The electric axle consists of other large components such as the power electronics, which are located in their own housing, the gearing and two flange shafts that transmit the power to the wheels. The employees produce two electric axle drive systems for each Audi e-Tron, as both the front and rear axles are driven – in good Quattro tradition.”
The E-Tron crossover will be revealed in Brussels on August 30. It will have a range of about 240 miles. The starting price in Germany will be 80,000 euros(around $94,000).
[Via AutoBlog]
