Want to increase the range of electric vehicles, is it to increase the battery or reduce the weight?

A new report by LuxResearch shows that range anxiety is still one of the biggest obstacles to widespread adoption of electric vehicles, but it turns out that the two main methods of increasing the range are expensive. Larger batteries are more expensive, but it is not cost-effective to reduce weight. The report has established a threshold, that is, the cost-effectiveness of saving 1 kg of weight is less than US$5. Weight reduction often relies on different, more expensive materials. The report mentioned that the use of high-strength steel and aluminum in car structures and the use of carbon fiber in seats are areas that car manufacturers may consider. Nissan tested the new carbon fiber reinforced plastic production process LuxResearch is more optimistic about battery technology. According to the report, although battery packs make electric vehicles relatively heavy compared to internal combustion engine vehicles, the use of regenerative braking and the expected improvement in battery energy density mean that electric vehicles do not need to be lighter than internal combustion engine vehicles. According to the report, battery technology also has more 'tracks' than material technology, which means it has greater potential for cost reduction. Analysts pointed out that increasing the energy density itself can also reduce the weight of some materials, avoid making the battery pack larger, and achieve a certain range of cruising requirements. Research on vehicle quality/kwh and BEV cruising range, November 2020. Green is a sedan, and yellow is an SUV. The ordinate is the cruising range, and the abscissa is the ratio of car body mass to battery capacity. Therefore, the report predicts that although weight reduction is essential for the improvement of fuel consumption of internal combustion engine vehicles, by 2030, electric vehicles will not rely less on weight reduction, but will rely more on improvements in battery technology. For automakers, this is undoubtedly a more convenient route, especially when they have exhausted aerodynamics, tires and other means of propulsion systems. Aptera once attracted attention for its weight reduction and ultra-efficient car concepts, but such a design may not provide the same level of safety as traditional passenger cars. At the same time, federal fuel efficiency regulations are likely to make vehicles bigger. This is because under the framework of corporate average fuel economy (CAFE), the fuel economy targets for large vehicles are low. Most people will agree that, beyond the practical problems of collision compatibility, the way to improve efficiency is light vehicles with more people. In terms of battery weight per kilowatt-hour, some analysts believe that smaller batteries in hybrid vehicles will make better use of relatively scarce battery cells. However, hybrid cars will still carry some extra weight, which is the internal combustion engine and everything related to it.