Will oversized batteries damage the roads? Li Bin made a startling statement, which is actually an advertisement for NIO's battery swapping service.
Can new energy vehicle technology and battery range both reach new heights, but should automakers pay more attention to vehicle weight?
Not long ago, well - known financial writer and ET9 owner Wu Xiaobo led hundreds of entrepreneurs to visit NIO's Hefei Advanced Manufacturing Second Bridge Factory. NIO Chairman Li Bin personally received and gave a tour, and also hosted a live - stream.
When discussing the battery range issue of new energy vehicles, Li Bin expressed his view that increasing the battery capacity is the simplest way to achieve longer range. He gave an example: It's not difficult for a smartphone to have a multi - day battery life; you just need to increase the battery size, but then the phone will become very heavy.
He also said that he couldn't convince himself to do so (referring to increasing battery capacity for longer range).
(Photo from NIO)
The battery capacity of new energy vehicles is indeed getting larger, but at the same time, the vehicle itself becomes heavier, posing a challenge to the road and the chassis support system. Li Bin's remarks during the live - stream might be a reflection on the current situation of new energy vehicles and a reminder to the industry?
Are new energy vehicles with large batteries "road killers"?
Li Bin's remarks do make some sense.
The British automotive magazine "Autocar" analyzed road test data from 2016 to 2023 and found that the average weight of electric vehicles tested in 2023 was 1991 kilograms, while that of fuel - powered vehicles was 1897 kilograms, a difference of 100 kilograms. The latest Mercedes - Benz CLA EV has a curb weight of 2135 kilograms, heavier than the S450 4MATIC sold in Europe, and these are two completely different - class models.
Taking NIO's own models as an example, the lightest ET5 (75 - kWh version) has a curb weight of 2165 kilograms, and the heaviest ET9 (100 - kWh) weighs 2700 kilograms, approaching the curb weight of the Rolls - Royce Cullinan (2750 kilograms).
(Photo from NIO)
The technological attributes and energy - consumption economy of new energy vehicles have been recognized and welcomed by the market. However, due to power consumption needs for driving, computing, etc., they are all equipped with a large - capacity power battery.
Generally speaking, ternary lithium and lithium iron phosphate batteries with an energy density of 150 - 300 Wh/kg usually require a 60 - 100 kWh battery to meet a range of over 500 kilometers. The corresponding battery pack weighs about 200 - 600 kilograms, not including the protective plate for the power battery and the stronger body structure. As the powertrain becomes heavier, the weight of surrounding components may also increase.
In comparison, a common fuel - powered vehicle's fuel tank can hold 50 - 70 liters of gasoline, weighing about 35 - 50 kilograms. Including the engine, transmission, and other driving components (200 - 300 kilograms), it is still lighter than an electric vehicle.
In addition, hybrid models such as Fangchengbao Leopard 5, Fangchengbao Leopard 8, Denza N9, and Yangwang U8 are equipped with many advanced features and have better mechanical configurations than ordinary models. Even hybrid models with smaller battery packs have a curb weight of around 2900 - 3500 kilograms.
(Photo from Denza)
From Li Bin's perspective, new energy vehicles are generally heavier than fuel - powered vehicles. As their ownership increases, these new energy vehicles weighing 2 - 3 tons will pose challenges to the roads. He also gave an example that countries such as Japan, the United States, and Europe all have corresponding weight - based taxes. The heavier the vehicle, the higher the tax.
China is not NIO's only market. Given the sensitivity to vehicle weight abroad, Li Bin's concerns about new energy vehicles are reasonable. Weight reduction is an unavoidable topic for new energy vehicles. However, in fact, the "damage" of new energy vehicles to roads cannot be judged solely by weight; the designed axle load also needs to be considered.
The designed axle load for cars on domestic urban roads and highways is usually considered to be 1.5 - 2 tons per axle. The single - axle load of new energy passenger cars is generally around 1 - 1.3 tons, which is still within the safe range of road design. Compared with the natural aging caused over the years and the road wear due to long - term use, the "damage" caused by vehicle weight to roads is minimal.
According to Li Bin, what may really affect the roads are new energy commercial vehicles, especially electric heavy trucks and electric dump trucks. Their power consumption requirements are often much higher than those of new energy passenger cars, so they will "carry" larger - capacity power batteries and bigger motors. For a certain 42 - ton electric dump truck, the battery pack alone weighs 8 tons.
Therefore, the issue of new energy vehicles causing damage to roads due to increased weight needs to be discussed on a case - by - case basis. Objectively speaking, the curb weight of new energy vehicles is generally heavier than that of fuel - powered vehicles, but passenger cars are far from reaching the level of affecting roads. Compared with passenger cars, automakers should pay more attention to weight control in commercial vehicles.
Is Li Bin indirectly promoting battery swapping?
As Li Bin mentioned, countries such as Japan, the United States, and Europe all have their own weight - based taxes. However, although they are all called "weight - based taxes", the purposes and meanings of collecting such taxes in different countries are not exactly the same.
For example, Ireland once planned to introduce a tax based on the vehicle's curb weight to fill a 1.5 - billion - euro annual fiscal gap, so as to obtain funds for road maintenance and attract consumers to switch to lighter and more energy - efficient vehicles through tax differences.
Japan's weight - based tax is relatively more complex. Initially centered on vehicle weight, it has gradually incorporated comprehensive factors such as emissions. In 2025, there was another reform of the weight - based tax, which was linked to the WLTC fuel - efficiency standard. Vehicles that fail to meet the standard will be taxed more, while more efficient models will be exempted.
(Photo from Tank SUV)
Overall, the reason for weight - based taxes on cars overseas is mainly to force the automotive industry to upgrade through certain tax thresholds. For example, using lightweight materials such as high - strength steel and aluminum alloy, or improving power efficiency and reducing emissions.
Or, through taxation, the vehicle weight is linked to the environment and infrastructure, becoming a direct cost imposed on automakers or consumers. However, in China, the automotive industry is highly competitive, and there is no need for such taxes to force automakers to improve.
Perhaps Li Bin's real idea is not to blindly increase battery capacity for the long - range of a single vehicle. He called on the industry not to focus only on short - term and partial costs but to pay attention to the full - life - cycle costs.
Li Bin also pointed out that the average battery life of current electric vehicles is 8 years, while the vehicle's usage cycle often exceeds 10 years. Therefore, how to solve the battery aging problem has become a key issue in the industry. It seems that Li Bin still wants to imply the correctness of battery swapping and achieve a certain sense of "long - range" through battery swapping and charging.
However, at present, there are reasons why the automotive industry is not following up on battery swapping. On the one hand, it is a heavy - asset investment, which is not conducive to controlling the vehicle's chassis thickness. At the same time, there is no mandatory standard for battery swapping. So far, the battery - swapping solutions of various automakers cannot achieve battery interoperability and mutual recognition.
(Photo from Ledao)
Putting battery swapping aside, weight reduction of new energy vehicles still has its positive significance, not to "reduce the burden" on roads, but simply to consider vehicle energy consumption.
Netizens share the same view as some electric - vehicle experts, believing that large batteries and long - range create a "vicious cycle". The manifestation is that to extend the range, the battery is enlarged, but the increased weight of the battery will increase the vehicle's overall energy consumption, so the battery needs to be enlarged again...
Some people also think that automakers are making new energy vehicles too heavy. Regardless of the impact on roads and the environment, and regardless of how good the energy consumption is, too - heavy cars cannot be parked in multi - level mechanical garages, and sometimes it is even inconvenient to park.
Ultimately, the goal of weight reduction for new energy vehicles is clear, which is the battery. The marginal effect of the current lithium - battery system is starting to show, and the energy density, charge - discharge performance, and materials are gradually approaching the bottleneck.
Solid - state batteries are different. They do not require complex materials such as casings, separators, and explosion - proof valves, and the weight - reduction effect of the whole battery pack is quite obvious. Compared with lithium batteries, solid - state batteries are expected to reduce the non - active components of the battery pack by another 10 - 15%.
At the same time, battery weight reduction can also drive a chain - reaction weight reduction of components such as the cooling system. Ideally, a 5 - 15% reduction in the vehicle's overall weight can be achieved. If you don't want battery swapping but still want weight reduction, solid - state batteries might be what Li Bin hasn't mentioned yet.
Conclusion
Actually, without Li Bin specifically emphasizing it, some automakers have already started the weight - reduction work for new energy vehicles. For example, the well - known Tesla. The curb weights of Model 3 and Model Y are both less than 2000 kilograms.
The saved weight results in lower energy consumption, and a long - range can be achieved without a very large battery. Of course, you can also say that Tesla cars are like "rough - finished houses" with limited functionality, so it's normal for them not to be heavy.
Looking at Li Bin's remarks directly, it may seem a bit abstract. The core of new energy vehicle weight reduction is not to reduce road damage, and it has little to do with passenger cars.
(Photo from Ledao)
There are less than two quarters left until Q4 2025. According to NIO's commitment, it will achieve profitability in Q4 this year. However, according to the company's annual financial reports, NIO's current loss gap has reached 100 billion yuan. Although Li Bin said that NIO's balance sheet is "clean", it doesn't give people much confidence.
Rather than debating "how much damage new energy vehicles can cause to roads", people at Ledao hope that NIO and its sub - brands can perform better. They hope that the upcoming flagship model L90 won't encounter the same setbacks as the L60.
This article is from the WeChat official account "Electric Vehicle Insights", author: Electric Vehicle Insights. Republished with permission from 36Kr.