Great review from Automobile Mag on 2015 e-Golf

[mitchell]

Snippets of review taken from full review at http://www.automobilemag.com/reviews/driven/1404-2015-volkswagen-e-golf-review/

The Volkswagen e-Golf, set to go on sale in October 2014 in the US, is Volkswagen's first electric vehicle that will be available in North America.

As a Golf, it is highly advanced and thoroughly refined; it just happens to be electric.

Neither dramatic nor thrilling -- VW quotes 10.4 seconds to 62 mph and a limited top speed of 87 mph -- the experience is nonetheless satisfying, especially in Germany, where 23 percent of electric power comes from renewable sources, and in Berlin, where there is nary a pothole. With 115 hp and 199 lb-ft of torque, electric propulsion delivers a substantial feeling, like a breakfast smoothie fortified by a sweet potato.

2015 Volkswagen e-Golf
ON SALE Late October 2014
BASE PRICE $32,000 (est.)
MOTOR Permanent synchronous motor, 24.2 kWh battery
POWER 115 hp/85 kW
TORQUE 199 lb-ft
TRANSMISSION Single-speed
DRIVE Front-wheel
WHEELBASE 103.6 in.
LENGTH x WIDTH x HEIGHT 167.4 x 70.8 x 57.2 in.
WEIGHT 3310 lb
0-60 MPH 10.3 sec. (est.)
TOP SPEED 87 mph

 

[cove3]

I was told by VW US that the unladen curb weight of the US version was 3090 lbs. Where is the 3310 lbs in the article coming from? A 220lb driver?

Also, is that $32000 a guess and after a 7500 tax credit? If not, could it sell that much cheaper in the US? VW hasn't stated a US price

Is the late October availability the author's guess?

Ron

 

[vwfan]

I was told by VW US that the unladen curb weight of the US version was 3090 lbs. Where is the 3310 lbs in the article coming from? A 220lb driver?

Also, is that $32000 a guess and after a 7500 tax credit? If not, could it sell that much cheaper in the US? VW hasn't stated a US price

Is the late October availability the author's guess?

Ron

The article doesn't cite a source, but since the article is discussing a test drive they took at an official VW test drive event at Tempelhof Airport in Berlin, I would assume they are citing information received directly from Volkswagen.

RE: the 200lb discrepency, perhaps one weight is a pre-production vehicle? Or maybe VW had changed something since the article was written in April 2014.

The $32,000 is an estimated price, there is no mention of the $7500 tax credit. I would assume that's what the reviewer feels the vehicle needs to be priced at in order to compete with currently available electric vehicles like the Nissan Leaf or BMW i3.

 

[vwfan]

Just saw that the quoted weight of the e-Golf is 3,090 lbs according to a test drive report by Green Car Reports done just last week, but it was a euro-spec car as well