Volkswagen Just Built an EV That Can Go Nearly 900 Miles on a Charge

Avicebron

Why don't we just build high speed electrified rail and busses. Why this rollout of electrified golf carts? My car is fast and fun to drive, that's part of it's job alongside getting me where I need to go. If I just need to get somewhere, I want to take a clean fast train like Japan and then walk.

bryanlarsen

That's 9 miles/kWh, compared to the Cybercab's 6.1 miles/kWh, compared to a typical EV at 3-4 miles/kWh. Part of the difference may come from using the easier WLTP testing cycle than the EPA cycle the Cybercab probably uses, but only part.

klooney

Bring back wheel covers!

swiftcoder

Sign me up for all of these innovations in an actual production car. No idea why the whole market seems to be obsessed with ever-wider SUVs...

helsinkiandrew

Perhaps better info on VWs own press release: https://www.volkswagen-newsroom.com/en/press-releases/missio... This is concept car that has no planned release date.

tromp

> Volkswagen just build the world's most aerodynamic road car ever. A drag coefficient of 0.158 is not quite setting a record. Aptera's road-legal car has a coefficient of only 0.13, while Hyundai achieved a drag coefficient of 0.144 with the Aero Challenge concept car [1] (but it's not clear whether that vehicle is road-legal, or even what it looks like). [1] https://www.azernews.az/region/245135.html

BugsJustFindMe

And with barely three millimeters of clearance you can effectively sweep the roads while you drive! Wake us up when it can safely navigate a speed bump or enter a driveway without smashing against the bottom.

lorey

They did something very similar 20+ years ago called XL1 to achieve 1l/100km, never made it into production. https://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/VW_XL1

ketzu

Based on the battery of 55kWh this is about efficiency, not packing more batteries: > 6.48 kWh/100 km At a constant 68km/h in perfect conditions (no up/down) and no additional consumers of energy (climate control). Even on a real route they apparently got some useful stats with 7.51 kWh/100km including charging. Cool. My car is around 17-20 kWh/100km at a 64kWh battery for a medium cost car in germany. I wish it was even close to that efficiency.

crote

China has already solved the range problem by speeding up charging. When you can recharge 5 hours of highway driving in range during a 5-minute bathroom stop, an additional few hundred miles just isn't that useful anymore. You could also go the other way and use the improved range to shrink the battery, but with the ongoing battery cost drop that's not exactly a gamechanger either - and fast-charging long-range Chinese EVs are available for their domestic market for a fraction of the cost of entry-level Western models as well... Don't get me wrong, improving aerodynamics is a nice goal, but with the ongoing push towards gigantic SUVs there's zero chance anything even remotely resembling this concept car will ever see the light of day.

philipallstar

This just makes the Tesla Model S P90D, from 14 years ago , just look even better. 509km range (in the lab) and incredible acceleration, and looks pretty normal and practical. And it doesn't make you bring your own phone and bluetooth speaker for infotainment.

fullshark

Maybe they learned from their blunder with the ID Buzz. At this point though I simply don't trust any legacy automaker when it comes to producing and supporting EVs for their lifetime.

fredley

What do you do when your rear tyre gets a flat?

jrmg

Shape reminds me a lot of the first gen Honda Insight - also built to be low drag. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Honda_Insight#First_generation...

tester756

Let's hope aerodynamics can save us from SUV disease

gbil

It is stated that this was a single charge trip >It’s also the most efficient EV in its class, consuming just 6.89 kWh/100 km without charging losses. >The VW Mission Efficiency covered 1,278 km (794 miles) on a single charge and still had 164 km (102 miles) of range left at the end of the trip. But at 6.89kWh/100km for a 1278km trip equals 88kWh battery and it is stated later that the battery is a 54.9kWh one and that was recharged during the journey. > The 54.9-kWh net battery was recharged only once during the journey.... It would be nice to have an article that makes sense from time to time...

josefresco

I regularly drive 450+ miles to a family camp and need to stop at least once just to stretch my legs/change drivers/eat. The drive can take anywhere from 7-9 hours depending on traffic. 900 miles range is cool but it's not worth a huge price premium. Sort of like the Concord; while it's technically possible it's not worth the money.

m00dy

don't get me wrong but VW is dead already.

maxglute

Somehow it looks cool for a movie, but ugly for real life.

kjksf

1. It's at speed of 42 miles/hr. You can't compare those numbers to EPA or even WLTP numbers. Hypermiling records using Tesla cars: - 1078 km, Tesla S, 25 mph, - 975 km, Model 3, 20-30mph - 909 km, Model 3, 50mph The last one is comparable and available today. 2. It has solar panels. That tells me those are not serious people (or a PR stunt). Solar charging math on area that small is so brutal that adding cost / weight of solar panels on a car is sheer stupidity. Adding few miles of range per day (on sunny day parked outside) doesn't make sense. You're more likely to have a regular outlet in your garage and recharge 100 miles overnight.