The Tesla mystery magnet, which aims to remove the use of rare-earth elements in EV engines, was recently introduced at the Investor Day 2023 event.
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A view of a fully electric Tesla car on an assembly line at the new Tesla Motors car factory in Tilburg, the Netherlands, during the opening and launch of the new factory, on August 22, 2013.
The EV maker boastfully unveiled this new technology, its next-gen drive unit will rely on a permanent magnet motor. If Tesla pulls this off, then it can free itself from the supply chain problems caused by limited rare earth elements.
However, many experts doubt that the Tesla mystery magnet can be achieved. Here's why.
Why Tesla's Mystery Magnet Doubted by Experts
According to the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers Spectrum, many critics doubt the Tesla mystery magnet.
(Photo : Photo by Kevork Djansezian/Getty Images)
Elon Musk, CEO of Tesla, unveils the dual engine chassis of the new Tesla 'D' model at the Hawthorne Airport October 09, 2014 in Hawthorne, California. The 'D' is the faster and all-wheel-drive version of the Model S electric sedan, capable of accelerating to 60 miles per hour in just over 3 seconds.
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These include Alexander Gabay, a researcher at the University of Delaware. "I am skeptical that any non-rare-earth permanent magnet could be used in a synchronous traction motor in the near future," he explained.
One of the major challenges highlighted by experts is physics. They explained that if Tesla wants to achieve permanent magnetism, the automaker needs to rely on 3D electrons.
However, these electrons' strengths are not strong enough to be used on EV motors.
On the other hand, if Tesla really wants to have non-rare-earth permanent magnets, it needs to use the ferrite magnets. But, these magnets are also weak to be used for car motors; they also rely on cobalt supply, which is really limited.
Tesla Decreasing Use of Rare Earth Elements
Interesting Engineering reported that Tesla was able to reduce the use of rare earth elements in its Model 3 drive units by 25%.
The giant automaker was able to do this by improving the efficiency of the drivetrain.
Now, the EV developer wants to rely on its mystery permanent magnet to completely remove the use of rare earth elements in its electric car engines.
As of writing, Tesla hasn't confirmed the exact materials it plans to use.
The automaker explained that it is a trade secret that it doesn't want to disclose to the public.
In other news, the new FSD Beta V11 was teased by Elon Musk. We also reported about the new Tesla dummy camera, which was spotted in the new Hardware 4.0.
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