SF Motors has introduced two new electric vehicles (EVs), the SF5 and SF7, with the first vehicle available for pre-order by the end of this year, and hitting the road in 2019.
Apart from the EVs, the company also introduced its global business model, progress in electric and autonomous driving technology, e-powertrain, designed around customer-centric principles.
The company has been assembling all the capabilities required, including a team, global R&D centers, and dual manufacturing plants in the US and China.
SF Motors unveiled its latest technological advances at an invitation-only event at their Santa Clara headquarters, in Silicon Valley.
At the event, SF Motors founder and CEO John Zhang said: "Our mission is to transform human mobility—and perhaps our planet—through intelligent EVs.
"To do this, we can't follow the same path as every other EV company. We aim to be the company that shares integrated technology solutions and provides the manufacturing expertise to make more EVs a reality. We believe everyone wins with the wider adoption of EV technology."
The company has developed a new powertrain that includes custom motors, gearboxes, battery cells and packs, along with electronic controllers.
It claims that its flexible motor system allows the vehicle to use one, two, three or four motor configurations. At the top end, the four-motor system will deliver over 1000HP, propelling the vehicle from 0 to 60 miles per hour in under 3 seconds. The vehicle’s peak power can range from 100KW to 400KW.
The own battery cells developed by SF Motors have a long cycle life. A patented battery pack system allows range of over 300 miles (EPA) or 500 km (NEDC).
The battery pack system comes with an advanced battery management system, liquid-cool thermal management system, and unique mechanical structures.
According to the company, it is working on the next-generation battery modules which will be integrated directly into the vehicle chassis. This design is expected to speed u manufacturing using laser welding to connect the battery cells.
SF Motors stated that it has developed and introduced the concept of ‘protective autonomy,’ where systems that can handle typical driving tasks are created with limited input from humans. These systems are claimed to be using deep neural network-based computer vision coupled with LiDAR sensor perception to monitor the vehicle and create a safe ride for the commuter.
SF Motors chief production officer Jim Finn said: "We consider our US plant in Indiana and our China facility in Chongqing to be among the most automated plants in the world, with partners that are the world's foremost leaders in manufacturing and a newly trained US team that will operate one of the most innovative and technically advanced EV plants in the US.
"And to meet our goal of becoming a true pioneer in this sector, we are intelligently configuring all our facilities to support our sustainability efforts. It all comes together to help achieve our vision of getting high-quality intelligent EVs in the hands of more people worldwide."
