joseaudi

Don't knock the new volt.
I've driven it extensively. My friend got one after doing the test drive of the e tron. He was not impressed with the Audi for the Money and went Chevy. He was coming from a bmw 550 2013.

bruinmac

From a new owner in Vancouver, BC:

jeremyrclark

After about a month of delays at the port by the EPA & CARB, the first batch for the US were finally released last week. Mine arrived in Raleigh, NC on Monday, and since it was their first one their tech had to do some tests on it and I was finally able to pick it up yesterday!

I seem to be possibly the first delivery stateside, as the process has been a bit rough. While I have the vehicle, I haven't been able to use the A3 Etron mobile/web app yet to control/monitor the car. Apparently to activate that, the dealer is supposed to fill out some online form which is supposed to generate an account # and PIN for me to use, but nothing about this process appears in the dealer's documentation. They're trying to track down support from Audi corporate. I was on the phone with the A3 etron help line yesterday for an hour, and I was the very first call they had so they were equally puzzled from the documentation/training they had. It's been a day now and they're escalating the issue to try to get it resolved. Everyone involved has been very apologetic and are trying to be helpful. Curious if anyone else has received theirs or been through this yet?

I've only driven it home from the dealer so far. They had changed it overnight and it reported 14 mi range when we first sat in it, and about 11 mi by the time we drained some of the power just from AC and instrument panel and using it to call the etron support line. When I left, I was able to go all electric for about 8 miles before it switched to gas power. I live 14 miles from the dealer. So that is a bit of a disappointment so far. I'm hoping its a result of draining the battery while just sitting there too long.

The other thing that's been disappointing so far is lack of any details or information on the charger and cabinet from Bosch. The dealer has no idea how much the cabinet costs or where to get it. I can't find any info online. Now that I have the power cord I can verify that it won't fit the 30A 240V outlets I already have in my garage, so I'll have to get a new 50A line run from the mains. Anyone have any information on the wall cabinet? While it's not totally necessary, if I don't install that the charger unit is big and bulky and a tripping hazzard for my little boy walking around the car.

bruinmac

Did you purchased or lease the e-tron? Audi is supposedly just now releasing info on lease rates and residuals. Supposedly Audi Financial Services is taking into account the federal tax rebate of about $4,168 into reducing the capital cost when leasing. Also the 240V charger that comes with the e-tron plugs into a NEMA 6-50 wall receptacle. According to the manual online, it takes 2 hours and 15 minutes when plugged into an outlet with 240V and 16 amps.

jeremyrclark

I purchased, and will be able to deduct $4,168 from my federal taxes. For leases, yes they will basically just deduct that amount from the purchase price as a credit since Audi technically owns the car and gets the tax credit (but they pass it on to their customers as an incentive).

Where did you find the manual for the charger? Can you supply a link? Bosch told me it requires 50A and a higher guage wire than I currently have to my 240V which is on a 30A breaker. Though from the info I could find online, the charger only takes up to 16A, so I'm not sure why I'd need to upgrade other than to get an outlet that will take the NEMA 6-50. Any info you can point me to would be appreciated!

bruinmac

I read the section on charging from the online manual for the e-tron. If you go to www.audiusa.com, click on MyAudi, and scroll down to where it says myVehicle and select Owners Manual. It will ask you for your cars VIN number, then it'll open the appropriate owners manual for that car. In that section, there's a table of approximate charging times depending on what outlet the car is plugged-in. That's where I learned about the 16 amps. From there I had my electrician install a 240v, 20A NEMA 6-50 outlet from our electrical box. I'm NOT looking to install the optional Audi cabinet box. I was just going to use the included charger/EVSE that came with the car. Now, the Bosch EVSE is probably one that requires 50A and higher gauge wire. I thought the Audi cabinet is just housing for the included charger - I don't know why it would require 50A and higher gauge wire.

My e-tron arrived at the dealer today and will pick up this Friday. I'll update you on issues you had with your car.
-Ben

jeremyrclark

Great that yours is arriving soon too, Ben! It'll be good to feel like I know someone else who has one and can help troubleshoot things.

I do have my manual though it doesn't seem to have any pointers on how to acquire the cabinet/dock that houses the charger. I filled out all the forms on pluginnow.com which is where I was pointed to previously for the 'experts' from Bosch to give you information but it seems that's as far as Audi goes - they hand you off to Bosch. Bosch built the charger that comes with the car, and the dock/cabinet. I thought the dock came with the car from the brochure and pictures they had last summer, but apparently just the charger and cables are included. But, there's no info on how much the dock is or how to get it. Without it, you'll have a big cable with the heavy (yet beautiful) charger half way down the cord dragging on the ground when you go to charge the car. The pluginnow.com site only has info on their older charger units for other makes/models - not any info on the Audi etron version. When I filled out the forms in August, I was under the impression Bosch would send someone to my home to provide a free estimate for any installation I'd need done, but sadly all that happened was a sales tech from Minnesota calling me a couple days later and basically telling me I'd need to have my electrician put in a new line that was 10# so I could run 50A on it. Not too helpful. He didn't have any more information on the etron charger at that time, obviously.

jeremyrclark

Ben - how'd the delivery go? I'm anxious to hear whether you got the A3 etron app working (I'm still waiting on support), and also whether the 240V charger is working with your 20A breaker and 6-50 outlet. If your charging solution works, it appears I can get an adapter cable so long as it is truly pulling less than 30A. Bosch had told me I needed 50A which requires 10# wire instead of the 8# wire I have in place right now.

I continue to be a bit underwhelmed on the EV-only mileage to be honest. The other night after a full charge it reported 22 mile range when I left. Even with very slow driving and as much coasting and regenerative breaking as I could, I only achieved 11 miles before it said 0 miles and gas kicked in. :-(

jeremyrclark

Ben - how'd the delivery go? Anxious to hear how you are liking the car. In particular, curious to see if you got the A3 etron app working with it (I'm still waiting to hear back from my dealer/Audi support). Also, let me know if you're successful in charging from your 240V 20A service with the NEMA 6-50 outlet. If you are, I should be fine with my 240V 30A service, I'll just need to swap out the outlet or I could get a NEMA adapter cable.

bruinmac

Picked up the car 1/8/16. Lease rates are not the best. Residual for my Premium Plus which MSRP is $43,585 is $21,356.65. Haven't got the app working yet. Apparently, according to the brochure, we're suppose to get 3 emails from Audi USA: Temporary password, Account number and PIN. I got the temporary password, but still waiting for the Account number and PIN. Called the number and the operator said the PIN is given by Verizon. When Audi gets it, they email the Account and PIN separately. This is actually the text of the email I got:
As far as the charging, my 240V 20A service works! Estimate time to charge is a little over 2 hours. We left the dealer with 26 miles of AER on display. We actually got around 30-31 miles before the ICE woke up.