It's really interesting that the majority seem to prefer D mode. If you listened to the youtube reviews you would assume that VW failed because B mode was not strong enough for full 'one pedal driving'. I much prefer D as , as has already been said above, it seems much more relaxing and smoother when the car coasts rather then being artificially braked. I wonder if this is true for other EVs (such as Tesla) which have really strong regen braking?
B vs D mode revisited!
Approaching 5 months with my ID3 and I must admit I’m still not 100% sure I’m comfortable always driving in B, especially on motorways, from an efficiency and ease of driving perspective.
I kinda gravitated to B as a more natural fit to aid general braking but at times I still feel like it encourages a heavier use of the accelerator pedal with ‘the push it through claggy jelly’ feeling!
What’s your latest thoughts on best, most efficient, use of B and D after owning the car a while??
I kinda gravitated to B as a more natural fit to aid general braking but at times I still feel like it encourages a heavier use of the accelerator pedal with ‘the push it through claggy jelly’ feeling!
What’s your latest thoughts on best, most efficient, use of B and D after owning the car a while??
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This is interesting.Yes, but it makes no difference as the ACC handles the regen as required to maintain distance to the car in front.
Noting I am in an e-Golf, but assume it would be the same on ID3.
So even if you are in D, in ACC the car will use regen (‘engine braking’) to slow you rather than applying the brakes...
(Maybe only if you are using ‘assisted D’ with intelligent regen?)..
I'm not fussed about one pedal driving, therefore it's been easy to ignore every ID.3 reviewer's obsession with banging on about it...
Plus I thought it has been said that full regen on a heavy rear wheel car wasn’t safe in winter conditions..?I'm not fussed about one pedal driving, therefore it's been easy to ignore every ID.3 reviewer's obsession with banging on about it...
i don’t think the pedal uses the brakes either until the force required is greater than the motor can provideThis is interesting.
So even if you are in D, in ACC the car will use regen (‘engine braking’) to slow you rather than applying the brakes...
(Maybe only if you are using ‘assisted D’ with intelligent regen?)..
Yes, this is certainly the case in my e-Golf.So even if you are in D, in ACC the car will use regen (‘engine braking’) to slow you rather than applying the brakes...
E-Golf doesn't have this function so I assume not, can't comment on ID3 specifics having never driven one myself.(Maybe only if you are using ‘assisted D’ with intelligent regen?)..
Yes, that’s right.i don’t think the pedal uses the brakes either until the force required is greater than the motor can provide
The whole subject of D v B has been debated for years. I have driven many different EVs and experienced the ways that the various OEMs provide access to regen. The early systems were pretty crude and drivers adapted to develop new skills that required much more finesse when using the 'go' pedal. It has always been possible to find the sweet spot where the car would coast - between drive and regen - and that gave many people some satisfaction. Others found it to be irksome as they regarded the accelerator as a switch that was either on or off.
The Korean cars developed the flappy paddle approach where much of that accelerator tickling became redundant. At last the ideal level of regen could be selected right down to zero where the car simply glided as if in neutral. And could be adjusted by the second to time the approach to a halt and glean as much regen as was available. And within each setting the driver could still use the one pedal drive method if desired by feathering the accelerator appropriately. I find the Hyundai/Kia method suits me best, and when I drive other cars it can be quite annoying to have to adapt back to what I now regard as the old fashioned regen method that other OEMs install.
I now tend to select zero regen when starting a drive and use the paddles to grab regen when appropriate and then cancel it as much as possible. This means that the car is coasting much more than you would imagine. Grabbing whatever regen is available. And my efficiency figures are good. This kind of operation is perfectly possible in a car with just D or B available but requires much more driver input and skill to seek out the sweet spot in every situation. I now find that to be out of date and could limit my choice of car when the next change is due.
The Korean cars developed the flappy paddle approach where much of that accelerator tickling became redundant. At last the ideal level of regen could be selected right down to zero where the car simply glided as if in neutral. And could be adjusted by the second to time the approach to a halt and glean as much regen as was available. And within each setting the driver could still use the one pedal drive method if desired by feathering the accelerator appropriately. I find the Hyundai/Kia method suits me best, and when I drive other cars it can be quite annoying to have to adapt back to what I now regard as the old fashioned regen method that other OEMs install.
I now tend to select zero regen when starting a drive and use the paddles to grab regen when appropriate and then cancel it as much as possible. This means that the car is coasting much more than you would imagine. Grabbing whatever regen is available. And my efficiency figures are good. This kind of operation is perfectly possible in a car with just D or B available but requires much more driver input and skill to seek out the sweet spot in every situation. I now find that to be out of date and could limit my choice of car when the next change is due.
It may have done, but assuming you’ve read the rest of the post, you’ll see that it’s moved on with the fact that some manufacturers like VW are adjusting the regen levels automatically to account for things like speed limit changes, upcoming roundabouts/junctions, distance and relative speed to vehicle in front, terrain, throttle input etc. All without ACC activated, so D mode on cars like the ID3 is not the same as D mode on other manufacturers models or what it was universally like a few years ago.The whole subject of D v B has been debated for years.
So effectively it’s automating all of you paddle fiddling.
All things that I don't want. Can that be de-selected? If not then that's another brand that I will avoid. I quite like being fully in charge of my car and making such decisions.VW are adjusting the regen levels automatically to account for things like speed limit changes, upcoming roundabouts/junctions, distance and relative speed to vehicle in front, terrain, throttle input etc.
Use B mode and your right foot.All things that I don't want. Can that be de-selected? If not then that's another brand that I will avoid. I quite like being fully in charge of my car and making such decisions.
Yes, you can turn off all the predictive crap.All things that I don't want. Can that be de-selected? If not then that's another brand that I will avoid. I quite like being fully in charge of my car and making such decisions.
But can you also select zero regen, or do you still have to 'feather' the accelerator to search for that coasting point?Yes, you can turn off all the predictive crap.
we use D but scrubbing speed takes some getting used too as you don't have the engine breaking
Couldn't agree more! The driver should control the car, not the other way around.All things that I don't want. Can that be de-selected? If not then that's another brand that I will avoid. I quite like being fully in charge of my car and making such decisions.
I know that I have paid for ACC but I don't use it. So, presumably, the map based adjustments to the controls have never manifested themselves on my ID3.
Having spent decades driving as smoothly as I can, I really enjoyed learning the throttle feathering technique that optimises one pedal driving. Your right foot provides fully adjustable regen without flapping paddles or pushing buttons. But you have to learn to do it.
In D mode, it just coasts, and if you’ve got the predictive driving and road sign stuff switched off, it’s as simple as accelerate and back off and coast.But can you also select zero regen, or do you still have to 'feather' the accelerator to search for that coasting point?
To get regen then, you need to select B mode.
Really? I didn't know that. I thought that D was just a weaker version of B over the regen settings. If D in an ID3 is truly equivalent to my Ioniq with the right-hand paddle fully pressed, and enables totally zero regen, then I might put that car back on my 'look at' list for the next change.In D mode, it just coasts, and if you’ve got the predictive driving and road sign stuff switched off, it’s as simple as accelerate and back off and coast.
To get regen then, you need to select B mode.
"D" in my ID.4 has no regen at all while coasting - I am constantly surprised by how slowly I lose speed on "D" when coasting up to a roundabout. However, it is important to note that there is regen on "D", when you press the brakes the first 0.25g is always regenerative. So driving in "D" is just as efficient (and even more so in some cases) than driving in "B".
It's true in summary the IDs behave like this:Really? I didn't know that. I thought that D was just a weaker version of B over the regen settings. If D in an ID3 is truly equivalent to my Ioniq with the right-hand paddle fully pressed, and enables totally zero regen, then I might put that car back on my 'look at' list for the next change.
- D and eco drive mode, intelligent regen is enabled the car tells you when to lift of the accelerator and will automatically adjust the regen depending on the road, I find this disconcerting as the car goes faster than I would like especially at roundabouts but it is what VW recommends and is probably the most efficient
- D and normal drive mode, no regen unless the brake is pressed, it uses the motor regen first and then if more force is called for than the motor can provide it uses the actual brakes
- D and sport drive mode or B mode selected the car blends in the regen once the accelerator is no longer pressed down enough to maintain momentum, if you take your foot off the regen kicks in quite sharply but maybe not as much as others, obviously this depends on temperature and charge % (sorry feel like that might be a bit teaching granny to suck eggs)
In an ICE, I would engine-brake a lot, so I find B is a better mode, with feathering.
I'm not sure why it would be thought of as useful for the lead-footed amongst us - I certainly found that my ability to read the road was better than the IDs predictions in D mode. I find the ID to be far too lead-footed itself.
However, I find it isn't good to sit at one constant speed for a long period relying on feathering, as my foot will then ache more. For motorways, I'll likely swap back to D.
I don't yet trust ACC enough yet...
I'm not sure why it would be thought of as useful for the lead-footed amongst us - I certainly found that my ability to read the road was better than the IDs predictions in D mode. I find the ID to be far too lead-footed itself.
However, I find it isn't good to sit at one constant speed for a long period relying on feathering, as my foot will then ache more. For motorways, I'll likely swap back to D.
I don't yet trust ACC enough yet...
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