Thank you!

However, I'm not sure I agree with this 100%: the difference in weight is only really significant in start / stop situations (city) where ultimate range for a big SUV style car like the E-tron is least important. On the highway, the weight (+/- 100kg or so) has far less impact because wind resistance becomes a much bigger issue and you're not constantly accelerating / decelerating the car: you can coast a lot as well (the Audi philosophy which personally i prefer way more than using regen as a priority) and there again, weight isn't really disadvantageous.. You can play with ABRP to see this in action on any highway driving: the difference in energy usage for highway driving with an additional 100kg or so literally affects the total range by only about 1%.

I do agree that bigger battery adding more weight has a negative effect, but I still think as far as overall range is concerned, this ratio is only going to get better and better. If you're familiar with the "Tesla Bjorn" youtube channel he goes into this in some of his videos, in particular with the E-tron 50 vs 55 range where is shows that the weight savings of the smaller batter pack does indeed make a bit of a difference in range, but the larger battery still has a LOT more range then the smaller battery: i.e. a 70kwh battery might achieve 75% (not 70%) of the range of a 100kwh battery due to the weight reduction, but the bigger battery still has a lot more usable range. This is especially true when you want to keep the bottom end away from 0% state of charge and always ensure that you have 30km (20 miles) or so of "safety range": this eats into the total range and really reduces / eliminates the benefit from reduction in weight of the lighter battery pack.

Just throwing out thoughts

 

I should also add that my battery increases expect improvements in packaging: volume and / or weight.

 

Take a look at Model X highway speed ranges: https://teslike.com/ ; They are not much better than the etron. Where Tesla seems to do much better is in the slower ranges. The big problem now is the Public Charging infrastructure at all levels.. Since EA seems to be stumbling badly they need to be bought out by a company with big pockets willing to get their network working properly. EvGo and GM will most likely not go after the highway traffic so we could be doomed for a while in terms of fast charging on a highway trip. SAD.

 

That observation on the model x is bc of the weight. Starting from a stop is the least efficient thing, and weight is the primary enemy.

I don't know how you get much deeper pockets than Volkswagen group, except for the government, which may not be a bad idea, although I have not much more faith in them either.

Or, wait for Shell and Exxon to start replacing pumps with chargers and we should be alright.

 

Starting to happen now in Canada as we speak:

https://www.petro-canada.ca/en/perso...ectric-highway

 

I think Germany just mandated all stations have chargers too.

 

I love the car, but the range is poor in my neck of the woods: Southern Minnesota
a) It's cold (very cold this week), and I loose 25%-30% of my range in winter.
b) It's flat - so very little to no regeneration
c) No fast chargers along I-35 - Minneapolis to Des Moines, IA sports exactly ZERO fast chargers. One fast charge (Chargepoint) in Blue Earth, Minnesota. (And when that one is down for several weeks, until I reported it, that hurts). ZEF energy says they will be building fast chargers along I-35, but they haven't been built yet. Electrify America is a no show in this area.

So, as much as I love the car, the range is a deal breaker in the end for me. When the lease is up, I think I'm turning it in. I already have a deposit on a Lucid Air; hoping their range is as good as they say (even if I take a 25-30% range drop in winter, the range would be useable). There's also Tesla, and again, much better range.

If Audi could release what's on reserve on the battery to the user, it might make it just enough where I could justify keeping it (buy it off lease) or give it to my wife, who drives considerably less than I do.

Really too bad, I really do love the car itself. Too bad she's too heavy and has too small a battery. Turns out range anxiety is not anxiety at all, it is real.

 

Tesla's real world range is rather less than advertised. Ludid wouldn't work for me, and I hate the colors they offer. But looks nice, otherwise.

Audi can't realistically release the reserve on the battery without drastically shortening the batteries life. Maybe a tweak of a few percent at most. So I wouldn't expect this to solve your problem.

An electric will be more convenient if and only if you can mostly charge at home. Even the best QC stops are less than ideal. So if you need more, you need more.


https://www.plugshare.com/location/263655

https://www.plugshare.com/location/286264

125 kW dual chargers at about the half way point. Looks very usable. Dec 6, 2020 was first charge, so is new.

https://www.plugshare.com/location/252835

https://www.plugshare.com/location/287016

and coming soon:

https://www.plugshare.com/location/252836

 

I actually drove to Iowa City this last weekend in the e-Tron, so part of the way to Des Moines. The DCFC in Northwood was great (advertised 125kW, but we got 90kW. We also used several other chargers along the way. Infrastructure still isn't where it needs to be for road trips IMO. There just aren't enough chargers and they are down to frequently or don't operate at the listed output.

Also, our range was about 30% drop in the cold (-5F to 0F). Cruise set at 72, front heat only (no rear) set to A/C ECO and 68F and charged to 100% we were getting consistently 140 miles per charge estimate and it seemed pretty accurate when we would use almost the whole charge between stations. At 140 mile range, it's tough to get anywhere in a timely fashion even with DCFCs.

 

Good the hear the trip went well. Seems like a balanced view of what to expect! You might try just turning off the A/C. In cold weather all the A/C does is cool the incoming/recirculating air to dehumidify it before the heat pump (controlled by the ON/OFF button) warms it back up to send it into the cabin. If the humidity is low enough, you can skip that step and maybe save few electrons. If you windows start to fog up, turn it on.