An ID.7 Pro S electric sedan from German automaker Volkswagen has achieved a new efficiency milestone, covering 941 kilometres on a single battery charge.
Undertaken in December and revealed in January by Volkswagen, professional drivers from Volkswagen’s Driving Experience drove the ID.7 Pro S on the Low Speed Ring in Nardò at ambient temperatures of between 5 to 15 degrees Celsius.
The drive was not under particularly ‘normal’ conditions or circumstances – averaging only 29km/h around the 12.5-kilometre circuit in an effort to replicate “rush hour speeds in large cities”.
Nevertheless, the ID.7 Pro S was fitted with an 86-kWh battery and is designed as a series production model capable of delivering the greatest possible efficiency and has already been rated with one of the highest ranges in its class of electric vehicle.
In fact, the car used during the Nardò test was not modified at all for the test and instead came directly from the production line at Volkswagen’s production facility in Emden.
The record efficiency was announced a few months after Volkswagen completed a still impressive, and somewhat more realistic, 794-kilometre drive.
Headed by Volkswagen Team Switzerland, the ID.7 Pro S toured the Zug metropolitan area south of Zurich in Switzerland. Driving an approximate 81-kilometre circuit of Zug with eight different drivers over two consecutive days, the average consumption was an exceptionally low 10.3kWh/100km.
The ID.7 Pro S was driven during the day on a defined route in normal traffic flow during the middle the week, on roads that included sections of both through-roads and motorways.
Boasting a drag coefficient that can fall to as low as 0.23, depending on equipment, the ID.7 Pro S is powered by a high-efficiency drive known as the APP550.
The economical and powerful electric drive motor is integrated into the rear axle and delivers maximum torque of 545nm, helping the ID.7 Pro S to consume between 16.2 and 13.6kWh/100km (WLTP) while still delivering acceleration from 0-100km/h in 6.6 seconds.
The ID.7 Pro S also offers DC fast charging capacity of up to 200kW, meaning it can add 244 kilometres of charge in just 10 minutes, or can charge from 10 to 80 per cent at full DC charging capacity in just 26 minutes.
Available as either the ID.7 Saloon or ID.7 Tourer, the ID.7 Pro S is currently available to order in several European markets, but it is currently uncertain when or whether it will make it to Australia.
Joshua S. Hill is a Melbourne-based journalist who has been writing about climate change, clean technology, and electric vehicles for over 15 years. He has been reporting on electric vehicles and clean technologies for Renew Economy and The Driven since 2012. His preferred mode of transport is his feet.