China's EV startup Leapmotor launches CTC technology

Shanghai (Gasgoo)- Chinese EV startup Leapmotor held an online ceremony today to launch the CTC (cell-to-chassis) technology, and said the first mass-produced model to use the technology, the Leapmotor C01, will soon become available for presale.

Leapmotor's CTC solution; photo credit: Leapmotor

The CTC is the startup's proprietary technology to install the battery module directly on the steel base plate and embed into the vehicle chassis. Using this technology, a battery pack is typically designed, manufactured and assembled as an independent component in an EV. To be more specific, the battery cells are laid out on a high-strength frame and sealed as modules, and each module will be eventually embedded into a battery pack.

The CTC integration solution is designed to break the boundary among battery cells, pack and vehicles, making the battery module a highly integrated part of the vehicle rather than being a standalone component. According to the startup, the CTC system is able to raise the battery space utilization by 14.5%, lift a car's vertical height by 10mm, increase an all-electric vehicle's range by 10%, and improve a car body's torsional strength by 25%.

Besides, the CTC system is expected to reduce the vehicle's weight with the lightweight coefficient growing 20% compared to using a conventional solution, said the company.

As the CTC system requires fewer welding spots and battery pack components, the packaging costs will be saved consequentially.

Meanwhile, Zhu Jiangming, Chairman of Leapmotor, announced that the CTC technology will be opened to all participants in the automotive industry without any charge.

On the same day, the automaker announced the highlights of its fourth production model, the C01. Positioned as a full-sized sedan riding on Leapmotor's C-Vehicle platform, it has a 5-meter plus length, wider rear legroom and large trunk space. It is also the first mass-produced model armed with the newly-launched CTC technology.

“With the delivery of the C01 in the third quarter of 2022, we expect to become the world's first pure-play EV company to apply CTC technology in mass production,” the startup said in a draft prospectus it filed last month for the public listing in Hong Kong.

Moreover, the C01 features frameless doors, flush door handles, and sportback design, which together result in a low drag coefficient of 0.226. It will be equipped with a 90kWh battery, capable of 700km range under NEDC test cycle. The model can zip from standstill to 100km/h in less than 4 seconds.