[JD4JC]

Volkswagen says it will offer a 373-mile EV in 2020 at the price of a diesel Golf

 

[Dark_Stang]

Let's do some simple math here:
The 2011/12 Volt has a range of 35 miles and base MSRP was $40k.
The 2016/17 Volt has a range of 53 miles and base MSRP is $33k.
That's a 51.4% increase in range about a 17.5% price drop over 5 years.
On average we got 10% more range and about 3.5% cheaper with each year.

The 2017 Bolt has an electric range of 238 miles and base MSRP is about $37k.
By 2020 the $7,500 incentive that will get dropped by that time.
Conjecture warning: GM will probably drop the price by 5-7k to make up for it.
If we extrapolate the above data then the 2020 Bolt should be around: 310 miles of range and cost around $27k.

VW isn't really doing anything special here. This is really just maintaining a precedent that another company has already set.
If any major advances in battery tech come out between now and then, these numbers will be blown out of the water.

 

[ampera_jed]

VW is not simply not doing 'anything special'.

It is doing sweet nothing at all.

All BS from VW.

When will it EVER back up its big mouth with some real action?

I'm actually really sick and tired of hearing about VW this and VW that. Sorry, nothing against the OP, but, errr.. could we BAN any mention of VW until they actually release a new EV!?!

It's as if VW think by talking a good game they are somehow keeping up with the EV competition.

Can we deny them any oxygen here on this forum?

 

[DonC]

People rarely mention the drive cycle but I suspect the range is based on the more gentle EU cycle, which means the range would be considerably shorter on the current EPA cycle.

 

[emv]

In the software biz we call this Vaporware.

 

[USe-car]

Maybe they'll re-calibrate the speedometer to read three times the actual mileage when being tested for battery mileage, kind of how they re-German engineered their diesels. Those crafty Germans.

 

[ampera_jed]

"Krafty" as in "Kraft durch Freude"?

 

[eDreamin']

In the software biz we call this Vaporware.

Or FUD (Fear, Uncertainty, & Doubt).
"Should I buy an EV now with 50 (Volt), 100 (Leaf), or 230 (Bolt) miles or wait until 2020 for the VW? Will I be disappointed with a purchase now? Should I wait for the next advance?"

I'm not saying they can't do it. It's just, what's the point? Why potentially cannibalize today's sales by promising something 3 years from now (does anyone remember the Osborne computer)? As frustrating as GM has been by not advertising its plans, it's not a bad strategy to just shut up!

By the way, in 2025 I'll be manufacturing an electric SUV that can tow 2000 lbs and gets 450 miles per charge. Anyone care to put down a deposit now to be first in line?

 

[Steverino]

This is good news about intentions. But a press release about what you someday may or may not do costs nothing. I do expect VW to make EV's in the future, yes. When they have test mules of the 373 AER EV(using US stricter test) on the road, wake me up.

 

[Fyodor]

I don't see any reason to dump on VW or doubt that they can do this. Have we forgotten the original Volt concept, and how that was considered vapourware and would never get built? ( and that it almost didn't)

VW already produces the e-Golf, the e-Up!, and the Golf GTE so it has competitors on the road today in the same market spaces as the Volt and the Bolt. This would represent an incremental improvement, a bigger e-Golf on a different platform. They could do it, and more easily than Tesla could the Model S.

 

[srs5694]

Yes, it's currently vaporware. OTOH, given the requirements of the diesel settlement, the odds are that VW will produce a wide range of EVs in the not-so-distant future. Most (maybe all) of the major automakers are moving in that direction, and it's likely that what will be available in 2020 will make the current offerings look rather weak. That's not news. Whether you buy something now or delay a few years until the next generation of EVs is available is an individual decision that must be informed by your current needs, the state of whatever you're driving now, your current and expected future finances, etc. In sum, it's nice to see what VW is planning, but this announcement doesn't greatly change the overall picture.

 

[Ladogaboy]

I agree that the sentiment is important. I'd rather have companies striving for 400-mile range EVs and only producing 300-mile EVs than if they didn't do anything at all.

 

[ampera_jed]

genuine sentiment is relevant.

Is VW sentiment genuine? No evidence of this currently.

 

[Norm51]

More VaporWare news from VW

Concept Electric Bus

More VaporWare news from VW...

VW didn't say for certain that it would be produced for sale but*, [*Emphasis mine] in introducing the ID Buzz, the automaker talked about a "big electric offensive" to begin in 2020. By 2025 the German automaker hopes to be selling 1 million electric vehicles per year.

"We are making electric mobility the new trademark of Volkswagen," the automaker said in a statement.

The ID Buzz follows on the VW ID electric concept car unveiled at the Paris Motor Show in late September.

The ID boasts a 270 mile driving range, according to VW, and a total of 369 horsepower from two electric motors. However, VW did not say how that driving range was calculated.

With one electric motor in front and one in back, the ID Buzz has all-wheel drive. It is also capable of fully autonomous driving, according to VW. The driver's seat can even be turned around 180 degrees to face backward and the steering wheel can also retract into the dashboard.

While the original VW Microbus was famously underpowered and slow, this one will be able to jump from zero to 60 miles an hour in just five seconds, VW says. Top speed will be limited to 99 miles an hour.

The name Buzz plays off the word "Bus," VW said, while ID stands for -- take your pick -- "Idea," "Identity," or "Intelligent Design," among other things.

VW's big push on electric vehicles follows the automaker's recent diesel emissions scandal. Volkswagen was found to have installed software that reduced harmful emissions from many of the automaker's diesel-powered vehicles only during testing. As part of a plan to make up for that, VW has agreed to promote electric cars.

This is not VW's first electric bus concept. Volkswagen showed off the BUDD-e electric concept bus almost exactly one year ago at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas. At that time VW said the electric VW bus could be in production by the end of the decade.

Concept VW Electric Car

 

[Mister Dave]

I don't see any reason to dump on VW or doubt that they can do this. Have we forgotten the original Volt concept, and how that was considered vapourware and would never get built? ( and that it almost didn't)

VW already produces the e-Golf, the e-Up!, and the Golf GTE so it has competitors on the road today in the same market spaces as the Volt and the Bolt. This would represent an incremental improvement, a bigger e-Golf on a different platform. They could do it, and more easily than Tesla could the Model S.

+1. Weird how so many say "I hope [X company] succeeds" but this company gets dumped on. I encourage everyone to do their best. I get to pick from that for my next ride. I like choices.

 

[Dutch]

I don't see any reason to dump on VW

You mean other than their long history of making grand (grandiose) announcements and then releasing "meh, it's okay" vehicles?

[Okay, except for the '83 Wolfsburg Edition Rabbit GTi... THAT was amazing]
http://media-cache-ak0.pinimg.com/736x/95/fa/db/95fadbf2395a89a0475ab125c6d616bb.jpg

 

[Mister Dave]

You mean other than their long history of making grand (grandiose) announcements and then releasing "meh, it's okay" vehicles?

LOL - Because "We're making a MEH car" announcements happen all the time?

 

[DrMiguelitoLoveless]

How about VW just do something simple, like offer the e-Golf in all 50 states before it makes grandiose promises?