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Volkswagen introduces Tayron in Europe; PHEV models with more than 100 km electric range

Volkswagen unveiled the new Tayron SUV in Europe; the large Volkswagen SUV with five or optionally seven seats is positioned between the Touareg (premium class) and the Tiguan (mid-class).

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A total of seven drive systems will soon be available. The range includes two next-generation plug-in hybrid electric vehicles (eHybrid). They can achieve electric ranges of more than 100 km and long journeys with up to 850 km between two refueling stops. In addition, with the ability to tow up to 2.5 tonnes, the Tayron is a stylish yet well-equipped towing vehicle for trailers of all shapes and sizes.

Launching as the Life version, the Tayron will be available with a 110 kW mild hybrid drive and an extensive range of equipment from €45,475. The new Tayron will celebrate its trade show premiere at the Mondial de l’Auto in Paris from 14 to 20 October.

A note for the US—while the Tayron has been widely reported to represent the next version of the Tiguan for the US market, although the US Tiguan will receive the long-wheelbase setup of ththe Taycon, the sheetmetal, powertrain options and equipment set will differ markedly. More details about the USTiguan offer will be forthcoming later this year.

The Tayron’s entry-level package is known as the Life equipment line, which is followed by two top-of-the-range packages: Elegance and R-Line. As the entry-level version, the Life version of the Tayron already offers a wide range of standard equipment.

The Tayron Life’s standard assist systems include adaptive cruise control (ACC), the oncoming vehicle braking when turning function, lane change system (Side Assist), lane keeping system (Lane Assist), an automatic emergency braking system including pedestrian and cyclist monitoring (Front Assist), Park Assist Plus, rear view camera system, dynamic road sign display and the new exit warning system. As an extension of the lane change system, the latter can—within the system limits—prevent one of the doors from being opened if another road user approaches from behind.

Mild hybrid, plug-in hybrid, gasoline or diesel. After launching all versions with a mild hybrid drive (eTSI), Volkswagen will also offer the Tayron with two plug-in hybrid drives (eHybrid), two turbocharged gasoline engines (TSI) and two turbocharged diesel engines (TDI).

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All drive systems are coupled to an automatic dual clutch gearbox (DSG). Even the entry-level eTSI engine with an output of 110 kW (150 PS) is a high-tech drive system (mild hybrid with 48 V technology). However, the advantages of the electric and gasoline drives are combined in the two plug-in hybrid models.

They deliver a system power of 150 kW (204 PS) and 200 kW (272 PS). With a 19.7 kWh (net) battery, both Tayron eHybrids can achieve electric ranges of more 100 km. Their batteries can be charged with up to 11 kW at an AC wallbox or AC charging station and with up to 50 kW at DC quick-charging stations.

The largest TDI with 142 kW (193 PS) is also very efficient and is paired with 4MOTION all-wheel drive as standard. All Tayron 4MOTION models are designed for maximum trailer weights of up to 2,500 kg (braked, 12% gradient). Due to the Trailer Assist maneuvering assist system, which comes as standard in conjunction with the towing bracket (folding), even large horse trailers or boat trailers are easy to handle.

Four drive system options are available for pre-sales. The entry-level version is the 110 kW eTSI in the Life specification package, which is available from €45,475. In addition, the two eHybrid versions and the most powerful TDI with 142 kW are also available to order.

Comments

Jer

Bizarre that the PHEVs are being rolled out in EU in higher numbers, earlier, and with more options, well before the US/ Canada. Manufacturing capabilities? Particular brands? Taxes/ duties? Seems to miss the point of where the market and demand and money exists.

Bernard

Jer, gas is much cheaper in the US, so there's less incentive to offer advanced powertrain designs. Also, the "Big 3" and Toyota are still the market leaders, and they have very little to offer in the large SUV segment, other than gas guzzlers. You would think that VW would see this as an opportunity to compete with 20MPG Sequoias and Explorers, but they must be happy with their minuscule sales share.

Jer

Everything of value is cheaper in the US. Consumption is way higher under PPP.
I think that it is too early to say how PHEVs compare long term (12 yrs+) to EVs and ICEs with reasonable access to fuel for all, except that it is unlikely that EV charger stations will be available at rented and multi-family residential properties as fast as needed to convince buyers to commit to a 'significant convenience improvement' soon. Depending on work, street, and public areas for 'truly' convenient chargers, at the least, when compared to a gas fill-up, is still not publicly accepted.
Fuel costs under all circumstances. Longevity of the major propulsion components. Total cost of ownership at all model types. Convenience of repairs. Are the very least of the major issues to get at least close to an apples- apples comparison.
By 2030, we'll get a real sense of what propulsion types are desirable and why. Hopefully, all makes and models will available.

Roger Pham

@Jer,
People in the US also want to buy PHEVs but the number of PHEV released has been extremely restricted. Manufacturers simply won't make enough of them. The technology for excellent PHEVs is there, like in the Prius Prime, RAV4 Prime, GM Volt2, etc...but they aren't being made in any meaningful number. Meanwhile, BYD released PHEVs that are cost-competitive with ICEV, but the US and Canadian governments have stopped and will stop those from coming to the US and Canadian markets. Go figure!

SJC

When a midsize PHEV can get 40 to 50 miles per gallon for the benefit of the country it's good to allow those vehicles to be sold here without massive tariffs
Protectionism has its downsides

Herman

This is another PHEV SUV that is mostly driven without electricity but with petrol! So not eco-friendly but for stupid eco-freaks & dreamers!

In Europe, the "EU7 emissions standard" applies and therefore ICEs without PHEVs and over 100km of electric travel are no longer eligible for registration according to the exhaust cycle test!

As you may know, this "EU7" requires that ICEs always run at Lambda 1 (rich with lots of fuel) and lean operation is no longer permitted. That is why PHEVs were born and are making the environment even dumber because only a few customers charge the PHEVs and drive them electrically!!! The diesel PHEVs are totally crazy ICEs!

Political madness just to subsidize commercial customers is a stupid decision in Europe that does not help the environment!

You must know!!!
VW is not to blame but the policies of the EU Commission, German KBA and all tax offices and DMVs worldwide that classify hybrid / PHEV as ecological! These hybrids/PHEVs are only somewhat eco-friendly if they are forced to charge every time they park and after 100km of driving.

Furthermore, these "ECO" cars forget that hybrids/PHEVs usually have 25% extra weight!

Conclusion:
I'm not buying a PHEV, just a small BEV or an old ICE without a hybrid/PHEV...
Feedback geben

Bernard

Herman, that's a lot of exclamation points!!!
I do agree that PHEVs should not receive the same incentives as actual electric vehicles. Sooner or later reality will set-in: most drivers are unable or unwilling to plug-in every day. Real BEVs are completely different because they only need to be re-charged every week or two for the average driver (depending on usage of course).
Plugging-in every day means that you need access to a dedicated charging spot, either at home or at work. If you have that, you may as well go full EV, at the same cost or less, as we saw with the recent EU release of the plug-in Toyota C-HR.

SJC

The Chrysler Pacifica plug hybrid normally gets 30 mpg, you can talk to people they'll tell you they use gasoline but a lot less of it

Roger Pham

@Herman,
The key to making PHEV ecological and practical so as to replace the ICEV is for the government to force a drastic reduction in engine size, for example, downsizing the engine from a 2.5-liter 4-cylinder down to a 3-cylinder 1.2 liter or even a 2-cylinder 800-cc engine. Advantages:

1. Such a small engine means that the engine won't last long if it is in used everyday, FORCING the owner to plug-in the PHEV as often as possible in order to prolong the life of the engine.
2.. Major reduction in weight, cost, and internal space occupied by the ICE system, thus making the PHEV cost-comparable and weight-comparable to an ICEV.
3. Any long trip must be started with a fully-charged battery in order to provide power boost for long hill climbing, thus would further re-enforce the habit of charging the car everyday for any occasion.
4. Such a small engine would have much smaller thermal inertia, meaning that it can be warmed up very quickly, thus would have major advantage in cold-engine emission in the case that the owner decides to use the engine for short trips, although PHEVs are perfect for short trips when the engine is not needed, thus ZERO local emission.
5. Very small engine without much power would enable bigger battery and bigger e-motor, thus making the engine power boost during hard acceleration totally unnecessary.
6. Since the engine is so small and only contribute modest power, there will not be needed any gear-shift transmission as often the case in German-made PHEVs, which only serves to increase the cost and weight of the PHEV. I truly detest the gear-shift transmission in the Hyundai and German-made PHEVs, as it is a totally worthless chunk of metal.
8. A full BEV is totally UNACCEPTABLE to me, due to so many obvious deficiencies of the full BEV.
9.. Anybody with anything else to add to the rants above?

Bernard

Roger, your compromise solution has been tried before, and it failed in the marketplace. The good news for you is that used BMW i3's are fairly cheap in the secondhand market. You can put your money where your mouth is, as they say.

Taking a few steps back, do you realize that you are proposing to force people to use obsolete and sub-par technology? BEV sales are going up by 20%/year, so consumers clearly know what they want. They don't want some Rube Goldberg device that is neither a good ICE car, or a good BEV.

Roger Pham

Hi Bernard,
Why go way back in the past, when we can see the wild success of the latest BYD Shark PHEV pick up truck with a tiny 1.5 liter engine for such a big and heavy truck. It is selling like hot cakes everywhere it is available for sale, while sales of Rivian pick up trucks and Tesla Cybertrucks have gone down because they are lacking an engine range extender which is essential when towing trailers, when range can drop down as much as 1/3 of original range.
BYD also employ this tiny engine in their whole lineup of PHEVs, and BYD is selling twice as much PHEV as BEV. 2/3 of BYD sales are PHEVs. Other EV makers are floundering because they fail to offer PHEVs with small engines.

BMW i3's problem is that they only allow the engine to kick in when the battery down to 7% of capacity. This is very stupid because there is not enough battery charge for the e-motor to assist the engine in climbing hills. A better solution would be for the PHEV to have GPS position sensor on board with topographical map data such that in hilly destinations, the engine can kick in at higher level of battery charge.
The vast majority of population live in flat terrain, so this provision of higher battery reserve for hilly terrains would have no major impact on the battery electricity utilzation, yet will make the vehicle much more dependable.

Bernard

Roger, where did you get the idea that an i3 can't go up a hill? It has plenty of power (7s 0-100 km/h, 150 km/h top speed). Is your whole rant based on the unlikely event where you run out of charge half-way up a mountain? What if a fossil car runs-out of gas half way up a mountain, wouldn't that be the same situation? At least with an EV you can turn around and regen, instead of being stuck waiting for a tow truck!

Roger Pham

Hi Bernard,
The BMW i3 was history, and was deficient in many ways. It was too expensive, too small, ugly in appearance, and with underwhelming performance...that's why it didn't sell well. The engine was allowed to come on only when the battery is depleted down to 7% of total charge, just so that BMW can claim ZEV credit for it in California, so it would run out of charge when climbing up long up hills and the engine is too weak to keep up with traffic.

Look at the crop of new PHEVs from China that are very inexpensive, roomy, decent performance, and very good styling, beautiful design, yet with only a tiny engine...and they are taking over the EV market.

Roger Pham

I also forgot to mention that the fuel tank of the BMW i3 is too small, only 1.9 gallon effective capacity in the US, making just too inconvenient for long-distance travel, because one has to stop every 75-80 miles for refueling. This is just too ridiculous, and never meant to be sold in any meaningful number.

Bernard

Roger, that's the problem with any PHEV. You need to plug-in every day.
That being said, your example of running out of power is entirely theoretical. As you said, there are no tall mountains where you live, and your example assumes that the driver will willingly ignore what their built-in navigation is telling them. That's no different from a fossil driver ignoring what their gas gauge tells them.
The i3 was expensive because of advanced construction techniques, like a carbon fibre body shell. That's BMW's problem, and your benefit as a customer.

Roger Pham

Hi Bernard,
>>>>>>>>"... that's the problem with any PHEV. You need to plug-in every day."
Plug-in a vehicle everyday is NOT a problem. People already have the habit of plug-in their cell phone everyday.

The BMW i3 is not intended to run as a hybrid, but as a pure BEV. When the battery pack is fully charged, you cannot run it in hybrid mode, not until the battery is discharged to only 7% of capacity that the engine will kick in. This is unacceptable for many people, who would rather start a long trip with a fully charged battery, and use the engine for cruising instead, while keeping the battery fully charged for emergency use to get to a safe place in the event that the engine breaks down in the middle of nowhere.
Also, having only 1.9 gallon of fuel on board is just unacceptable. Adding all this to the ungainly and dorky appearance of the i3 and it benefits NO ONE. No good!

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