One million electric cars should be on the road in Germany by 2020. That is what the federal government wanted. Much too high. Now the Chancellor has pulled the plug and cashed the million-dollar goal for electric cars for the time being. No wonder: of around 45,8 million cars registered in Germany, just 34 022 are purely electric cars (as of January 1.1.2017, XNUMX). There is still a lack of acceptance for the silent and - if clean electricity can actually be used - the environmentally friendly variant of mobility on four wheels. mein-auto-blog has addressed the question of "why?" accepted and the little VW e-up! that is on the up! based, sometimes felt on the tooth.
A detour to the tulip blossom in Holland. With an electric car. More precisely with a VW e-up! The exclamation mark belongs to the name of the smallest Stromer from Wolfsburg and does not emphasize the will to assert itself for this trip. Colleagues and acquaintances, even in the family, classify this in advance as a brain-teasing idea. How can a fig leaf designed by Volkswagen as a city car for electromobile progress ever make it further than the nearest city or even across a state border?
The lack of a built-in navigation system and a charge card seems bearable
The e-up! Comes on a Tuesday morning on a trailer, pulled by a muscle-pointing VW Touareg. He does not even seem to appreciate the little brother rolling silently from the ramp. A quick check of the electrified micro-car quickly reveals the lack of a built-in navigation system and the manufacturer's promised charge card to keep bringing the 60 kw / 82 PS powerful electric motor and 18,7 kWh lithium-ion battery back to life. The night before the big trip, the dwarf on the doorstep sucks over his good 10 meter long cable led through the letterbox slot at the garage door to the house current, then in the morning, with a proven range of 152 kilometers, the wind from the sails to the skeptics to take. So the way from the local Soest in the 96 kilometers away Oberhausen should be loosely feasible.
130 km / h in the top is fast gray theory in view of rapidly shrinking range
The downloaded on the private smartphone VW app has there a charging station and google maps also a service center of the local Stadtwerke. But after about 50 kilometers, the remaining range shrinks sensitive, although the specified maximum speed of 130 km / h gray theory remains and neither air conditioning, radio or other consumers claimed energy. Just under four kilometers, the speedometer just before the finish line, fortunately, there is the parking lot in front of the charging station free. The old-fashioned lockable metal case, from which the young employee in the office of the Oberhausener Stadtwerke issued the loaded with a credit of five euros LadeKarte cumbersome against handwritten receipt, suggests first conclusions about the Stone Age handling of electric mobility in this country.
The network of fast charging stations in Germany is as holey as a Swiss cheese
Charging - surprisingly at this charging station but then without a card, but only with a type 2 cable possible - takes two and a half hours of patience. The E-Up! an additional socket for fast charging and can tap up to 50 kilowatts on a three-phase dispenser. Unfortunately, the network of fast-charging stations in Germany is not as dense as in the Netherlands. Which, in turn, as well as the topography actually speaks for the trip to our western neighbors. The first announced fast-charging station in 96 kilometers away from Doetinchem shortly after the border seems to be feasible with the 80 percent charge in Oberhausen and a range of 132 kilometers. None. A quick check of the range indicated on the speedometer and the distance according to Google Maps quickly makes it clear that the destination gets more and more out of the still reachable radius. Although the just 1340 kilogram up! The last few meters on the highway spends as much as possible in the lee of a 80 km / h fast truck, this stage ends this time involuntarily back on a trailer.
Without further consumers, the achievable range for the e-up! at just under 100 km
After that you are always smarter. In times when electric mobility is still in its infancy worldwide, such a tour needs to be carefully prepared. It doesn't even have to fail because of the range that Volkswagen has for the little Up! full-bodied with 160 kilometers. Almost 100 kilometers can be achieved with a carefree driving style, pleasant temperatures and without the overrated amenities of a radio. In any case, this means that one of the 63 Fastned fast charging stations in the Netherlands can be reached directly on the motorway. None is more than 40 kilometers away from the next and can be controlled day and night via an app with a payment function. Fast charging on the provided charging cables with CS, ChAdeMo, AC plugs and Tesla adapter takes a maximum of 20 minutes. Enough time for a walk with a dog in the green surroundings of the charging stations, whose electricity comes exclusively from alternative sources.
The electric VW Up! for a little over 4000 euros. That is still much more than double the up! 22.000 base model of the up! with petrol engine. In return, the purely electric excursion to the Netherlands - and back at pure travel costs - cost just under 10.000 euros and brought an important lesson: With an electric car, as small as it is, you can also go further away on vacation. But you shouldn't just go for it. Unless the way is the goal and time and nerves are more resilient than the battery ...
Text and photos: Solveig Grewe