Tech Insider / MERCEDES-BENZ EDU 2.0 MAGNETIC ATTRACTION Mercedes has opted to retain PSMs for the EDU 2.0, but has minimized the quantity of rare earth materials needed DANIEL HOPP, MERCEDES-BENZ’S SENIOR MANAGER OF ELECTRIC DRIVE SYSTEMS, PROVIDES EXCLUSIVE INSIGHT INTO THE NEW EDU 2.0 FAMILY OF MOTORS FOR THE NEXT GENERATION OF COMPACT BEVs Words: Graham Heeps ercedes-Benz has heavily trailed the upcoming MMA (Mercedes-Benz Modular Architecture) that will underpin its next generation of compact vehicles. It will exist in BEV and hybrid forms (see Close cousins , p7) and as the 2026MY CLA sedan, a wagon and two SUVs, thought to be the GLA and GLB. MMA’s combination of all-new drive units and new-generation batteries should add up to a more compact, efficient and usable BEV package than anything Mercedes has previously offered in this segment. At the heart of the MMA skateboard platform will be the first production deployment of a new generation of scalable electric drive units, dubbed EDU 2.0. The new family of drive units has been designed in-house and built, like many Mercedes-Benz ICEs of the past, in Untertürkheim in Germany. Engineers opted this time for permanently excited synchronous motors, as Daniel Hopp, senior manager of electric drive systems, explains. “Generally speaking, a PSM operates more efficiently than an ASM major assembly. We have therefore decided to rely on PSM for MMA. In the EQA The EDU 2.0 is an and EQB [models], we opted for an ASM front-boost major enabler for an assembly, particularly in the outstanding dimensional 4Matic versions. ASM units can be de-energized and the concept in the rear of drag losses thus reduced, an entry-level model” in cases when these motors are not being used. With the disconnect unit (DCU) in the front EDU of the MMA, however, we can now reduce the losses with the [80kW] front-boost PSM by 90%.” He adds that a PSM offers greater power density than an ASM, even if some rare earths need to be retained. “If you decide to use a PSM, you need magnets, which include rare earth materials,” he continues. “But by intelligently designing an optimized overall system, rather than the PSM as M 4 www.automotivepowertraintechnologyinternational.com / March 2025 FASTER
Automotive Powertrain Technology International Automotive Powertrain Technology International March 2025 Issue: Page 4
