Hi and welcome!

Cold weather is probably the reason...

 

Thanks,

Just surprised it's quite so big a drop.

 

I can only speak as an observer (and an e-Golf driver!) -- however I've noticed my efficiency drop by 25% in the last month or so.

 

Broadly the same story driving a Nissan LEAF.

 

Anyone have direct Golf GTE experience?

 

the amount of charge seems to drop off in cold weather - i.e. the amount that the battery is charged...
then it appears to depend on what things are turned on off course but I have noticed that the range indicator can drop very quickly if running only in e-mode...
I try to remeber to put into "hybrid" [but usually forget until almost out of "e"]

running only in "e" for short local distances I find that the distances travelled dont seem to agree with the "charge" but I think in the winter there is more going on with auto cooling fans and screen clearance/etc. than I realise!

It would be great if ther were a battery upgrade to 50 [ summer max charge = 28; winter = 20; during winter I usually get 23]

 

I was getting 25 miles but now the temperature has dropped it's more like 18 but it's a fairly good run so faster or stop start might be closer to your figures. Are you pre heating? what's your commute/ journey distance? you might find starting in ICE in the cold to get the temp up if you can't preheat makes a difference especially if it is going to come on later in the journey anyway and turn the temp down in the car.

 

My wife uses the car to run back and forth from our local town (3.5 miles). Was hoping based on range of car we'd get three journeys there and back, but sometimes only achieving one with a couple of small stops in town before having to recharge. Our run to town is pretty straight and there's no traffic, so mostly sit at 60 once out our junction. We don't preheat the car.

 

60mph and no preheating in the cold is going to dent the range. Could you preheat? have you registered for the app or portal so you can start the heating remotely? If you can get there and back and it is short journeys as you describe you are just as well to recharge when at home and not bother with preheating accepting more frequent charges. However, have you seen the thread Snug'n'Smug ?...or scraping the windscreen still ... ......

 

< braking comments removed, after a few re reads I realised not relevant to the question >

Or of course, if you've a bummer of a driving route & traffic densities .... then the only option is to move house....or move / change destinations......try alternate routes ?

Perhaps someone hitting a Bum Warmer Button and forgetting to say so ....

Also just read elsewhere that rain is big big cause of denting full battery mileage....lot of the implications on tyre drag, wipers/lights/demist ..... could be that sort of weather has been a big feature in your 2 weeks - again not a lot you can do there ...

 

Also disappointed with GTE's range. The battery never exceeds 25 miles on 'full charge' and I manage no more than 15 miles on my regular run on flat roads with some stops for traffic lights. Heating on minimum. VW agreed to take it in to see if there is a problem but from what I'm reading, other users have the same limited charge and, hence, range. I don't mind not meeting the ambitious 30 miles as advertised but don't like not having access to more than 24 miles when I set off.
As expected, MPG on longer non-electric runs is not good - about 42mpg on along motorway run on 'hybrid'. This means that the overall long term MPG is mid 50's which isn't good given that I pump electricity into it every night. Otherwise a fantastic car to drive.

 

Neil69 - I get between 14 and 17 miles out of mine. Any 60 mile per hour sections greatly reduces the range. My wife seems to drive a bit slower and she seems to be able to get over 20 miles range very occasionally out of the car.

 

We have been studying this seasonal issue on EVA-Scotland, as you might expect.

Conclusion is EV range is halved in winter due mainly to low temperature behaviour of our chemical batteries. While not scientifically proven, and precise factors can be debated and depend on driver behaviour of course.
Broadly with a 15 degree drop from summer temps:

Battery chemistry - minus 35% (some potential decline and mostly quicker discharge)
Cold air is denser giving more drag - minus 7%
Using the heater (variable) - say minus 5%
Generally windier and wetter (drag & rolling resistance) - say minus 5%
Wipers, defog - minus 3%
Lights on more often - minus 2%
Less regeneration due to battery non-capture- minus 2% perhaps

So we live with it, or find a way to keep the battery warm. Preheating the EV would seem to help.

Richard

 

We have been studying this seasonal issue on EVA-Scotland, as you might expect.

Conclusion is EV range is halved in winter due mainly to low temperature behaviour of our chemical batteries. While not scientifically proven, and precise factors can be debated and depend on driver behaviour of course.
Broadly with a 15 degree drop from summer temps:

Battery chemistry - minus 35% (some potential decline and mostly quicker discharge)
Cold air is denser giving more drag - minus 7%
Using the heater (variable) - say minus 5%
Generally windier and wetter (drag & rolling resistance) - say minus 5%
Wipers, defog - minus 3%
Lights on more often - minus 2%
Less regeneration due to battery non-capture- minus 2% perhaps

So we live with it, or find a way to keep the battery warm. Preheating the EV would seem to help.

Richard

And the good news:

The colder the battery the less it degrades with calendar ageing.

PS EV Status averages from 324 drivers over several years shows a seasonal change of 1 mile per kWh on average. About a 25% drop from high summer performance of 4 miles per kWh. At -20 degree C you would have about a 60% drop from performance at plus 20 degree C.

Near Summer time performance with an ambient of 11 C was restored today by driving as soon as the battery had topped and balanced at 100% with fast charging and was showing five bars on the Nissan LEAF. Two hours parked up at night and the battery was back down to 4 bars for the return journey.

 

My GTE is showing 30 miles available this morning. It'll be interesting to see how many I actually achieve. Any longer term GTE owners have any insight into how the electric range prediction is arrived at? i.e. is it a guessometer as in the Leaf?

 

I seem not to have been paying attention..! I've just become aware that you're driving a GTE and not an Outlander @Eugene Lambert

What made you change? And how do you find it compared with the Mitsu?

 

I seem not to have been paying attention..! I've just become aware that you're driving a GTE and not an Outlander @Eugene Lambert

What made you change? And how do you find it compared with the Mitsu?

@Tim Ostler Yes, just traded the Outlander for a GTE. Collected and drove it down from Scunthorpe, and today to Oxford and back to have a towbar fitted.

As for the why? When I bought the Outlander it was the only PHEV capable of towing (apart from the Tesla-priced Volvo V60 PHEV). It was an SUV, which was not ideal as I don't like SUVs, but I felt I had no choice. Then, lo and behold, eighteen months later I become aware the GTE can now tow. So, after a bit of research and a lucky connection with @Grant Thomas (who's father was looking for an Outlander) I got a great price for a 65 plate GTE that had been driven by a VW manager and had all the extras I was looking for.

The verdict so far? The GTE is an amazing piece of kit. It drives beautifully, has a similar electric range to the Outlander, but markedly superior driving dynamics and will be capable of much higher 'mpg' given the driving I do. Other benefits: its smaller size means it'll go in the garage; and my wife will drive it.

As for the Outlander, I still think it's a great piece of kit. The higher and upright driving position will suit some (older?) drivers; it's 4x4 and has good ground clearance; the tiptronic adjustment of regen is very clever and useable; better luggage carrying capability; better towing capability.

On balance though, the GTE is a better car for where I live and what I need. I'm happy.

 

Congratulations! The Golf MQB platform is sweet to drive. I seriously considered the GTE for many of the same reasons and I am sure you'll continue to be happy with it..!

 

My GTE is showing 30 miles available this morning. It'll be interesting to see how many I actually achieve. Any longer term GTE owners have any insight into how the electric range prediction is arrived at? i.e. is it a guessometer as in the Leaf?

I've had an e-tron for over 7 months now so my experience should be broadly applicable to the GTE. I think the range predictor is based on an average of your recent drives. So only if driving conditions were identical would you get your predicted range, sometimes I have got more. The best predicted ranges seem to come after drives in hybrid auto. Logically I think this is because if you 'coast' after using the ICE the car counts this as part of emission free range and secondly in hybrid auto the car uses the battery preferentially for low loads switching to the ICE for higher loads again artificially boasting apparent EV range. This also leads to the bizarre statistic (albeit technically correct) on the car computer that you can drive 200 miles and still have had an apparent 35% EV motoring. In Summer I got predicted ranges of up to 33 miles, average now about 23 miles. In ideal Summer conditions driving marginally more sportily than a hearse I frequently came close to a 30 mile EV range on a continuous drive. Short 3-4 mile drives would not get near that cumulative total range. Recently in wet snow at -1c range down to 14-15 miles. So I would agree extremes of weather could lead to a 50% difference in range. Nevertheless my average mpg after 4500 miles is 134 which I am more than happy with.

 

Yup. I achieved 21.5 miles of electric motoring in appalling weather conditions, so broadly equivalent to my Outlander's achievable electric-only range in the same conditions.

 

Regularly achieving 25 miles battery range daily on my 50 mile commute.

Had my GTE a week now and apart from the first charge (only managed 23), it charges to 30 miles estimated range every night.

I have found though you have to manage the modes continously through out a journey to get the best out of the car....

For example on my commute, I leave my residential street and drive for 3 miles through town in e-mode never going over 30mph. As I approach the edge of my town and a national speed limit I switch to GTE mode. Mpg goes from 300 (lol) to 70 mpg. 4 miles later I then drive through another town at 30mph in e-mode for 4 miles. I then switch back to GTE mode for a 9 mile drive along rural roads. At this point the car is reading approx 54mpg. I then come to Swindon and drive for another 5 miles back in e-mode (with approx a 1 mile coast down a hill). MPG back upto 68-70mpg.

It's possible to get 60mpg plus from this car but it's a lot of effort and driving like a vicar.

Hybrid mode is a waste of time IMO. Same commute and it does no better than 48mpg for me. Sometimes uses the petrol engine around town and electric mode on fast A roads. Odd.

Think GTE is a really good mode for normal driving/ faster roads away from towns etc. Seems to hold the battery topped with out drinking fuel....

 

I have been trying to work out way the hybrid works the way it does - agreeing with the "odd" comment above... recently started using GTE mode more - as I thought "hybrid" was better - according to the manual... GTE mode charges the battery too!
It seems to me hybrid mode "has a mind of its own"... I originally thought it was down to speed but also starting in e in residential street mostly until 40 mph but then another day it will ICE at 10 mph!!!
ODD as you say

 

My GTE only got its first full charge yesterday, and showed 25 miles this morning. The demonstrator I had for 48-hours showed 32 miles during the milder weather.

I imagine GTE mode is going to use more fuel than auto-hybrid. The MY16 behaves differently in GTE mode I believe, and does 'battery hold' rather than 'charge'.

 

@Pulp84 very interesting item, thank you for posting.
Q: if you head off from home in default Emode , living it there regardless of roads, and just let it do its again default stuff when the 25-29miles worth runs out , what then is the reported MPG?

 

@Pulp84 very interesting item, thank you for posting.
Q: if you head off from home in default Emode , living it there regardless of roads, and just let it do its again default stuff when the 25-29miles worth runs out , what then is the reported MPG?

@gladini - to be fair the car seems to drink petrol when battery charge is gone and and it can't use electric motor assistance. This happened to me yesterday after some spirited driving. 38-40mpg is where it settled.

I today drove to an office near home (10 mile round trip) and used e-mode exclusively, never going above 40 mph / mix of slow town driving and some traffic. Not really giving any thought to how I was driving (giving it a good amount of acceleration and not coasting) and the 29 battery range was gone by the time I got home.

Still learning how to get the best out of it really. There is some trial and error.....

 

Like everyone else with a GTE; battery range since Winter has set in has had a 20% drop approx.
Before temperature fell, after full charge, range was typically 27-31 miles indicated on MFA display; whilst charging was via VW supplied 13A charging lead, but charging was set @ 10A. We had 32A wall box charger fitted 6 weeks ago FOC care of EST (they specified 32A against 16A/future proofing). Full charge time @ 16A is now 2h 5m against 3h 45m from before @ 10A; but since temp drop, MFA only indicates typically 23-25 miles, but if you turn off the A/C when turning on the ignition, milage increases back up to 30-31 miles. If using the interior pre-heat whilst charging, upon charge completion, range generally 27-29 miles, so a interior pre-heat helps if you are going to drive straight after a charge. We have recently turned down the juice back to 10A for charging due to our solar PV taking a little longer in the morning before producing any usable power, thereby lower amount in/longer period charge, once better weather returns (hopefully sooner than later), the juice will be maxed again to reduce charge time.
Average MPG on Discover Pro/MFA on tank refill has been 110, longterm 97.7; over the 2493 miles that we have completed since 1st September with 3 full and 2 partial refuels. Average electric consumption has risen 20% since buying the car, but given lower cost of electric to petrol, and free partial charge via solar PV, still happy.
Enjoyment more using the E-mode, partly from how it performs through the gears and the many shorter journeys that we have been making; if we know we are going a A road or motorway, Auto Hybrid is selected. GTE rarely used to loud synthetic sound; I must remember to turn down the % via VCDS next time its plugged in.
Given short time of ownership compared to some on this forum, we have been overjoyed at all round performance/economy package the GTE offers.
Happy bunny as previous Tiguan had a EA 189 2.0CR diesel, which is an affected car, but with some luck, just traded in 13 days before the current saga started.

 

Remember the " up to 31 miles" should always have been written " under lab conditions, for comparison purposes only" .
There was a fab item a couple of years back explaining how in winter the density of the air, the temperature, all had a much bigger drain on EVs efficiency vs ICE.

 

Up to, is now Down to 29 miles on the VW website

 

Also to cheer yourself up, go ask a Mini Countryman, or BMW 330e mk1 or Merc 350e mk1 drivers, ask them what they get these days on a full charge. Then you'll feel better.

 

It's not just the A/C, the fans seem to suck up a lot of power. If I have a full charge in my GTE in cold weather with the blower on one LED and no A/C, my range reads 22 miles. Switching the climate control completely off makes this jump to 28 miles immediately. Which also means it's not just an estimate based on recent behaviour, it also monitors how much power the electrical systems are drawing in real time

 

That's because when the fans are off so is the climate control.
Set the climate control to LO and turn off AC if you want minimum power consumption with ventilation.

 

Hi all, just got my brand new Passat Variant GTE. I'll try to provide you my impressions as soon as I get enough km done

 

I still like our GTE despite the pathetic range on electric only and the relatively heavy petrol consumption. I'd like it less if we didn't have other cars to use for longer journeys.
Interestingly, I test drove a Kia e Niro recently and was surprised to find that on a journey of 16 mixed miles from cold, the ranged diminished by exactly 16 miles. A similar journey in the VW would probably have wiped out the electric range completely.
I even briefly considered placing a deposit for an e Niro, but came to my senses after a few minutes. After all the Niro costs £37,000 and I was bored with it long before the end of the 16 mile drive.
It even felt nice to get back into the Golf afterwards.