Range and regenerative braking
• For range figures, please refer to the model specific information below. You can also see range figures for our fully electric models and plug-in hybrid models below.
• Many factors can affect the range of an electric car, which may have a positive or negative impact. Examples include your personal driving style, the starting charge of the battery, environment, outside temperature, weather, weight, accessories fitted (post-registration), aerodynamics, rolling resistance, load, route profile, and use of auxiliary systems like air conditioning and heating.
• Environmental factors such as the outside temperature (hot and cold weather) can significantly affect the battery and range performance. This is because the ambient (air) temperature influences battery chemistry, affecting the efficiency with which chemical energy is converted to electrical energy within the battery, thereby reducing the maximum range. This effect is more pronounced during winter periods or in colder regions. Plus, you’re more likely to use applications like defrosting, heating and heated seats during cold weather (and air conditioning when it’s hot). Unlike combustion-powered cars that use heat energy lost from the engine to warm the car, all the energy comes from the battery.
• The type of road (e.g. driving in cities or on a motorway) will also affect range. Motorway driving is likely to return the worst range performance. This is unlike what we are used to seeing with conventional combustion-powered vehicles, which typically return their highest fuel consumptions under steady state conditions, such as motorway driving, despite the higher aerodynamic loads.
• For these reasons, the range displayed can regularly vary based on changes in driving conditions and on the above listed factors. You will notice a wider and more instant variance on range in electric vehicles than you do with fuel consumption for petrol or diesel powered cars.
• As a result, the official WLTP range figures stated may not reflect real world driving conditions and should be used for comparability purposes (with other vehicles tested under WLTP) only.
• To maximise your range, plan ahead and adopt an efficient driving style.
• When you first collect your new electric Audi, it’s normal to notice a range figure that’s different to what you’d expect, even on a full charge. This is because the car needs to ‘learn’ your driving habits before it can calculate a more accurate mileage range.
• Audi electric models have an intuitive system that takes into account previous driving journeys when calculating estimated range.
• The calculation will be based on energy consumption from previous driving journeys, driver’s usage patterns and factors such as if the car has been stationary for a period of time and whether features like air conditioning have been used.
• For these reasons, the range displayed in your electric Audi can regularly vary based on changes in driving conditions and on the above listed factors. You will notice a wider and more instant variance on range in electric vehicles than you do with fuel consumption for petrol or diesel powered cars.
• You can recalculate the range indicated in your electric vehicle based on the driver’s usage patterns by fully charging the battery and driving the car under moderate conditions for at least 300 miles.
• Depending on your circumstances, there are ways to improve the range you can achieve from your electric Audi. For example selecting a higher recuperation level, selecting efficiency mode, limiting heating and air conditioning, or cooling or heating the vehicle while it’s being charged can also improve the range significantly.
• Minimal electrical power is consumed whilst electric Audis are stationary (for example, in traffic jams).
• If the car is parked for a long period of time, there’s very little battery charge loss (approximately 3% of charge is lost per month).
• Systems such as the air conditioning, lighting and infotainment system use electricity if they are switched on, so they can have an effect on the range.
• Yes, the energy recuperation system of Audi electric vehicles has the ability to recuperate energy.
• It does this by recovering energy from the wheel axles and converting it to an electric charge, the additional energy is then stored directly in the high-voltage battery. Audi electric vehicles can recuperate up to 30% more energy.
• Audi electric vehicles feature two types of recuperation via coasting or braking which can be activated by:
1. Deceleration (“One-Pedal”) Recuperation - Once you release the accelerator pedal, the electric motors act as a generator converting a large proportion of the car’s kinetic energy into electrical energy which is stored in the high voltage battery and increases the battery’s range.
2. Brake recuperation - This happens automatically when you press the brakes. The kinetic energy that was propelling the car forward escapes. But instead of being wasted as heat, kinetic energy is recovered from the wheel axles and is turned into an electric charge. In turn, this energy recharges the car’s electric battery and increases range. When you need to come to a stop quickly, the car will switch from recuperating using the electric motor to using the brake discs to slow you down, the transition between the two is seamless.
• You can select the intensity of recuperation either automatically or manually. In automatic mode, the car decides when and how to recuperate by analysing the driving situation.
• In manual mode, you can select three recuperation levels via a paddle on the steering wheel (standard on e-tron and e-tron Sportback – please check model specific information for other models). Selecting a stronger level will increase the recuperation intensity, harvesting more energy, and therefore maximising your range.
• Click on the links below to watch our EV easy guide films and learn more.
In contrast to a combustion engine, the interior air conditioning of an electric vehicle, i.e. both cooling and heating, is implemented with the help of the high-voltage battery. This significantly reduces the range, particularly at very high or very low outside temperatures.
Tip: Use the pre-air conditioning function via the WeConnect app to pre-heat the vehicle while it is being charged. Pre-tempering during the charging time is also a good idea in summer in order to avoid costly cooling at the expense of the range.
The interior heating requires a higher percentage of energy in relation to the total consumption, especially at low average speeds.
Tip: Choose a lower interior heating and supplement this with the more energy-efficient seat and steering wheel heating in order to optimize the range of the vehicle.
In addition to the interior heating, the windscreen and rear window heating in particular are energy-intensive consumers.
Tip: Use these vehicle functions only when necessary and then switch them off again or, if necessary, use the ECO mode to further optimize the range of the vehicle.
The interior air conditioning, i.e. both cooling and heating, is energy-intensive and drains the battery.
Tip: Make sure that you do not leave the doors and windows open longer than necessary, both in summer and in winter. If your vehicle has a panoramic roof, keep the blind closed as much as possible to reduce temperature fluctuations and avoid unnecessary air conditioning processes.
Speed has a much greater impact on energy consumption in EVs than in combustion engines.
Tip: Do not drive at excessively high speeds, especially on the freeway. At a speed of 60 miles/h, the range is only slightly reduced compared to the WLTP specification.
Excessive acceleration and braking is very energy-sapping. For example, every braking phase destroys valuable kinetic energy, which has a negative effect on the kinetic energy of the vehicle.
Tip: Drive as far as possible with foresight to reduce the number of braking phases and thus use the energy expended as best as possible for propulsion. You can also use the “D” driving position and the predictive efficiency assistant (PEA) to optimally use the coasting mode of the vehicle.
EVs are able to recover energy during the braking process by means of recuperation instead of dissipating the energy in the friction brake in the form of heat.
Tip: Use this vehicle function more to positively influence the battery reserves and thus the range.