More and more automakers are assuaging concerns of EV range anxiety by conducting real-world range tests, and the latest brand to smash its own range figure is Volkswagen. An electric ID 7 sedan was recorded driving nearly 600 miles on a single charge at a Porsche test facility in Europe, going almost 150 miles longer than its official range estimate.
For the test, Volkswagen took a bone stock ID 7 Pro S equipped with an 86-kWh battery to Porsche’s Nardò test facility in southern Italy. Rather than use Nardò’s high-speed 7.8-mile ring circuit, VW opted to use the low-speed ring, which is set just inside the high-speed ring. Running at an average of 18 mph, the ID 7 was incredibly efficient, achieving 9.2 kWh/100 km, which works out to about 6.9 miles per kWh. That efficiency combined with its battery capacity was enough for the ID 7 to go 585 miles on a single charge, beating its European WLTP range estimate by 144 miles.
Volkswagen says the ID 7’s average speed was so low because it was based on real-world traffic index data provided by TomTom. The company looked at the average speed of rush hour traffic in European cities like Hamburg and Amsterdam to simulate typical conditions. The test was done in December, with average temperatures of 5 to 15 degrees Celsius.
Sadly, U.S. buyers won’t yet get to experience the ID 7's efficiency. The ID 7 was originally supposed to launch in the U.S. in 2024, but it was indefinitely delayed, with Volkswagen citing EV market forces like slowing demand. There’s still no word on when that’ll change. As for European buyers, VW says that this test proves that the ID 7 and its wagon variant are ideal for families who want to take long distance drives. The ID 7 is also seeing strong European sales, with VW saying that more buyers are going for the ID 7 than the Passat. Buyers here in the US who are interested in an EV from VW will have to make due with the ID 4 or, if they can afford it, the ID Buzz.