Is it the end of the road for the E-golf ?

[Deschodt]

Serious question... The tesla 3 is slowly starting to appear on my roads, the Bolt is now doing 220 miles and it's all over the place, the new Leaf has an option of doing the same range available shortly, probably in reaction to that...

VW (the mothership brand) we know is preparing an onslaught of E-models in the future via Audi, Porsche and VW itself, but.... the Egolf *at best* gets 125 miles of range (in the hands of slow drivers) and barely more power for 2017? No 2018 model announced... Did they give up on the model ?

I know they only sold 4000 of our cars or so, we are definitely driving an experiment - just wondering if I missed an announcement somewhere.... I have another year on my lease, hopefully by then I can grab something in a similar price range with more range...

 

[royal52]

My thoughts: E-Golf was always a temporary solution for VW while they prepare for their hard core launch of ev's. So yes, I think the e-golf will not be produced within the next few years.

 

[spare]

New dedicated EV platform coming in 2020... the e-golf, GTE and A3 e-Tron were always just stop gaps.

https://www.caranddriver.com/news/volkswagen-id-ev-concept-photos-and-info-news

 

[JoulesThief]

We were driving back from Tracy, CA to Los Angeles on Jan 5th and saw a truck trailer hauling Tesla's down Interstate 5. There was one model 3 on the whole truck, everything else, 10 or so other cars, were model S or model X Teslas. The 3 seems quite small compared to the other models.


I can get 105 to 115 miles in my 2015 e-Golf, driven on city streets, still, with 15k miles on my battery. Originally, when new, the car would sometimes show 129 to 131 miles of range on the Guess -O - meter during the warmer months of the year, here in So Cal. Now it shows 119 to 122 miles of range. Of course, it was only rated at 83 or 84 miles of range, when new. So, I think that safely, I could see 180 to 190 miles of range out of a new 2017 SEL on a full charge. This would be driving around in an urban setting with Surface street and Blvd traffic speeds only, up to 40 or 45 mph top speed, and driven conservatively in acceleration and throttle applications. All bets go out the window the moment you get on highways or freeways. Range will drop fast, the faster you go on the roads, as well as using more power consumptive goodies inside the car, or driving aggressively.

IMHO, the e-Golfs bread and butter is driving in stop and go urban city traffic, exclusively. That is where it shines, performance wise.

Sales figures are 4232 for 2015, 3937 for 2016, 3534 for 2017 in the USA Source: https://insideevs.com/monthly-plug-in-sales-scorecard/

 

[tristan]

My 2 cents :

I love Tesla. I really love the brand because they started the electric revolution.
But I'll be honest : this is FAR from what we call a quality car ( in Europe at least ).
People buy them because of tax cuts ( Norway ) and because they love electric cars, and MAYBE because of the speed ( maybe, because speeding in Norway can put you in jail so... not so many people are speeding), and the gadgets are cool (autopilot) although not really "needed"; but in any case they are not quality cars.

When I tried the Model S, coming from an eGolf, I was less than impressed.
The leather seats were ok, but those of the eGolf were better. The car felt "fake"/ fragile / of bad conception. Driving the eGolf felt smoother.
I seriously thought "THAT is what I get for 2.5 times the price of my almost fully equipped eGolf ?" .
My eGolf feels like a real car.

Now, again I love the Tesla brand - and actually, I'm quite pissed at Volkswagen for the dieselgate.
And I have a model3 reservation. But I'm not sure I'm going to keep that reservation, I'll see once I try the car.

All this to say that while the model 3 will sell a lot, they are a lot of people like me who prefer "good" brands when it comes to cars.

 

[bobk2824]

On the plus side, I did read somewhere that VW has added a new shift in e-Golf manufacturing to increase the supply.

 

[MickM]

The 2017 e-Golf finally appeared in Massachusetts last November. I tried ordering the interior/exterior colors I wanted in a 2017 e-Golf a couple weeks ago and was told by the dealership (later confirmed by VW America) that no more orders are being accepted for model year 2017 e-Golfs :-(. That does kind of sound like it is the end of the road for the e-Golf, however I also recently read that in March VW are looking to double the worldwide production of e-Golf from a paltry 35 vehicles/day to 70 vehicles/day. Maybe VW are just writing off the model year 2017 e-Golf as a disaster given that they released it at the same time that everybody else (themselves included) were putting their new 2018 models on the lot.

Sigh, I need a car right now. I want an e-Golf (with the driver's assistance package), none are available, VW won't take my money if I try to order one, and they won't provide any details as to when/if the 2018s are coming. All the VW dealers local to me that sell e-Golfs never return my phone calls and treat the e-Golf like it's just not worth their while to sell. I even tried calling a dealer in Maryland (King VW) who had (still has) the car I wanted in stock and they apparently have zero interest in dealing with me even though I'm prepared to pay to have the car delivered to me in MA. I did a lot of research before deciding on the e-Golf (again, with the driver's assistance package) as my electric car of choice, but everything about finding and buying this thing has been an awful experience. Never had this much trouble buying a car (and I've bought a few in my 60 years on earth)!

 

[dustboy]

I'd buy a Model 3 sight unseen if it weren't for the long wait of 12-16 months. Elan of all people should understand that that is an eternity in tech. In that time a Model 3 could easily be eclipsed by something far better.

The pure electric E-Tron is rumored to approach Tesla on range, so there's that. There is currently nothing on the market that rivals the eGolf at the semi-premium level. I sure hope VW understands that they have the opportunity to become the world's premier brand for electric vehicles given they have a head start in the market.

 

[MickM]

I'd be the same regarding the model 3, but I discovered that, unlike the other Teslas, it's not a hatchback - so that rules it out for me.

 

[preilly44]

I'd buy a Model 3 sight unseen if it weren't for the long wait of 12-16 months. Elan of all people should understand that that is an eternity in tech. In that time a Model 3 could easily be eclipsed by something far better.

The pure electric E-Tron is rumored to approach Tesla on range, so there's that. There is currently nothing on the market that rivals the eGolf at the semi-premium level. I sure hope VW understands that they have the opportunity to become the world's premier brand for electric vehicles given they have a head start in the market.

While that is true that a lot can change in 12-16 moths, during that time, Tesla will greatly improve the Model 3 and add new features during that time. Remember, they don't use model years, they improve their cars whenever their is something better available.

 

[miimura]

The 2017 e-Golf finally appeared in Massachusetts last November. I tried ordering the interior/exterior colors I wanted in a 2017 e-Golf a couple weeks ago and was told by the dealership (later confirmed by VW America) that no more orders are being accepted for model year 2017 e-Golfs :-(. That does kind of sound like it is the end of the road for the e-Golf, however I also recently read that in March VW are looking to double the worldwide production of e-Golf from a paltry 35 vehicles/day to 70 vehicles/day. Maybe VW are just writing off the model year 2017 e-Golf as a disaster given that they released it at the same time that everybody else (themselves included) were putting their new 2018 models on the lot.

Sigh, I need a car right now. I want an e-Golf (with the driver's assistance package), none are available, VW won't take my money if I try to order one, and they won't provide any details as to when/if the 2018s are coming. All the VW dealers local to me that sell e-Golfs never return my phone calls and treat the e-Golf like it's just not worth their while to sell. I even tried calling a dealer in Maryland (King VW) who had (still has) the car I wanted in stock and they apparently have zero interest in dealing with me even though I'm prepared to pay to have the car delivered to me in MA. I did a lot of research before deciding on the e-Golf (again, with the driver's assistance package) as my electric car of choice, but everything about finding and buying this thing has been an awful experience. Never had this much trouble buying a car (and I've bought a few in my 60 years on earth)!

If you really want an e-Golf right now and are willing to purchase instead of leasing, just arrange it with a California dealer and have it shipped. I'm sure the configuration you want is sitting on the lot out here.

 

[JoulesThief]

The 2017 e-Golf finally appeared in Massachusetts last November. I tried ordering the interior/exterior colors I wanted in a 2017 e-Golf a couple weeks ago and was told by the dealership (later confirmed by VW America) that no more orders are being accepted for model year 2017 e-Golfs :-(. That does kind of sound like it is the end of the road for the e-Golf, however I also recently read that in March VW are looking to double the worldwide production of e-Golf from a paltry 35 vehicles/day to 70 vehicles/day. Maybe VW are just writing off the model year 2017 e-Golf as a disaster given that they released it at the same time that everybody else (themselves included) were putting their new 2018 models on the lot.

Sigh, I need a car right now. I want an e-Golf (with the driver's assistance package), none are available, VW won't take my money if I try to order one, and they won't provide any details as to when/if the 2018s are coming. All the VW dealers local to me that sell e-Golfs never return my phone calls and treat the e-Golf like it's just not worth their while to sell. I even tried calling a dealer in Maryland (King VW) who had (still has) the car I wanted in stock and they apparently have zero interest in dealing with me even though I'm prepared to pay to have the car delivered to me in MA. I did a lot of research before deciding on the e-Golf (again, with the driver's assistance package) as my electric car of choice, but everything about finding and buying this thing has been an awful experience. Never had this much trouble buying a car (and I've bought a few in my 60 years on earth)!

If you really want an e-Golf right now and are willing to purchase instead of leasing, just arrange it with a California dealer and have it shipped. I'm sure the configuration you want is sitting on the lot out here.

I just don't think VW is going to be selling these very fast at their asking price, with the Tesla Model 3 with more range coming out very shortly.


http://www.volkswagensantamonica.com/vehicle-details/new-2017-volkswagen-e-golf-4-door-sel-premium-santa-monica-ca-id-22191221

 

[miimura]

I just don't think VW is going to be selling these very fast at their asking price, with the Tesla Model 3 with more range coming out very shortly.

http://www.volkswagensantamonica.com/vehicle-details/new-2017-volkswagen-e-golf-4-door-sel-premium-santa-monica-ca-id-22191221

That listing has no bearing on anything. That's just the MSRP for a SEL with the Drivers Assistance Package. Nobody with any common sense is paying MSRP for these.

Sunnyvale VW has 63 e-Golfs on the lot. 22 SEL (4 have DAP) and 41 SE (only 6 don't have DCFC) according to their own web site inventory. It's a shame so many are white, white silver and black. Only a few are Indium Gray or Atlantic Blue.

 

[user 703]

The e-Golf unfortunately is all about "coulda been a contender". As others pointed out, it is a stop gap car. It is also a car that has received little attention by VW - as many little things demonstrate (sub-sub standard Car Net app, a navigation system listing gas stations, little operational metrics for drivers, and so on).

I recently test drove the Tesla X. Tesla is an electric mobility cum automated driving plus "new experiences all the time" company. While the aforementioned are impressive, Tesla does not build quality cars in the BMW/MB/Porsche/etc. sense. The X's driving dynamics felt entirely artificial and seem aimed to impress American drivers who have no idea what advanced driving dynamics are about. In ludicrous mode, the X cut power every split second resulting in a bucking bronco ride. The wing doors look impressive - but are utterly impractical, are poorly built (I have never seen such a poor mechanical closure process with the door jiggling/shuddering into its lock), and are bound to fail over time.

VW does any of the aforementioned better. But to date VW has not shown any real ability to roll out competitive electric cars, improve on existing models, and rapidly learn from deployed units. I like the e-Golf for its Golf-part. As an electric vehicle it is simply meh, with range being the key issue. A lack of electric mobility management is another issue. And VW's open disinterest for its early e-mobility adopters is a thing to behold.

By 2020 we will most likely plenty of choices of good electric cars. As much as I like the Golf, I doubt I'll pick another VW electric car.

 

[MickM]

And VW's open disinterest for its early e-mobility adopters is a thing to behold..

As a person who has never owned a VW before and is *highly* interested in buying one, the above quote absolutely hits the nail on the head. With the exception of one dealership an 100 miles away from me (who doesn't have the version of the e-Golf I want) all of the local dealers utterly couldn't care less about anybody interested in buying the e-Golf. I've even tried calling VW HQ in CA about what is going on (especially with shutting down all orders) but no answer there either. What a sad state of affairs...

 

[royal52]

And VW's open disinterest for its early e-mobility adopters is a thing to behold..

As a person who has never owned a VW before and is *highly* interested in buying one, the above quote absolutely hits the nail on the head. With the exception of one dealership an 100 miles away from me (who doesn't have the version of the e-Golf I want) all of the local dealers utterly couldn't care less about anybody interested in buying the e-Golf. I've even tried calling VW HQ in CA about what is going on (especially with shutting down all orders) but no answer there either. What a sad state of affairs...

Its not the dealers guy, you don't think they would sell you a car if they could.

Just a limited supply.

 

[MickM]

And VW's open disinterest for its early e-mobility adopters is a thing to behold..

As a person who has never owned a VW before and is *highly* interested in buying one, the above quote absolutely hits the nail on the head. With the exception of one dealership an 100 miles away from me (who doesn't have the version of the e-Golf I want) all of the local dealers utterly couldn't care less about anybody interested in buying the e-Golf. I've even tried calling VW HQ in CA about what is going on (especially with shutting down all orders) but no answer there either. What a sad state of affairs...

Its not the dealers guy, you don't think they would sell you a car if they could.

Just a limited supply.

The microsecond VW announced they weren't taking any more orders for model year 2017 e-Golfs the dealership (King VW in MD) upped the price of the e-Golf I was looking at by a whopping $2k i.e. they will now only give you $2k of the $4k incentive if you finance the car through VW Credit. Those guys are just awful.