Revolutionizing the EV Industry: Toyota’s Game-Changing Solid-State Battery Breakthrough

Has Toyota made a breakthrough that will bring solid-state batteries to the market? This advanced EV battery technology could be a game changer.

Toyota isn’t the only company to claim solid-state batteries are the future of the EV world, but they are the first to claim a breakthrough. Most current EVs utilize lithium-ion batteries which use a liquid electrolyte, making them extremely heavy offering increased fire risks compared to traditional vehicles. If Toyota has made the claimed breakthrough, it could mean electric vehicles have finally caught up with and surpassed gas and diesel-powered vehicles, which is necessary for the next wave of movement in the industry.

What challenges plague the electric vehicle market?

Although more drivers each year transition to EVs than ever before, this area of the automotive market is still mired by significant challenges. The first among these is the charging time it takes to bring EV batteries to a full charge. Most automakers have developed software to allow electric vehicles to charge to 80% capacity after less than one hour of charging at a DC Fast-Charging station. This means the actual driving range of the vehicle is less than 100%, which can only be achieved using a Level 2 charger, which takes overnight to charge.

In addition to long charging times, range anxiety is a real problem. Most electric vehicles still cannot drive for as many miles on a single full charge as gas and diesel-powered vehicles can when filled with fuel. Some EVs have reached more than 300 miles of range on a full charge, but that is still not enough, especially when you consider the 20% reduction made when taking an EV out on a road trip.

The recent news from Toyota shows a breakthrough in solid-state batteries that could solve these problems.

What is this new Toyota breakthrough?

Although Toyota hasn’t released information specific to the technological breakthrough, the company claims to have overcome the hurdles associated with the advanced batteries of the future. Most automakers agree that solid-state batteries are the future of the EV world. These new batteries are expected to take up less space in a vehicle, be lighter, and offer longer driving ranges. Until this news from Toyota arrived, these new batteries have typically been harder and costlier to make, which limits their use in vehicles. Toyota claims to have found a way to simplify the production process, which could make them easier to produce than lithium-ion batteries.

Should we trust this news from Toyota?

Toyota is typically one of the most cautious automakers in the world. Often, Toyota and Lexus are last to embrace new technology, systems, and processes until the company can perfect them and understand how these new advances work to aid drivers on the road. This cautious approach has been important in keeping Toyota in the lead as one of the most reliable automakers in the world. Although lagging behind other automakers in terms of EV production, Toyota has historically been trustworthy when it comes to new tech and more affordable processes.

What’s to be proven?

A breakthrough is one thing, but scaling that breakthrough up to the massive production levels that Toyota offers is something entirely different. Sometimes, breakthroughs occur at the prototype stage but can’t be scaled up to the mass-market production levels desired. If Toyota can do this with solid-state batteries, it could truly change things in the automotive industry. Recent news points to Toyota claiming the ability to manufacture these new batteries for use in EVs as early as 2027. That would be an incredible leap forward in the entire automotive market.

How important are solid-state batteries to our EV future?

Solid-state batteries should offer greater energy density in a smaller package. This could mean lighter, more efficient, and longer driving electric vehicles in the future. If automakers can cut hundreds of pounds out of EVs by using these lighter, denser batteries, the benefits could be incredible. The race is on to mass-produce these new batteries, and it appears Toyota might be in the lead.

Toyota claims it can make these new solid-state batteries cheaper, lighter, and better than current lithium-ion models. If that’s the case, these new batteries have the potential to allow electric vehicles to have a driving range of up to 745 miles on a single charge and recharge to full capacity in 10 minutes or less. Hello electric vehicle road trips! This could be the breakthrough that finally pushes gas and diesel-powered vehicles out of the market.