Will an 2017 E-Golf make it??

[CraigRobin]

Hi all;

Completely new to the concept of EVs but I'm open to them.
We had a BMW X3 that I very much enjoyed driving. But it was destroyed when we were hit head on in December by someone reaching for a doughnut.
Any way, I like the specs of the 2017 E-Golf. It fits 85% of our needs. For the other 15% we have a Tahoe and a Can-Am Spyder.

Each Sunday we travel 88.5 miles each way from Bakersfield, Ca to Palmdale in the high desert. To do this we have to climb up the Tehachapi pass and then down into Palmdale. The climb is from 700ASL to 4100ASL. Then back down to 2400ASL in Palmdale.

Is this do-able with a 2017 E-Golf??

Also how well does the AC work. The Mojave to Palmdale part of the trip will reach 105-110 in the summer.

Thanks.
Craig

 

[miimura]

Take a look at EVtripPlanner.com and select the Leaf as your vehicle. I checked your route and entered 77F cabin temp and 105F outside temp with 500lb payload. It said the car would use 25kWh for the trip of 95.4 miles. Given the 2017 e-Golf has a 35kWh battery, I would say that you should have plenty of buffer for that one way trip. It says the opposite direction would only use 19kWh. Of course, the Leaf is not an e-Golf, but it is a decent approximation compared to the other Tesla models on that web site.

The AC works well in the e-Golf, you should be comfortable. You can even pre-cool the cabin while connected to your home charger to save the battery capacity for actual driving.

 

[RonDawg]

The issue is that you will need to charge for the return drive home and per PlugShare, there is only ONE CCS DC Fast Charger in the entire Antelope Valley. If this charger is occupied, blocked in by someone not actively charging, or worst of all broken, you're going to have a several-hour wait at an L2 (200-240 volt) station to get enough juice to make it back home. Now if your (literal) Sunday drive has you in Palmdale for several hours, and there is an L2 station nearby (or you can leave it there and get a ride to/from), this is doable as Palmdale shows several L2's in the immediate vicinity.

For this kind of drive, you really should have a 200+ mile EV such as a Bolt or Model 3.

 

[CraigRobin]

Thanks for the replies. The information is great.

 

[JoulesThief]

Best usage and rule of thumb is to use the car for round trip trips up to the mileage you can obtain with your preferred driving method. Which means about 125 miles round trip, when the battery is new.

You can possibly stretch this to 180 or 190 miles if you limit your speed to 45 to 50 MPH max, drive using a lot of coasting, and not driving in any mode except "D" mode, with use of D1 if you need to slow down for traffic lights or stop signs. Caveat is you must be a skilled and very conservative driver to pull off that kind of range per recharge, and have the patience of a Saint. It can be done, but there are damn few here with the skills, time or inclination to drive in a non herd mentality style of driving in urban or city traffic, it requires a non competitive style of driving, something you will rarely find on an enthusiasts car Bulletin Board.

 

[obtuce]

and not driving in any mode except "D" mode, with use of D1 if you need to slow down for traffic lights or stop signs.

why would you not recommend driving in "B" mode to regen while driving in "stop / go" conditions ?

i have no idea what the above mentioned Route looks like but i would imagine it's not all highway without traffic.

would / do you get more range NOT using B recharge mode ?

 

[Verkehr]

In practice, heavy regen will correlate with lower average speed whose aero savings more than offset the ~15% inefficiency in that system. So, I vote to rely on regen. In heavy traffic, leaving the very large gap needed to avoid using any brakes or regen will increase congestion for others.

 

[JoulesThief]

and not driving in any mode except "D" mode, with use of D1 if you need to slow down for traffic lights or stop signs.

why would you not recommend driving in "B" mode to regen while driving in "stop / go" conditions ?

i have no idea what the above mentioned Route looks like but i would imagine it's not all highway without traffic.

would / do you get more range NOT using B recharge mode ?

I averaged 6.1 miles per kWh for 2400 miles, long term in my infotainment center. Driving in D mode all the time and D1 mode when I needed some braking in city traffic. Driving in B mode is a crutch. Let me know if you can even get 5.0 miles per kWh long term for 2500 miles driving in "B"mode. It excessively recharges your battery too frequently, IMHO. Better to coast or freewheel.

 

[JoulesThief]

In heavy traffic, leaving the very large gap needed to avoid using any brakes or regen will increase congestion for others.

Silly... if everyone drove with a steady foot, the average speed of all would be higher, overall. Traffic studies have proven this time and time again, because of lag reaction time of every driver to accelerate again from a dead stop. Throw in the idiots f*cking around on their smart phones instead of driving and paying attention, and you've made my point with that fallacy of a thought. Stop and go, vs steady state also increases the margin of error for accidents due to failure of someone to stop in time, causing multiple car accidents on freeways. Especially when a big rig is involved in the accident. Accident's cause huge losses of time traveled for everyone behind the accident and closed lanes. Don't use "B" mode, look far ahead, plan far ahead, free wheel as much as is possible. Any professional driver goes to school for this annually with refresher courses.

 

[ichwoo]

The design of the E-GOLF (also IONIQ) is to allow the driver to change the amount of regen frequently like gear shifts. It is not how the designer intention for drivers to set to certain regen mode and leave it for the entire drive. Drivers should engage regen only when a stop is anticipated ahead, and increase regen power when stopping distance is insufficient. When even B mode is insufficient, then the driver should press the brake. After the stop, the car should be put in D again for optimum efficiency.

 

[JoulesThief]

The design of the E-GOLF (also IONIQ) is to allow the driver to change the amount of regen frequently like gear shifts. It is not how the designer intention for drivers to set to certain regen mode and leave it for the entire drive. Drivers should engage regen only when a stop is anticipated ahead, and increase regen power when stopping distance is insufficient. When even B mode is insufficient, then the driver should press the brake. After the stop, the car should be put in D again for optimum efficiency.

Exactly, you have a very good grasp of the principle. The less braking you use, and the more conservation of momentum you use, the better your miles per kWh on a charge.

 

[Voltron]

Basically, nothing's more efficient than coasting, which is what your e-Golf is doing when your foot is on neither the brake nor gas. Those are free miles. And nothing's less efficient than friction braking, which turns your kinetic energy into heat. The purpose of B mode is to help you avoid friction braking. But regeneration isn't 100% efficient; some energy is lost converting kinetic to electric and some more is lost in the inverter, and finally not every electron that goes into the battery comes back out. All told, the roundtrip will preserve about 80-85% of the energy.

My understanding of the instrumentation is that you are regenerating ("recuperating") whenever the needle is in the green. If the needle gets all the way to 100, then the system will blend in friction braking as needed to get the desired deceleration. At very low speeds, only friction braking is used.

 

[JoulesThief]

Basically, nothing's more efficient than coasting, which is what your e-Golf is doing when your foot is on neither the brake nor gas. Those are free miles. And nothing's less efficient than friction braking, which turns your kinetic energy into heat. The purpose of B mode is to help you avoid friction braking. But regeneration isn't 100% efficient; some energy is lost converting kinetic to electric and some more is lost in the inverter, and finally not every electron that goes into the battery comes back out. All told, the roundtrip will preserve about 80-85% of the energy.

My understanding of the instrumentation is that you are regenerating ("recuperating") whenever the needle is in the green. If the needle gets all the way to 100, then the system will blend in friction braking as needed to get the desired deceleration. At very low speeds, only friction braking is used.

/\ This. Regeneration is not free, there are still losses due to resistance and heat to the battery. Plus it accelerates the charging rate very high if "B" is used aggressively. Which is not good for battery longevity.

 

[NurStrom]

....
Let me know if you can even get 5.0 miles per kWh long term for 2500 miles driving in "B"mode. It excessively recharges your battery too frequently, IMHO. Better to coast or freewheel.

So far, we have 5.3 miles per kWh over 1200 miles recorded with 1000 miles driven with B selected. Driving patterns incorporate multiple short distances between stop signs - basically in the neighborhood. When driving between stop signs or lights that have a good distance between, coasting without B selected is the way to go. The last 400 feet prior to a stop sign or light downshift to B. I can't manually brake smoother than in B mode.

 

[JoulesThief]

....
Let me know if you can even get 5.0 miles per kWh long term for 2500 miles driving in "B"mode. It excessively recharges your battery too frequently, IMHO. Better to coast or freewheel.

So far, we have 5.3 miles per kWh over 1200 miles recorded with 1000 miles driven with B selected. Driving patterns incorporate multiple short distances between stop signs - basically in the neighborhood. When driving between stop signs or lights that have a good distance between, coasting without B selected is the way to go. The last 400 feet prior to a stop sign or light downshift to B. I can't manually brake smoother than in B mode.

I drive in D mode, and sometimes shift to D1 mode to slow down. 6.0 Miles per kWh, currently. San Fernando Valley. You can drive better than that, for efficiency, only if you want to. The potential is there. City stop lights, stop signs with max of 45 mph Blvds and residential driving.