FIRST DRIVE VOLKSWAGEN GOLF BLUE-e-MOTION:YOU CANNOT buy this car. Want one? Sorry. Really, really, pretty-please want one? Nope. Not even if you're stinking rich? Not even. As this pristine white Golf sits in front of you, you cannot actually buy it.
In 18 months’ time you will be able to buy a production electric Golf (complete with the somewhat torturous Blue-e-Motion name), but it will be a next-generation Golf, based on the all-new version of the preternaturally popular hatchback, riding on the new MQB chassis that will also underpin a bewildering array of Volkswagen, Seat, Skoda and Audi models in the future.
This Mk VI Golf, the current model, has been built as a seriously limited production run, merely to demonstrate Volkswagen’s commitment to battery motoring and to give at least a sneak preview of what the production electric Golf will be like.
What it will be like (surprise, surprise) is a Golf. Plip the lock, open the door, compress the seat cushion and the Blue-e-Motion feels and looks as standard as any passing 1.6 TDI Golf. Quietly stylish, beautifully built, reassuring in its familiarity. The only clue that your Golf is not like other Golfs is the rev counter, which has been replaced by a dial showing whether you’re drawing power from the batteries or scavenging it from the regenerative braking system, and which also shows, in percentage terms, how much of the electric motor’s power you are deploying – rather like Rolls-Royce’s Power Reserve gauge but in reverse order.
Twist the key in the conventional ignition slot, wait for the bing-bong, and off you go. As you pull away the first thing that strikes you is that there is an engine noise. Huh? Surely electric cars are supposed to (milk) float silently away? Not the Golf, which artificially generates an engine-like hum, a gently rumbly one, which is designed to warn unsuspecting pedestrians of your approach. (I, of course, immediately wished it was simulating the screaming approach of a Porsche 917 Le Mans racer, but that’s probably just me.)
With 115bhp from the electric motor under the bonnet and 270Nm of torque available from the moment you mash the “throttle” pedal, the Golf feels instantly at home sliding into traffic, and its 0-100km/h time of 11.8 seconds is more or less a match for the 1.6 TDI diesel’s. The expected electric-car trick of huge torquey thrust from zero revs is there, but so is the usual sense of breathlessness once above 80-90km/h. The Blue-e-Motion maxes out at a limited 135km/h, but as the acceleration tails off at higher speeds, it’ll take you a while to get there.
Range, always a thorny issue with electric cars, is 150km on a single charge, 10km short of what Nissan claims for the rival Leaf. But then this Golf is not the production Golf, and Volkswagen’s engineers claim that the on-sale version will have a 160km range and hint, tantalisingly, that it may even hit 200km. That’s because, although the electric motor and batteries will be more or less unchanged for production, the physical chassis, the MQB oily bits, will be lighter than the current Golf’s, giving the batteries less work to do.
Volkswagen Ireland reckons that, rather surprisingly, were the current Golf available with this very electric drivetrain, 200 could have been sold this year. That’s a remarkable claim, considering Nissan’s Leaf sold just 34 in 2011 and 41 so far this year. But VW sees the battery Golf as something of a litmus test for electric cars, the idea being that people will be more comfortable buying a familiar, reassuring Golf with an electric drivetrain rather than the more sci-fi-looking Leaf.
As an individual car to drive, it’s a hard proposition to argue with. It looks, steers, drives and feels like a Golf, which is no bad thing.
And the only obvious quibble – the reduced boot space thanks to the battery stack – will be fixed in the Mk VII production model thanks to a repositioned battery layout. The 150km range is limiting, obviously, but then each charge will cost you about €2, which makes a mockery of petrol or diesel prices. Clearly, with a launch still a year and a half away, there are no solid price indicators for the car itself, but VW Ireland is hoping to pitch it between the cost of the well-specced €25,000 Golf TDI and the €29,000 of the Nissan Leaf, depending on Government incentives.
As ever with electric cars, the appeal is not entirely down to the vehicle itself, nor to its capabilities. The appeal is mixed in with the questions of whether a properly established charging network will be in place by the time it goes on sale and whether the Government will see fit to continue financially incentivising the purchase of electric cars.
If the limited range fits your lifestyle, then it’s as good an electric vehicle as I’ve sampled, which is to say very good indeed. But putting the potential usability and value of your car in the hands of the ESB or the Departments of Finance or Environment? Even the Golf’s natural appeal may struggle with that.
FACTFILE
ENGINEPermanent magnet synchronous electric motor with 26.5kWh (115bhp) and 270Nm of torque at 0rpm
PERFORMANCE0-100km/h in 11.8 secs, 135km/h max speed
ECONOMYMax range 150km
EMISSIONS0g/km (€160 tax)
FEATURESFreewheeling or engine braking modes, brake energy recuperation controlled by "gearshift" paddles, smartphone app that remotely controls charging and cabin conditioning, solar roof panel that circulates cool air, two charging points (one front, one rear).
RIVALSNissan Leaf – €30,595 (€160 motor tax), Ford Focus EV – €TBC (€160 motor tax)
PRICE€25-€29,000 (TBC)
OUR RATING 7/10
Appealing, but usability tied up with planning