No matter what EV you speak about you will never have "access" to the full battery capacity as there is buffer on the top and bottom of the battery. So you can't fully charge the battery or fully discharge the battery (this is to protect the battery and improve the life).

In the LEAF there is a 24kwh battery but you only have access to 20-21kWh.

Not sure what it would be in the GTE but it seems people are getting around the 22-28 mile range on EV only mode.

 

So why specify longer charging times (3 hours 45 minutes for full charge at 10A or around 9KWh)?
Also I never get more than 22 miles despite turning off all ancillaries (Air-con lights fans etc.)
Li-ion are 80-90% efficient so I would expect to put in at least 10% more than 8.8kWh to store that amount - unless the 8.8kWh specified is the amount one can put in. In either case I am not putting in as much.

 

8.8kWh is the battery capacity. I would hazard a guess that the useable capacity is around the 7kWh mark.

If you are achieving 22 miles on EV mode that means you have an efficiency of 3 miles per kWh.

When recharging my EV towards the end of the recharging the charge rate reduces greatly. So even though it may look like the car is recharging this charge rate is at a very low power and is balancing the battery.

 

I don't know about your Leaf, but there is no reduction in power going to the GTE at the end of charge so it is either going into the battery or 2.4KW is being lost in heat.

 

Charging from a 13a plug is less efficient and also your BMS will take the opportunity at the end of the charge to balance the pack appropriately. The i3 has a logical capacity of 18.8kWh (Physical capacity 24kWh) but after a full charge, and precondition it is not unusual to find the pack sitting at ~19.4kWh, it doesn't matter because you still can only use 18.8kWh.

Also I don't have the figures to hand but there is a notable difference between charging the i3 on a 13amp and 16 or 32amp in terms of units consumed at the meter.

 

Charging from a 13a plug is less efficient and also your BMS will take the opportunity at the end of the charge to balance the pack appropriately. The i3 has a logical capacity of 18.8kWh (Physical capacity 24kWh) but after a full charge, and precondition it is not unusual to find the pack sitting at ~19.4kWh, it doesn't matter because you still can only use 18.8kWh.

Also I don't have the figures to hand but there is a notable difference between charging the i3 on a 13amp and 16 or 32amp in terms of units consumed at the meter.

I don't have the GTE owner's manual to hand, but I'm pretty sure I read that there is a difference in the capacity of the battery when charging at 10 Amps (from a 13 Amp socket) and 16 Amps from a charging station. Can anyone who can be bothered to read the manual confirm this?

 

It might be my imagination but I am sure I came across one document hinting the GTE made 7.7kWh available. That would sort of fit your estimate.

 

Interesting!

 

Also I don't have the figures to hand but there is a notable difference between charging the i3 on a 13amp and 16 or 32amp in terms of units consumed at the meter.[/QUOTE]

I don't know about charging at 16 or 32 Amps. I don't have the capability to charge at this rate except where I cannot accurately measure the charge put in. At 5A I did not notice any difference. I would prefer to charge at a low rate because I have PV cells and get a larger proportion then.

 

I had the same issue last week. I then discovered air conditioning was switched on. I turned it off and the range jumped back to 30 miles.

 

We've been running without Air con and other ancilliaries.

 

I spoke with my VW dealership regarding this. This week, I have charged my GTE fully every day. Each day, apart from today, it would show full battery and only 22 miles.
The dealership were extremely informative. Most I should have figured myself really. The VW manual refers to "Air Conditioning" as the heater, cooler and ventilation. The A/C button is something specific.
My e-range monitor has been showing "Potential + 7 miles" With "Air Conditioning" being the contributor. Turn the climatronic system completely OFF and the range hops up to 29 miles. This week has been very cold in Southampton so the remaining 3 miles missing is likely down to the outside temp.
Today's full charge gave me 24 miles.

 

I am very happy with my car but over the last 3 months I have never got even 20 miles out of it on electric only. Typically I get about 17 miles range maximum even with the battery fully charged and all air conditioning off. It shows 30 or 31 miles range when I start off.

I live in a village 4 miles from the nearest town and I reckon that even 3 or 4 miles at 60mph makes a huge difference. Maybe it is possible to get 22 miles but I think you would be driving on the flat never more than 40mph or mostly going downhill!

 

I am tempted to suggest that all VW spec figures of every kind need to be divided by a constant, which we will refer to as vw, which expresses the distance between what VW claim and what actual usage verifies.

 

I get about 20 miles on average but it is massively dependant on speed, heating, hills and how quickly you accelerate. Last night I managed to achieve 3.5 mi/KWh over 10 miles which would give around 27 miles in total but that was driving along a flat rural road, not exceeding 45 and not having to stop. Normally consumption is around 2.7 mi/KWh but that is higher speeds and hills with the heating on. To maximise range I set the car to heat before I leave at 24C - too hot normally but it means that I can wait longer until I need to use the heating whilst driving.
I find misting up the biggest issue requiring short use of the climate system. I have changed the blower fan profile to "Strong" on the climatronic menu screen which means the screen clears quicker, not sure whether this actually makes a difference to range but makes me feel like I am doing something positive!

 

My wife drove today and she probably got 3 more miles range...... I reckon probably 20 miles out of a full charge.

She is clearly a slightly more leisurely driver than I am.

However, in fairness to VW we do have some small undulations to conquer at the western end of the South Downs hills.

I am driving without heating in the current balmy winter weather.

 

I am not sure on what I am getting exactly but it is lower than the dash figure but I was expecting that. I am still able to get the journeys around "town" that I do on just the electric which was my main aim as that hit the overall MPG on my previous diesel car the most. I think I will try to work out my real range on the electric though as it may help when working out the best mode during longer journeys.

I am also finding that the main reason for using the heating at the moment is due to car misting up. So it is just short bursts to clear the windscreen etc. I wondered if a heated screen would work out more efficient?

 

I wounded if a heated screen would work out more efficient?

I feel wounded too, after having to use the heater and resulting in using the ICE later on.

Yes, absolutely. Heated windscreens, and also heated steering wheels, should be a no-brainer in an EV, but it seems brains are not all located at the correct location in the design process.

Someone should really come up with some after-market heated windscreens for EVs. Odd that the e-Up has a heated screen but it is absent in the GTE? What does the e-Golf have?

 

As the dealer says the figures quoted are on dear ideal conditions. However I would expect this to be achievable in ideal conditions when carefully driven. Ampera drivers achieve the stated figures and above.

 

GM is very conservative with its mileage claims, having been bitten in lawsuits before. VAG are clearly so gun-ho about it, they are prepared to cheat. I would always expect to do better than GM's stated figures would suggest, and worse than VAGs.

 

I am getting between 22 and 23 miles consistently with my Golf GTE from a Pod Point 3KW wall box. Having read the other comments here, I pressed the start button, turned off my heating/air con and the mileage on the dashboard suddenly changed to 30. Turning on the air con again and the mileage went back to 22, yet the car hadn't moved an inch.