[121Gigawatt]

Hello! I'm a former Passat tdi owner who became an Atlas owner... hopefully soon to be first time VW EV owner

I'm eagerly waiting for my ID.4 AWD Pro S to arrive. In the meantime, I have a couple of novice questions that I'm sure I could easily google but was hoping to hear ID.4 owner experiences.

1. I want this to be a daily driver to/from work. I live 35 miles from my office and in Houston the commute time downtown can vary anywhere from 45 minutes to well over an hour. I read about range in terms of mileage and that you should only charge up to 80% on a typical day. The 240 mi EPA rating I understand is also optimistic and likely well below that. My question/concern is if there is an "idle" consumption loss that can be experienced while driving in stop-and-go traffic + sitting in the parking garage at work for 8+ hours? Could my 70 mile roundtrip commute depending on traffic and time not plugged in consume significantly more of the charge to where I would ever be concerned I would need to charge up prior to making it home? (240 mi estimated x 65% realistic x 80% daily charge = 125 mi - 70 mi roundtrip = 55 mi wiggle room).

2. Home charging and power surges -- I plan to install a Level 2 charger prior to delivery. I have a whole-home surge protector at the electric panel. In case of failure, does the car have any built-in surge protection or should I have backup surge protection installed with the charging station? Is this even something to worry about?

Thanks!

 

[dfox]

1. There is some "idle" consumption, but only climate control and other electronics (radio, etc) Much less than a Gas engine. I don't think the motor consumed any electricity while stopped. I actually get over 240 miles on 80% charge in town driving. Highway is closer to 200. You shouldn't have a problem.
2. Depends on the EVSE. Most have GFCI built-in. I had a momentary failure last week of a second or two and my Grizzl-E faulted out, but recovered when I turned the breaker off, then back on after a few second.

 

[mlsstl]

I would not worry in the least about your 70 mile round trip. Here in the St. Louis area, I am getting a steady average of 3.6 miles per KWH, which translates to 220 miles from an 80% charge. I get a lot of regen in local driving that really helps the mileage. And those figures include a number of recent episodes where I've been just sitting in the car going nowhere for 15 or 20 minutes with AC running. Now, if one is talking steady-state highway speeds for long periods, I'd expect more along the lines of 3 miles per KWH, or 180 to 190 miles from an 80% charge. (This assumes you're not towing or putting a luggage carrier or such on the roof.) Depending on the details of your commute, you may find yourself only needing to charge every other day. So far, I've been very impressed with how conservative VW's advertised range numbers have been.

 

[121Gigawatt]

Thank you both for responding. I started taking myself down a worst-case rabbit hole since my goal would be to make it all day without recharging, but it is good to hear your experience which is reassuring!

 

[Youngval9]

I have a 45-mile round trip every day, so not quite as worrisome as your 70-mile. But, I charge to 80% every day (or not…just depends), and 80% is always getting me 235-240 miles. You sound like the perfect ev driver, imo. I can’t speak to others, but I don’t experience any loss as it sits.

 

[Spin]

Welcome to the group!! My wife does a 70 mile RT commute, half highway, half local, and she easily does 3 days before charging. The car has minimal loss when sitting in traffic.

 

[cvflowe]

Hi and welcome. My wife commutes 65 miles mostly highway and yes traffic. She can go a few days without needing to charge. I have the Grizzl e charger as well and it has built in fault protection

 

[gcrone-wayback]

I also live in Houston and drive between 60-70 miles round trip (depending on route due to traffic), and also have evening sport events for my kids each night (they each do multiple sports). I usually charge up each night to 80%, but I never really find myself below 45% when I get home. I could probably go two days per charge, but don't want to risk is based how the traffic in this city can get.

As @dfox stated, it depends on the EVSE you purchase, but the more reputable ones will be UL certified and have built in protections. I own the Wallbox Pulsar Plus which has been great for me.

 

[121Gigawatt]

Welcome to the group!! My wife does a 70 mile RT commute, half highway, half local, and she easily does 3 days before charging. The car has minimal loss when sitting in traffic.

Perfect! Sounds identical to my commute, so now i'm really excited.

 

[121Gigawatt]

I also live in Houston and drive between 60-70 miles round trip (depending on route due to traffic), and also have evening sport events for my kids each night (they each do multiple sports). I usually charge up each night to 80%, but I never really find myself below 45% when I get home. I could probably go two days per charge, but don't want to risk is based how the traffic in this city can get.

As @dfox stated, it depends on the EVSE you purchase, but the more reputable ones will be UL certified and have built in protections. I own the Wallbox Pulsar Plus which has been great for me.

Hope to see you on the road and same about evening activities between the office and home hence why I wanted to make sure I would have enough charge by end of the day... Thanks also for info on Wallbox, I have it on my list for further research.

 

[Felger]

Unrelated to the original questions, but for all you Houstonites with EVs the Houston Electric Auto Association is pretty active (HEAA Website). Pretty cool way to get involved and help promote EVs in the community.

 

[121Gigawatt]

Unrelated to the original questions, but for all you Houstonites with EVs the Houston Electric Auto Association is pretty active (HEAA Website). Pretty cool way to get involved and help promote EVs in the community.

looking forward to joining and making a meeting or event at some point once I get my ID4!