Volkswagen has just started a test program with 20 eGolfs in the U.S.
(Credit:
Wayne Cunningham/CNET)
I got a look at the eGolf last month in Volkswagen's Electronics Research Laboratory (ERL). The car uses a 26.5 kilowatt-hour lithium-ion battery pack to give it an estimated 93 miles in range.
The eGolf felt lighter than both the Nissan Leaf and Chevrolet Volt.
(Credit:
Wayne Cunningham/CNET)
Like other electric cars, the eGolf glided quietly forward. As the range display only showed 10 miles, I kept a light foot on the accelerator, so did not feel the full effect of its 199 pound-feet of torque driving the front wheels.
Mark Gillies, Volkswagen's Product and Technology Manager, rode in the passenger seat, advising me on the eGolf's unique brake regeneration capabilities. On a downhill slope, I moved the shifter to the B position, which slowed the car substantially. It also delivers about 60 kilowatts of regeneration, according to Gillies.
Putting it back into drive and coming upon another down slope, Gillies advised me to hit the paddle shifter inscribed with a minus sign. Regeneration drag began to slow the wheels a bit, and a small, empty battery icon appeared on the instrument cluster.
Volkswagen installed electric vehicle chargers at its Electronics Research Laboratory.
(Credit:
Wayne Cunningham/CNET)
More surprising was how light the car felt. Volkswagen has not released the eGolf's curb weight, but I did not register the same kind of low-placed weight as in the Nissan Leaf or Chevrolet Volt. Instead, the car drove like it was similar in weight to the standard Golf.
Some of that perception may have had to do with the electric power steering, which was heavily boosted. Turning the wheel to very little effort.
As to that 10 mile range number, I would have thought Gillies would be more concerned, as it was a 17 mile drive to the ERL where the car was based, and where it could be recharged. But he blithely pointed out how more than half of that run was downhill. The car would probably end up with more range than when he started.
And that point made me realize the fungible nature of range in an electric car. Going downhill in a gas-engined car may make the trip computer's range go up, but you are still depleting the gasoline to some degree. The regeneration capabilities of electric cars mean you can restore much of the used energy, given the right topography.
Because of currently limited range, electric car drivers out of necessity will develop an understanding of their local topography superior to that of other drivers. These drivers will find the gentler grades for hill climbing and the best down slopes for regeneration. Whatever range the car indicates may not matter depending on the down or up slopes ahead.
Volkswagen has just begun testing the eGolf. The lessons learned from this program will go into the production model, planned for the end of 2014.
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