90% charge only showing 216 miles

[NeilDA]

I'm having issues getting my wall charger fitted so have had to resort to using a "granny charge" cable and as it's so slow I have decided to temporarily increased my charge from 80% to 90%. However I have noticed that when the battery apparently reaches 90% it only shows a range of 216 miles as opposed to the 234 miles I would expect it to display (i.e. 90% of 260 miles). Has anyone got an appropriate range vs miles at the end of charge?

[Christian43]

I have a wall charger and am getting the same as you at 90%SOC I get around 218 miles.

[Deleted User 192]

The range displayed is based on your recent trips plus other factors such as the temperature which has a big impact on batteries - from what I've read elsewhere 180-200 miles is realistic in winter but possibly more than 260 in the summer.

260 is the WLTP figure, which is based on temperatures between 15-23 degrees.

This isn't unique to the ID3 - every EV in the country will have been showing shorter range the last few days.

[Rockonron]

I am the same, waiting on the wall charger to be installed so using a 3 pin plug charger.

100% charge was at 216 miles.

I have not fully charged yet with a fast charge unit, but I suspect the 216 is more to do with winter cold weather than anything else.

Seen that someone here says it is also based on previous journeys, which would be cool, I hope thats true that the car takes into account your driving habits and adjust the mileage accordingly.

[roppenheimer]

Through November I was getting 214 miles for 100% charge. Now the weather is colder it's obviously less.

I'm guessing that if you warm the car with the stationary aircon it also warms the batteries to a more optimum temperature. Does anyone have a definite answer to that?

[Robsto]

Wish I was getting that current temp 4 degrees and 100% charge showing 195 miles

[pdk42]

The range is just a guess. It really is a pretty meaningless number - its nickname is the GOM - Guess-O-Meter.

[OllyExeterID3]

The range is just a guess. It really is a pretty meaningless number - its nickname is the GOM - Guess-O-Meter.

Agreed. After having our i3 for two years, we could sometimes get 150 miles on a charge, sometimes 80. It was heavily dependant on weather, previous journey, driving style etc.

We have been getting 200 miles in our I.D.3 on a full charge, though as soon as you max out the air con or use auxiliary functions, this dramatically decreases. If you have a home charger, make the most of the pre-conditioning function where possible - the rest is about adapting driving style to get the best out of the range. Classic example in our previous car - had 105 miles range left but a journey of 109 miles to go. Stuck to 62mph behind a lorry on M5(!), got back with 20 miles range left. It's not perfect but the WLTP range is based on optimum driving conditions. I bet on a balmy summers day, clear conditions, around 18-19 degrees, you could easily get 250 miles.

[hungerdunger]

I've just been watching a "Harry's Garage" review of the ID.3 here:

If you fast forward to 4 mins 50 secs, he is obviously surprised by the lack of range compared to the specs.

The good news, if you don't want to watch the whole video, is that overall he was very impressed with the car, in spite of a frozen infotainment screen.

[OllyExeterID3]

I've just been watching a "Harry's Garage" review of the ID.3 here:

If you fast forward to 4 mins 50 secs, he is obviously surprised by the lack of range compared to the specs.

The good news, if you don't want to watch the whole video, is that overall he was very impressed with the car, in spite of a frozen infotainment screen.

I saw this. I understand his frustrations and I do think the 'real world' range needs to be factored in more - particularly during winter. I personally have no particular issues as, on the journeys I have done so far in the I.D.3, the predicted range has actually been very accurate (as he mentions in the video too) so I just ensure we plan ahead. For example, charging the car right now, 90% shows 209 miles. We are planning a 221 mile round trip tonight/tomorrow (hotel stay - not meeting up with others!). I would expect real-world range to be around 170 miles for the roads we are going on so I plan to need to charge up at least once for about 30 minutes to get us back. It is a new way of thinking that some people will love (I love getting down to the last few % and seeing how much I can eke out of it!) but, if you live in a rural area or have no charging capability at home, I can understand the need to want more faith in the range. I understand from the VW email about the update that they mentioned 'performance updates' which may extend to ensuring the car 'learns' how you use the car and potentially can make efficiencies to maximise the predicted range.

[Deleted User 192]

We are planning a 221 mile round trip tonight/tomorrow (hotel stay - not meeting up with others!). I would expect real-world range to be around 170 miles for the roads we are going on so I plan to need to charge up at least once for about 30 minutes to get us back.

Similar for me when Boris finally lets me go and see my family (110 miles, 90% motorway) - in the summer I might make it there and back but not at this time of year.

[Matoow]

Yikes. We are getting 185 miles on 100% charge .

Weird thing is that the we charge app reported 221 miles, then we saw it drop by 40 miles once in the car.

Maybe I need to adjust my driving style/turn off the heater. We've lost all confidence in the app, it seems very unreliable.

We are using a 3 pin, which seems touch and go too. Sometimes the car reports an error, and just doesn't seem to charge.

Bring on the fast charger install/software update.

[Deleted User 192]

Pre-heat the car while it’s charging, and limit use of heated air, heated seats, and the heated steering wheel once you’ve unplugged. You will also get better range at a continuous speed with little acceleration, and can change the driving “mode” to Eco too.

All of that lot adds up to greater range.

[OllyExeterID3]

Pre-heat the car while it’s charging, and limit use of heated air, heated seats, and the heated steering wheel once you’ve unplugged. You will also get better range at a continuous speed with little acceleration, and can change the driving “mode” to Eco too.

All of that lot adds up to greater range.

Agreed. Pre-heating and reducing cabin heating whilst driving really helps. I find toggling between 'D' and 'B' - a tip found on this forum - to be helpful on the long stretches of A road here in Devon/Cornwall to optimise the acceleration and deceleration during journeys. To find out how much range I could accrue at a constant speed, I set the ACC to 64mph on a very quiet duel carriageway for a 75 mile journey. Starting predicted range was 144 miles at 65%, was left with a range of 81 miles at 25% when I which I don't think is too bad.

Got in to the habit of setting AC to 17-18c and driving in Eco mode all the time too, that also massively helps.

[hungerdunger]

When you say "toggling between 'D' and 'B'" are you suggesting that, to put it simply, you use D for driving up hill and B for downhill or is it more nuanced?

[Deleted User 192]

I’m learning over time that popping the car into B when you’re going downhill, along a road with speed bumps, or in traffic which regularly slows is a good way of getting bigger levels of regen - but leaving it in D the rest of the time or when using ACC.

[OllyExeterID3]

I’m learning over time that popping the car into B when you’re going downhill, along a road with speed bumps, or in traffic which regularly slows is a good way of getting hugger levels of regen - but leaving it in D the rest of the time or when using ACC.

Yep, as above. There are long sections of undulating road on the A30 where I use D so that I can build up speed then coast. B is better as scott28tt says, for downhills and traffic in particular. Also one section of dual carriageway I use a lot has a 2 mile 9-10% downhill gradient so switch to B for that to maximise regen.

[hwhbev]

A quick side question but related – once when I was flipping between B & D I accidentally put it into N. It was definitely coasting! It made me wonder what would happen if I had accidentally clicked it once more into R. I am hoping that the ID.3 has a safety feature that prevents it going into R above 1 or 2 mph......