Audi's Latest PPE Platform Is Part of a Four-Pronged EV Approach

author: Vineeth Joel Patel   

The Volkswagen Group contains quite a few automakers, including Volkswagen, Audi, and Porsche. While they're separate brands with separate cars, they share quite a lot of technology with one another, including electric-car components. With that being said, it shouldn't come as a surprise to hear that Porsche and Audi are working on a new platform that will be used for a number of cars.

PPE Platform Getting Put To Work
 
According to Autocar, Porsche and Audi are working on a new architecture that will be called the Premium Platform Electric (PPE) platform. The first vehicle from Audi that will utilize the PPE architecture will be an electric sedan with the same measurements of the Audi A5 Sportback. That would make it roughly the same size as the Tesla Model 3 .
 
While the first car to have the PPE platform will be a sedan, the outlet claims that the architecture will go on to underpin everything from cars to SUVs. Everything from compact sedans to large SUVs can be built around the platform. In its base form, the architecture will be rear-wheel drive with a single electric motor at the back of the vehicle. To fit vehicles with Audi's quattro all-wheel-drive system, the platform can accommodate a second electric motor on the front axle.
 
In addition to being able to accommodate different numbers of electric motors, the platform can also be flexible when it comes to battery sizes. Autocar reports that the largest battery offering will help vehicles have a range of approximately 300 miles. With an 800-volt system that's capable of 350-kW charging, range anxiety shouldn't be an issue for models built on the PPE architecture.

Performance Is Possible With The PPE
 
Audi and Porsche are known for their performance vehicles, and as such, the PPE platform will have a trick up its sleeve that isn't found on VW's MEB platform. The outlet claims that torque vectoring and all-wheel-steering systems can be integrated into the PPE architecture. Despite the differences, Audi claims that the PPE is "generally similar to that of the MEB."
 
Audi plans to launch 20 electric cars by 2025. The vehicles will use four different platforms, so it's fair to assume that a few vehicles will use the PPE platform. Besides an EV with the same dimensions as the A5 Sportback, Audi will also come out with a sedan that has a similar size to the A4 sedan, which could also be a Model 3 competitor.
 
Both of the possible vehicles Autocar outlines that could use the PPE platform are both sedans, which makes sense as Audi already has the e-tron SUV . Now, the German brand needs something a little smaller. Still, any vehicles built on the PPE architecture won't, reportedly, come out until early next decade. Two other Audi models are supposed to come out before then, which include the Audi e-tron GT and the e-tron Sportback.

Vineeth Joel Patel

Joel Patel has been covering all aspects of the automotive industry for four years as an editor and freelance writer for various websites. When it comes to cars, he enjoys covering the merger between technology and cars. In his spare time, Joel likes to watch baseball, work on his car, and try new foods