Last longer
New materials, robust design and health-aware operation extend the lifetime of the battery, e-motor and power electronics by 50%.
About the project
A new approach to the electric vehicle
The challenge
Electric vehicles are key to decarbonising road transport, but they remain expensive to buy, dependent on imported critical raw materials, and hard to repair. When a battery or an e-motor degrades, the standard answer today is a full replacement, often worth thousands of euros, or the end of the vehicle itself.
RELiVE (Reliable & Extended Lifetime for Circular and Modular Battery Electric Vehicles) rethinks the powertrain so that durability, repair and reuse are designed in from the start. It runs from April 2026 to 2030, carried by 10 partners from 6 European countries.
Three principles
Repair, not replace
Modular architectures make it possible to diagnose and replace a single module or component instead of scrapping the whole powertrain.
Reuse and give value back
Magnets, modules and e-motor components get several lives, cutting critical raw material consumption per kilometre by half.
Measurable objectives
+50%
powertrain lifetime vs. the state of the art
−27%
total cost of ownership for the vehicle user
−50%
critical raw material consumption per km
TRL 6
full physical demonstrators of the electric drive
The project calendar
April 2026
Project start
10 partners from 6 European countries begin their joint work, funded by Horizon Europe under Grant n° 101270720.
First phase
Circular vehicle platform design
The work programme opens with the design of the circular, modular vehicle platform and its components.
Final phase
Full physical demonstrators
The programme culminates in full physical demonstrators of the electric drive, proving the concepts at TRL 6.
2030
Project end
By 2030, RELiVE delivers its results: a powertrain designed to last, be repaired and live again.
Frequently asked questions
- When does the RELiVE project run?
- RELiVE runs from April 2026 to 2030.
- What does RELiVE aim to achieve?
- Four quantified targets: +50% powertrain lifetime, −27% total cost of ownership, −50% critical raw material consumption per kilometre, and TRL 6 demonstrated with full physical demonstrators of the electric drive.
- How is the project organised?
- In 9 work packages running from circular vehicle platform design through to full physical demonstrators of the electric drive.
- Who funds the project?
- The European Union's Horizon Europe programme, under Grant n° 101270720.