The first car with a supercapacitor to give it an instant electric boost was a Lamborghini. Could the second one to have it be… a Dodge? CarBuzz has just found a patent from Stellantis for a supercapacitor energy booster that hints it might be.
Plus, the power boost system could help the vehicle deliver more power all the time, not just in the special mode.
2024 Dodge Charger Daytona White Drag Strip Launch Rear View
There are plenty of electric or hybrid cars that can make more power in boost mode or a launch control mode, or other special situations. They do it simply by not giving you maximum power in normal driving. Instead, some is held back until you engage that mode. The claim is that the electrical system can’t handle it all the time. But in short bursts, it apparently isn’t a problem. And really, how often do you really need 1,000 horsepower available all the time in your EV?
Stellantis makes it clear in the patent “there remains a need for improvement.” It doesn’t want to hold back power at all. Ever. So, instead of holding back output from the main battery, the patent describes an extra short-term energy storage system. Like the one in the Lamborghini Sian, it would be a supercapacitor.
What If You Could Have It All Of The Time?
Dodge Charger Direct Connection Tuner CarsDodge
In the patent, Stellantis gives the example of a vehicle running an 800V electrical system. The supercapacitor would be around 900V. Adding an extra 100 volts would help the motors make more power. It could be up to about 13% more horsepower, if the motor can handle it, for as long as it takes the supercapacitor to discharge. We’re talking seconds, not minutes, but it’s still enough for a fun blast.
A supercapacitor is like a battery that can charge and discharge its full amount of energy in seconds. It doesn’t use a chemical reaction inside, so it can do it over and over again without damage. Think of it like E-Nos for Toretto’s new Charger Daytona, only this bottle can refill itself.
We don’t use supercapacitors instead of high-voltage battery cells in an EV because supercapacitors are more expensive, and have much lower energy density. It’s perfect for a small application like this, but useless for being a sole energy source for a vehicle.
In the patent, Stellantis says that it would use energy captured from regenerative braking to refill the capacitor instead of taking it from the main pack. A voltage converter would step up the 800V system for that purpose.
The power boost mode would be activated either automatically by detecting pedal travel or through a drive mode or switch.
CarBuzz Insight – Why This Matters:
2021 Lamborghini Sian Roadster Turquoise Front Angled ViewLamborghini
The Dodge Charger Daytona Scat Pack EV makes 630 hp most of the time. If you put it in Power Shot mode, suddenly it finds another 40. A Porsche Cayenne Electric adds 295 hp in its Overboost mode, and can do it over and over again.
What Porsche is saying, and it clearly isn’t the only one, is that the system can handle 1,139 hp. It just only wants to give you 844. The Dodge Charger Daytona currently does the same thing, but the patent hints that it wants to stop. Instead of 630/670, Stellantis would be able to give you 670 all the time. Then maybe the power boost feature could add another 85.
Not bad, right? Plus, Dodge (and this wouldn’t be limited to Dodge) could start using the word super again. Win-win.
Patent filings do not guarantee the use of such technology in future vehicles and are often used exclusively as a means of protecting intellectual property. Such a filing cannot be construed as confirmation of production intent.
Source: US Patent & Trademark Office
