Everything you wanted to know about EVs (but might be afraid to ask)

Historically in the United States, EVs have mostly been limited either to specific states or to luxury vehicles. Volkswagen has begun to change this dynamic with the ID.4 electric compact SUV, the first of a line of EVs it plans to launch in the United States over the next several years. The ID.4 is sold through Volkswagen’s network of more than 600 dealers nationwide. These vehicles are what Volkswagens have always been – affordable and fun to drive.

The Volkswagen Group has pledged to make its global business carbon neutral by 2050, and electric vehicles will help make that possible. By 2025, the Group plans to build about 1.5 million electric vehicles a year worldwide – including at its U.S. factory in Chattanooga.

Yes. All Volkswagen vehicles are subjected to intense safety testing. They must meet rigorous safety standards and crash tests required by law, and often exceed these standards.

While most electronics use some form of lithium-ion battery today, the chemistry and design of an EV battery is quite different than those used in consumer electronics.

EV batteries in vehicles are not designed to be replaced like those in phones, and it’s rare for an EV owner to face that issue. EVs are designed to provide a certain amount of power for many years of ownership. While all batteries can lose charging capacity over time, Volkswagen EVs have several strategies to help combat that process, from liquid cooling to energy reserves. The Volkswagen ID.4 comes with an eight-year, 100,000-mile limited warranty on its battery pack.^⁠1

That depends on how much power the charger can provide, and how fast the vehicle can accept it. There are three general levels of charging power:

• Level 1 is your typical 120-volt plug. Most EVs can get roughly 2-5 miles of range per hour of charging at one.
• Level 2 chargers are the most common; they run off 240-volt circuits and can add about 12-24 miles per hour of charge. Most charging is either Level 1 or 2, and about 80 percent of all vehicle charging takes place at home. The Volkswagen ID.4 takes about 7.5 -10 hours to recharge completely at a Level 2 outlet, and adds about 33 miles of range per hour of charging.^⁠2
• Level 3 is commonly known as DC fast charging and requires special equipment with heavy-duty cables and inverters. These systems typically are only found at public charging stations and used for occasional recharging on long-distance drives. A public DC fast charger can charge the ID.4 from 5% to 80 percent capacity in about 38 minutes. (Charging speeds at a DC fast charger slow for the final 20 percent of capacity due to heat buildup.)^⁠3

Because the power coming out of a U.S. outlet is alternating current (AC), and vehicle batteries rely on direct current (DC), that electricity has to be converted, and the vehicle’s onboard converter can only handle a certain amount at a time. (That’s also the reason fast charging uses DC – it bypasses the onboard converters.) Charging times can also be affected by temperature extremes; very hot or cold weather can slow charging rates and lower the total amount of energy the battery can hold.

Not quite. Your EV has a specific type of charge port that has to match the charger. All Level 1 and Level 2 chargers use the same standard plug, but there are different plugs for DC fast charging. It can be a bit frustrating and confusing at first, but more automakers are moving to use the Combined Charging Standard (CCS) for DC fast charging already used on all Volkswagen Group EVs.

The Volkswagen ID.4 comes from the dealer with a Level 1 charger that plugs into a standard three-prong, 120-volt outlet. However, if you have a driveway or a permanent parking place, you will likely want to get a Level 2 charger installed at your home. Many apartment buildings and parking garages are also installing Level 2 chargers nationwide. There are more than 100,000 public Level 2 chargers available in the United States, along with more than 10,000 DC Fast Chargers that use the CCS standard, and more are being built.

That’s one of the challenges that Volkswagen, along with companies like Electrify America, have been working to tackle. The Volkswagen ID.4 comes with three years of charging at Electrify America fast charging stations at no additional cost.^⁠4 Some EV owners may be able to rely on charging at their workplaces, or paid public charging. Other firms are building chargers that can be added to public streets. For some people who want to buy an electric vehicle, this may be too big of a hurdle to overcome today – but many companies want to solve it soon.

The non-scientific answer is: A lot. According to federal energy data, the average U.S. home uses 30.5 kilowatt-hours of energy a day. The smallest battery pack in the Volkswagen ID.3 electric hatchback sold in Europe could power that typical home for a day and a half. The battery pack in the Volkswagen ID.4 holds 82 kilowatt-hours of energy — roughly 5,500 times that of your smartphone – and could power that typical home for two and a half days.

Electric vehicle charge ports and plugs use software to confirm they’re properly connected before sending electricity to a battery, and they’re designed to work in all weather conditions.

Every EV in the United States has an EPA-rated range estimate for a full charge. The rear-wheel drive 2022 Volkswagen ID.4 Pro has an EPA-estimated range of 275 miles.^⁠6 In daily use, EVs offer a constantly updated estimate of available range, based on your current driving data, your recent past driving history and other factors such as temperature and HVAC usage. Your range estimates may be lower in winter or higher in summer than the official number due to the effect of weather on batteries; they tend to work best at moderate temperatures, and lose some capacity in extreme cold or heat.

Range anxiety can happen to EV owners, but it’s no different than planning your fill-ups in a gasoline-powered vehicle. According to federal data, the average American commuter was traveling about 35 to 40 miles per day before the pandemic; the next generation of Volkswagen EVs starting with the ID.4 are engineered to have EPA-estimated ranges that well exceed those daily driving needs. As we mentioned before, about 80 percent of charging happens at home; beyond that, the number of public charging stations continues to grow, and more tools than ever are available to help EV drivers find a recharge if necessary.^⁠7

EVs all work the same way: Batteries feed electric power to a motor, which turns the wheels. One of the ways EVs can help save energy is by regenerative braking, which simply reverses that flow — using the wheels to turn the motor and send power back into the batteries while slowing the vehicle.

Volkswagen EVs have a sophisticated set of sensors and software that lets drivers decide how much regenerative braking they want, and whether they want the system to kick on the moment they take their foot off the accelerator pedal. At higher speeds, you may want to coast as far as possible. In stop-and-go traffic, the regenerative braking can make driving even more efficient.

While regenerative braking can handle a lot of speed reduction, EVs do also have traditional friction brakes. The software system ensures a safe engagement of the traditional brakes as needed.

EVs typically come with low rolling resistance tires that help extend their range while still providing assured handling. These typically do not cost more to replace than comparable regular tires.

Aerodynamics. Well-designed EVs try to reduce aerodynamic drag as much as possible to maximize their range. Wheels designed to smooth the air flow around the car can make a noticeable contribution to range in most EVs.

Volkswagen EVs don’t have a traditional multi-gear transmission and don’t need them; the motor connects with the wheels via a single-speed gearbox. You can set different driving modes that offer either more sporty acceleration, or those that can help save energy and are designed to extend your vehicle’s range in many cases.

Yes, they can over time, especially when they use renewable energy sources.

While EVs do require slightly more energy to build, they can make up that CO2 deficit and then some over their useful lifetimes. Exactly how much less CO2 emissions driving an electric vehicle generates compared to driving a gasoline-powered vehicle depends on the source of the electricity the owner uses for charging, which varies by geographic region. In many places, electric grids are converting to more CO2-free sources – such as solar and wind – and as that trend continues, the CO2 benefits of EVs will grow. But even at today’s mix of energy sources in the United States, electric vehicles can have a CO2 benefit, as most emissions are lower for electricity generation than burning gasoline.

If you’re at home, your EV recharging costs are based on your electric rates. In some places, EV owners can get special programs from their electric utilities that offer special discounts for charging at night or during off-peak times.  Recently, the U.S. average price of residential electricity was 13 cents per kilowatt-hour; at that rate, a full recharge of most EVs today would cost less than $10.

Public chargers range from free to more expensive than home charging for DC fast charging, depending on their power levels and networks. In general, charging your EV is still less expensive than filling up a tank of gasoline.