How much will a 48v MHEV battery cost?

[churchie2856]

Looking a buying a new small/mid size car and many are now mild hybrids, so a 48v battery for starting and assiting the drivetrain, plus a 12v conventional one for the ancillaries etc.

Plan is to keep the car 10 years, so the 12v battery replacement down the line will be circa £100 from Halfords, but how much is the 48v one going to cost when it gives up the ghost?! Are these 48v batteries £1000's?

[HelldogBE]

Looks like 1000$ (without fitting and programming) for a Volvo V60 2022:
https://parts.volvocarsannapolis.com/p/volvo__V60/...

[raspy]

churchie2856 said:

Looking a buying a new small/mid size car and many are now mild hybrids, so a 48v battery for starting and assiting the drivetrain, plus a 12v conventional one for the ancillaries etc.

Plan is to keep the car 10 years, so the 12v battery replacement down the line will be circa 100 from Halfords, but how much is the 48v one going to cost when it gives up the ghost?! Are these 48v batteries 1000's?

48V batteries typically add about $1,200 to the cost of making the car, from the manufacturer's perspective. Don't forget that batteries may become cheaper over the next 10 years.

Even today, if your hybrid/plug in hybrid battery needs replacing, you can find batteries pulled from used cars that are way cheaper than getting a "new" one from the manufacturer. I suspect given how many mild hybrids will be on the market in years to come, getting hold of a used 48V battery at a reasonable price will not be an issue.

On ebay today, one can find used 48v batteries way cheaper than the many thousands you are expecting them to cost;
Ford Fiesta 2020 £240 https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/275290127796
Audi Q5 2020 £540 https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/275290127786

However, you still need to walk into this with your eyes open as a consumer if you're buying a MHEV.

The warranty from manufacturers on 48V batteries is NOT the same as hybrid/plug in hybrid/EV batteries. Do not assume anything in this space.

For example, Audi UK

The batteries for battery electric vehicles (BEV) and plug in hybrid vehicles (PHEV) are warranted against all defects in materials and workmanship for eight years or up to 100,000 miles, whichever comes first from the date of handover to first customer (or date of first registration, whichever comes sooner)

● The 12 volt batteries, 48 volt batteries, any batteries used in mild hybrid vehicles and the high voltage batteries used in hybrid vehicles are warranted against all defects in materials and workmanship for 3 years from the date of handover to the first owner, or up to 60,000 miles, whichever comes first.

● A gradual reduction in battery energy content over time is a normal feature of high voltage battery and does not constitute a warrantable defect. However, high voltage batteries in BEVs and PHEVs are warranted against excessive loss of net battery energy content as detailed below.
No degradation warranty exists for 12 volt batteries, 48 volt batteries, or any batteries used in mild hybrid vehicles

Source: https://www.audi.co.uk/dam/nemo/uk/PDFs/FV-Audi-Ne...

Kia UK
Kia covers the components of a new Kia car for unlimited mileage up to 36 months, and for 100,000 miles between 37 and 84 months, from the date of first registration.
Exceptions to this are:
The 12V and 48V batteries - these are covered for 24 months

Source: https://www.kia.com/uk/owners/insurance-and-warran...

I would suggest asking the dealer for the price of a replacement 48V battery from them once the "short" warranty runs out, so you can factor that into your total ownership costs over a 10 year period. For example, is it going to need a new 48V battery every 2-3 years?

[churchie2856]

Thank you Raspy - excellent response, very helpful. Don't know why, but i never thought to look on ebay for what these go for. I agree batteries should get cheaper over the years, but that is not a forgone conclusion (nothing is these days!).