Volkswagen's Plan: Lure 'em in With Sporty Plug-ins, Sell Them on EV Tech

by Steph Willems

Published: April 9th, 2020

volkswagen s plan lure em in with sporty plug ins sell them on ev tech

If you’re a greenie who loves hauling your compostable tote to the grocery store in search of climate-conscious vegan food, Volkswagen’s U.S. lineup likely leaves a lot to be desired. For now, anyway. The automaker’s domestic offerings are pretty heavily skewed in favor of larger, gas-powered utility vehicles, with the promised lineup of electrics has yet to materialize.

Overseas, VW product news would have this hypothetical buyer up at night, unable to sleep due to all of the cortisol rushing through their bloodstream. Knowing the jump to EVs might be too wide a gap for some, the automaker is readying a range of performance plug-in hybrids to placate the nervous and sell them on the idea of electricity.

European buyers have access to a Golf GTE plug-in hybrid with 242 horsepower and 295 lb-ft of torque drawn from a turbocharged 1.4-liter/electric motor combo. That same powertrain is expected to find its way into the Tiguan GTE and Arteon GTE, both announced by VW earlier this month. In that market, VW also has a Passat GTE on offer, with a second-generation Tiguan R plug-in for those who like spending money. That model pairs a 2.9-liter V6 with its electric hardware.

“This is one means of making electrified cars attractive: they can combine pure electric driving capability with high performance if the driver wants to use it,” said Kia Philipp, VW’s electric powertrain manger, in an interview with Autocar. “With a plug-in hybrid system, that performance comes with no compromise in terms of torque or power, so we wanted to use the two components to make the car as attractive as possible.”

With a hotter version of the Arteon nixed for the U.S. market and importation of anything but the hottest (Mk. 8) Golf family members expected for the coming year, a plug-in product surge in the U.S. looks unlikely. Here, VW has a two sides-style strategy in mind: conventional gas-powered vehicles, and all-electric. That said, it’s not inconceivable that the company would introduce a PHEV in a popular segment where the expected take rate would make the operation worthwhile.

If one were to come, the Tiguan seems the most likely candidate. Look at its increasingly electrified compact CUV rivals for a reason why.

While plug-in hybrids remain a tough sell on this side of the pond, Volkswagen sees brighter days ahead for the powertrain type. “It’s my personal view that the peak for plug-in hybrid cars is still ahead of us and will come in the next 8-10 years,” Philipp said. “But it’s strongly dependent on the market success of pure electric cars.”

[Image: Corey Lewis/TTAC]

#FutureModels #Green #PHEV #Plug-inHybrids #ProductPlanning #Volkswagen #VW

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12 of 28 comments

Jkross22 on Apr 09, 2020

EVs are fine, but out of town travel for most requires way too much compromise due to charging station locations and time. What Honda and Toyota have done with their hydrogen cars seems like a smart way to address this - offer up 2 weeks of lux rental car time per year with each lease of the Clarity/Mirai. No reason EVs can't come with a similar feature.

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- Mcs on Apr 09, 2020
  
  "EVs are fine, but out of town travel for most requires way too much compromise due to charging station locations and time." As an EV owner, I just don't understand that. When I was making long distance trips in ICE cars, I was taking 30 minute rest stops every 2 or 3 hours. Actual number in one case that I looked up was 250 miles and 3 hours 45 minutes. I was probably stopping for at least 30 minutes. I'm looking at a 258 to 300+ mile range for my next car. A Model 3 can put in 180 miles range in 15 minutes. Maybe 45 to get to full range I'm guessing. So, you take a little more time catching up on email and resting. I just don't see that much extra time for a trip in an EV. The extra time, if any, would consume more time than it would take to get the rental car and do the paperwork. These days, all of my out of town driving is less than 150 miles a year. Any of the cars I'm considering can do that without charging along the route. Even my Leaf can do it with just one 20-minute quick charge. No problem charging at my destinations. With the new car, I'll never have to go and hunt down a place to fuel even on out of town trips. If I do need a charger, there are plenty of charging stations these days. At hotels, I've even been able to use a 120v outlet for overnight charging. The Tesla Supercharger Network is up to 16,585, so they have plenty of coverage. The other thing you don't seem to realize is that it's tough to go back to an ICE car after you've been driving an EV. I found that out first hand. I thought I'd use an ICE car for longer trips, but I found I'd rather deal with the 30-minute charge than a torque-lag afflicted ICE car. You also don't have to stand next to the charger with your hand on the cord. You're off doing other things. I'm usually catching up on email and it's not unusual for me to stay a couple of minutes longer than the charge time to finish up. I think we're getting close to 400 to 500-mile range EVs. 350-kW charging is starting to get deployed. I just don't see when you'd need to rent an ICE car for a trip with that kind of range.
  
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- Ajla on Apr 09, 2020
  
  @mcs From Monday to Friday I only drive about 23 miles a day but on the weekends driving 250-300 miles in a single day isn't especially rare. I also usually do 2-3 1000 mile trips during the year. So a PHEV seems to fit my lifestyle pretty well. Maybe that is a weird use case, IDK. You also seem to have a lot more emails to catch up on than I do. But it is really more "infrastructure anxiety" than actual range anxiety. Availability is improving, but there still just aren't enough sure-thing chargers around for me to feel comfortable with owning a BEV, especially a non-Tesla. More chargers would be great. A 500 mile range would work too because at that point I'd rarely need to use nonhome charging.
  
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- SCE to AUX on Apr 09, 2020
  
  @ajla "sure-thing chargers" That's a very good point. Tesla chargers seem to be 'sure-thing', but others can be hit-or-miss based upon the provider or the host facility. The majority seem OK, but a few are very bad. The host facilities treat their chargers as an amusing novelty, while the EV driver sees it as a lifeline. Tesla understands this, which is why they built their own network. The PlugShare app shows charger ratings based on user input, and some are downright appalling, often ending with the words "thanks for leaving me stranded". Others complain about washed-out screens or chronically broken stations at a facility. One way to resolve this problem would be a universal charging standard and user interface, much like the unleaded fuel nozzle and pump. Long distance EVs need this to increase market share and customer confidence. A decade after EVs went mainstream, I still can't drive my 124-mile range EV out 62 miles and expect that I can refill it to make it home.
  
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- Jkross22 on Apr 09, 2020
  
  @mcs I realize all of what you said. I've also heard Tesla owners complain about people parking in charging spots and leaving their cars past the time the cars are charged, preventing other people from charging. Or other people being jerks and using charging spots as regular parking spots. Or during busy times when there's a wait for a charger. I live in So. Cal. so T chargers aren't rare, but it's just too much of a hassle on a longer trip, even if it's local (going to San Diego, Santa Barbara, Orange County, etc.). Good to hear that it works for you. It wouldn't for a lot of people with different use cases. Ironically, I'd have little concern taking a cross country trip with a Tesla. Locally though... no way.
  
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- Jalop1991 on Apr 09, 2020
  
  @mcs "As an EV owner, I just don’t understand that. When I was making long distance trips in ICE cars, I was taking 30 minute rest stops every 2 or 3 hours." No, your lack of understanding doesn't come from being an EV owner. Your lack of understanding comes from your inability to drive long distances in a reasonable manner. (cue the Teslarati "but you have to stop for lunch anyway" crowd, the mantra from 10 years ago as they try to excuse frequent and long stops for charging)
  
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- Mcs on Apr 09, 2020
  
  jalop1991: No inability to drive long distances in a reasonable manner. Maybe you think the right way to do a long-distance drive is put on a pair of depends and go non-stop for 8 hours. If I'm going to go long-distance, I'm going to kick back, enjoy the scenery, and take the time to stop and eat. If I'm in a hurry, I'll fly. Nothing wrong with stopping to eat. I did it when I had an ICE car, and it's no different with an EV. Nothing wrong with stopping for 30 minutes. That's what I was doing before. Another thing, "reasonable manner" means not driving to the point you are so fatigued that you are a menace to others on the highway.
  
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- Jack4x on Apr 09, 2020
  
  @mcs Spending 17-25% of my road trip time at a standstill is not reasonable. I'm taking a 1500 mile round trip with my truck this weekend to pick up a piece of equipment. It's about 11 hours each way and I fully expect to be stopped for less than 30 minutes total in the 22 hours of driving (1 stop for fuel and food each way, possibly a second bathroom stop if needed). I literally wouldn't be able to make this trip in 2 days if I had to stop for 30 minutes every 2-3 hours.
  
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- Jalop1991 on Apr 10, 2020
  
  @mcs "If I’m going to go long-distance, I’m going to kick back, enjoy the scenery, and take the time to stop and eat." Ah, the cry of the defensive Teslarati. Tell me, how much DO you eat in a day? If you can't go 6 hours in a car without stopping, something's wrong.
  
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- RHD on Apr 14, 2020
  
  @mcs You gotta stop and pee every now and then. Don't tell me you're one of those cretins who uses a Gatorade bottle, then chucks it out the window.
  
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- Dal20402 on Apr 14, 2020
  
  @mcs Imagine if maybe EVs (with the expanded charging infra that's already on the way) are well-suited for families on road trips who have to stop for potty and snack breaks, and not as well suited for road warriors doing 1500 miles at a stretch! It's almost as though different products could serve different markets. There is a spot on my last 2000-mile road trip where there are not currently any fast chargers, but fix that one spot, and I think we could do the trip in the Bolt almost as fast as we did it in the Highlander. Small kids, not range, are usually the limiting factor.
  
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ToolGuy on Apr 09, 2020

• Volkswagen’s Plan: Lure ’em in With Sporty Plug-ins, Sell Them on EV Tech • Toyota's Plan: More Grille • Hyundai's Plan: Keep Improving, Sell Vehicles • GM's Plan: Announce Plans for Future 'Green' Offerings, Then Cancel Those Plans and Sell Fullsize SUV's • Ford's Plan: Rainbow, Unicorn, Mach-E, Put Difficult Launches Behind Us • Nissan's Plan: Find the Audio-Equipment Case • Honda's Plan: What is a "Plan"? • FCA's Plan: Refer to PSA's Plan • Renault's Plan: Unavailable for comment (in a meeting with the government of France) • PSA's Plan: Push to Pass

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