Driving profiles and regenerative braking. Two technologies of primary importance in relation to optimal utilisation of the vehicle's energy are the two driving profiles designed for conserving energy (‘Eco' and ‘Eco+') and the four different levels of regenerative braking (‘D1', ‘D2', ‘D3, and ‘B').
‘Eco' and ‘Eco+' driving profiles. The e-Golf is equipped as standard with three driving profiles: ‘Normal', ‘Eco' and ‘Eco+'. The Volkswagen is automatically started in ‘Normal' mode. For drivers wanting to extend the range, the first option is the ‘Eco' mode. In this case, the electric motor's maximum power is reduced to 70 kW, and drive-off torque is limited to 220 Nm. In parallel, the electronics reduce the output of the air conditioning system and modify the response curve of the accelerator pedal. In this mode, the e-Golf can reach speeds of up to 115 km/h (in ‘Normal' mode: 140 km/h) and accelerate to 100 km/h in 13.1 seconds ('Normal': 10.4 seconds). In ‘Eco+' mode, the electronics limit power output to 55 kW and drive-off torque to 175 Nm. At the same time, the accelerator pedal response curve is made flatter, and the air conditioning is switched off. The e-Golf now reaches a top speed of 90 km/h and accelerates at a slower rate. Nonetheless, drivers can still obtain full power, maximum torque and a top speed of 140 km/h in ‘Eco' and ‘Eco+' mode by kick-down.
Regenerative braking in settings ‘D1', ‘D2', ‘D3' and ‘B'. In addition to setting a driving mode, driving range can also be influenced using the regenerative braking system. Drivers can choose from five levels: ‘D' (no regenerative braking), ‘D1', D2', ‘D3' and ‘B'. It works like this: in gear lever setting ‘D' the driver simply taps the gear lever knob to the left to switch to ‘D1' (1 tap), ‘D2' (2 taps) or ‘D3' (3 taps). Tapping the knob to the right moves down the D levels. If the gear lever is pushed to the right and held there longer, the electronics switch back to ‘D' in one jump. The driver activates regenerative braking level ‘B' by pulling the gear shift lever backwards. In an electric car, this number of levels leads to a different way of driving because it is possible to use regenerative braking to intentionally slow the e-Golf down. Level ‘D1' regenerates energy and slows down the car the least, while level ‘B' has the strongest effect. At levels ‘D2', ‘D3' and ‘B', the deceleration via regenerative braking is so strong that the brake lights automatically come on. However, if the battery is fully charged, no braking energy is regenerated. This also reduces effective braking power, which the driver can feel intuitively.