Magna is developing a specialized team dedicated to EVs

January 5, 2022 by admin 17 Comments

DETROIT — Diversified auto supplier Magna International Inc. said it will set up a new EV center at its U.S. headquarters as it gears up for the launch of its electric powertrain system for trucks in 2025.

In a news release, the Canadian supplier said its U.S. headquarters in Troy, Mich., near Detroit, would be home to a “specialized team dedicated to preparing” the company’s EtelligentForce powertrain for its projected North American launch in 2025, in addition to “other EV products.” Other details about the new EV center were not immediately known.

The creation of the new EV center underscores the importance of electrification technologies to Magna as its customers prepare to launch dozens of electric vehicles in the coming years, including pickups.

EtelligentForce, Magna’s battery-electric, four-wheel-drive powertrain system, is designed specifically for pickups and light commercial vehicles and is capable of towing up to 14,500 pounds, according to the company. The system will use Magna’s “eBeam technology,” which would replace traditional axles, “accommodating existing suspension and brake systems and avoiding the need for expensive redesign of existing truck platforms,” the supplier said in a news release.

“EtelligentForce comes at a pivotal time – particularly in the North American auto industry, where pickup trucks are at their height of popularity and one of the last segments to become fully electric,” Magna Powertrain President Tom Rucker said in a statement.

Magna’s announcement comes on the day it was originally scheduled to deliver a press conference at CES. The company withdrew from the Las Vegas show late last month amid rising COVID-19 cases due to the omicron coronavirus variant.

This article was originally published by Autonews.com. Read the original article here.