VW Golf Twin Drive Plug-in Hybrid Prototype

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VW Golf Twin Drive Plug-in Hybrid Prototype
Fleet Test: Electric Drive Vehicles



Key Aspects
German government and Volkswagen launch fleet test:
Electric car driving with renewable energy
Germany promotes use of electrically powered automobiles
Alliance of German companies works on future of mobility
Volkswagen is demonstrating with a new drive system just how car driving might appear in the near future. Its name: “TwinDrive”. The technology: a plug-in hybrid drive of the next generation. The “TwinDrive” was introduced today in Berlin. And indeed at a very timely occasion: the start of the “Fleet test: electric drive vehicles”. The large project is being initiated by the government of the Federal Republic of Germany. The Federal Ministry for the Environment is supporting the fleet study in the framework of the Climate Protection Initiative.

Environment minister Sigmar Gabriel had these comments on the project at the “Unter den Linden automobile forum” sponsored by Volkswagen AG in Berlin: “The project ‘Fleet test: electric drive vehicles’ reflects the objective for future mobility: the efficient use of renewable energy sources in transportation. In the future, the most advanced drive concepts in the style of the TwinDrive will enable users to cover everyday routes by electrical, solar, wind and water power without any limitations relative to conventio*nal vehicles.”

E-Motor and TDI/TSI form a strong team outside the city

“The present era of the automobile would be inconceivable without highly efficient gasoline and diesel engines. But the future will most certainly belong to the electric motors – refueled at the electrical outlet. On the way to this future, our TDI and TSI engines are now being merged with electric motors and extremely efficient battery systems to form a new drive system”, explained Prof. Dr. Martin Winterkorn, Chairman of the Board of Volkswagen AG, in Berlin. The Volks*wagen chief continued: “The Golf TwinDrive being presented here today enables electrically powered driving in the city, on the one hand, while also enabling very long ranges over extended driving routes on which the combustion engine is used. For us, the TwinDrive represents an elementary step along the path toward the completely electrically driven automobile!”

Volkswagen AG is extending all aspects of its research and development program for long-term electrification of the engine with its involvement in the “Fleet test: electric drive vehicles” project. The corporation is working together with numerous global partners in realizing these objectives.

Key goals of the fleet test summed up

The electric motors of the test fleet should be driven by electricity generated from renewable energy sources (wind, water and solar power). On the test cars, this energy will be stored using the latest battery technologies. These batteries should be designed for especially long-life and cost-effectiveness to enable a breakthrough in high-volume production of electric drives.

The test vehicles from Volkswagen should represent the first step on the path toward the completely electrically powered automobile. Thanks to its long range in electric mode (about fifty kilometers) the TwinDrive offers new perspectives for local traffic, since no emissions are generated in electric operation. Moreover, the system’s hybrid function also enables low fuel consumption values on long driving routes.

Eight German alliance partners

“Fleet test: electric drive vehicles” will be conducted by a total of eight German alliance partners from research and business. Volkswagen AG is assuming leadership of the project with the companies E.ON (energy provider) and GAIA and Evonik / Li-Tec (both involved in battery technology) at its side. Contributing their expertise to the fleet test from the research field are the Fraunhofer Gesellschaft (internationally active research organization), Heidelberg Institute for Energy and Environmental Research (Ifeu), the German Center for Aerospace Technology (DLR) and the Westphalian Wilhelms University at Münster.

Double-digit millions in investments

“In the framework of ‘fleet test: electric drive vehicles’, Volkswagen will be investing double-digit millions in advanced development of this technology,” according to Prof. Dr. Winterkorn. In parallel, the German Federal Ministry for the Environment has committed support in millions of euros for the large-scale study that runs until 2012. Federal Environment Minister Sigmar Gabriel: “This fleet test can make a contribution toward unifying mobility and climate protection in an entirely novel way. That is because it is only through close cooperation of partners from the automotive, battery and energy producing industries that we will be able to utilize electrical power obtained from renewable sources in personal transportation with very high efficiency. Prof. Dr. Martin Winterkorn reaffirmed the statements of the minister: “For the first time ever, energy producers and consumers are merging to form an even more powerful alliance. If this fleet test is a success, that would be a positive signal for worldwide climate protection.”

TwinDrive as automobile hardware of the fleet test

“In the framework of the fleet test, we will be deploying up to twenty vehicles with the newly developed drive concept”, announced Prof. Dr. Martin Winterkorn in the presence of the Federal Environment Minister. Prof. Dr. Winterkorn continued: “Different than today’s hybrid vehicles, it should be emphasized that TwinDrive – and this is decisive – enables long ranges in the city in electric mode. While the E-motor on a typical hybrid model just supplements the combustion engine, the exact opposite is true on the TwinDrive: here the diesel or gasoline engine supplements the E-motor.”

In this case, not only is improved fuel economy a core objective; another is to enable driving in urban areas by electrical power – that is therefore emissions-free – using renewable energy. The combustion engine ensures that long ranges can be realized outside of the cities too. The vehicle’s intelligent operating system always chooses the optimal operating mode – individually tailored to the specific route and situation, so it always offers the most efficient combination of electric motor and combustion engine. And, in turn, that enables unprecedented fuel economy.

An example: over the route from Potsdam to the “Automobile Forum” in downtown Berlin and back – a typical commuting route – averaged over 100 kilometers the Golf TwinDrive consumes just eight kilowatt-hours of electricity and 2.5 liters of fuel. And this Volkswagen that is fit for everyday life is a car with agile properties through and through: in tandem its drives output up to 130 kW – ensuring that car driving will also be fun in the future.

The future belongs to environmentally friendly energy

It’s a fact: greater than 13 percent of the electrical energy demands in Germany are already being met by wind power; this share is expected to expand to 30 percent by 2020. In parallel, more electricity will also be generated from solar and water energy. It makes a lot of sense to utilize this energy for transportation too. Yet due to natural factors (sunshine duration, wind strength), there are fluctuations in the energy levels obtained from renewable sources. That is why it is necessary to always keep a reserve supply of energy. Therefore, a corollary vision of the “Fleet test: electric drive vehicles” project is to determine whether the cars’ lithium-ion batteries could supply precisely this reserve energy in the future.

E.ON wires together automobiles and electrical power grid

This is where E.ON comes into play. This energy provider offers the infrastructure and necessary expertise for “refueling” the test vehicles directly at the electrical outlet and integrating the car batteries in centralized load control for the electrical supply network.

The local infrastructure needed for this is simple: electrical outlets! Step by step, public and private parking spaces and parking structures must be equipped with “electrical refueling stations”, to create a large number of recharging options on a broad scale.

Lithium-ion battery is a key technology

A prerequisite in this scenario: lithium-ion batteries with high energy density and long life that are suitable for quick charging. They will assist in “electrifying” transportation, i.e. making the step-by-step transition from combustion to electric drive systems – in the big cities first.

One of the goals of the large-scale study is to test the innovative and advanced lithium-ion technology under representative operating conditions. Volkswagen is working together with national and international companies specializing in various aspects of battery technology with the goal of presenting initial vehicles with highly efficient lithium-ion batteries as early as the year 2010.

[Preen59]

Awesome. Looks the go.

They were trialling that in a Caddy about 12-18 months ago. Looks like it was a success.