Why it is Worth Switching over to Electric Cars now

Thanks to the Volkswagen Group’s electric campaign, e-cars are no longer a niche product for the upper classes. The Group brands’ electric cars are not only sustainable but also simply the most logical, individual means of transport from the customer’s point of view. An overview.

1. Larger model variety, greater selection for customers
The Volkswagen brand alone aims to offer over 20 purely electrically powered models by 2025. Across the Group, as many as over 70 new electrified models are to come onto the market, including 50 purely electric vehicles. From electric small cars such as the new version of e-up!1 to the e-sports car Porsche Taycan, today’s innovations give a foretaste of tomorrow’s range. This is to include a suitable e-car for every customer preference and for every wallet.

2. More volume, cheaper prices
For many years, electric cars languished in a niche market because they were only attractive for a very small customer segment: people who were either very well situated financially or very focused on sustainability. With the development of the Volkswagen brand’s purely electric ID. family, e-cars are now arriving in the volume segment – all over the world. This is made possible by the Modular Electric Toolkit MEB, which forms the basis for most of the Group’s e-cars.

The result: Electric cars are no longer interesting only for customers from the upper classes or for people with a very sustainably oriented lifestyle. With its ID.3, Volkswagen is offering the first electric car for the masses. In order to do this, the car is coming onto the market at an extremely attractive entry price of under 30,000 euros for the basic version. The subsequent members of the ID. family will also appeal to a great number of customers: the SUV space miracle ID. CROZZ2, the ID. BUZZ2, which is hailed as the successor to the Volkswagen bus, the hatchback ID. VIZZION2, the ID. ROOMZZ2 and the ID. SPACE VIZZION2.

3. Government subsidies, greater purchasing incentives
In order to support car manufacturers in the mobility transition, the government is giving incentives to purchasers of e-cars. According to a resolution by the German Federal cabinet, the incentive on the German market is 3,000 euros for a fully electric car – up to a net price of 40,000 euros – in addition to the 3,000 euro bonus granted by the manufacturers, thus making a total of 6,000 euros. At a higher net price, the environmental bonus still totals 5,000 euros, which applies up to an upper limit of 65,000 euros.

E-cars are also attractive as company cars: whereas in the case of combustion engines, one percent of the list price must be taxed as a non-cash benefit every month, it is only 0.5 percent in the case of e-cars. The Federal Government’s climate protection package also stipulates a further reduction of the company car tax to 0.25 percent for e-cars with a list price lower than 40,000 euros. Other countries are also using purchasing incentives in order to increase the proportion of e-cars on the roads.

4. Running costs are significantly lower
Fueling up with electricity saves a lot of money compared with fossil fuels, particularly when charging up at home: one-kilowatt hour costs approximately 30 cents, whereas a liter of Super costs around 1.50 euros. By way of comparison, for the entry version of the ID.33 with a 45 kWh battery, driving 100 kilometers costs just over 4 euros; a gasoline engine with a consumption of 7 liters per 100 kilometers costs around 10 euros.

This means that, depending on mileage and driving mode, it is possible to save several hundred euros a year. In addition, electric vehicles are exempted from vehicle tax for ten years from initial registration; this regulation applies up to and including 2030. What’s more, the maintenance costs of a purely electric vehicle are around a third lower than those of a combustion engine, since maintenance-intensive parts are omitted. In particular, the oil change is no longer necessary.

5. Better batteries, larger range
A car for the masses has to be suitable for daily life. Due to their limited range, that is something that e-cars were not for a very long time. This has now changed with the latest generation of vehicles. The scalable battery system of the ID.3 enables ranges of 330 to 550 kilometers. Within just 30 minutes, it is now possible to charge up to a range of approximately 260 kilometers (WLTP) – with a charging capacity of 100 kW.
Furthermore, the network of charging columns is continually expanding. And – a very important aspect – thanks to IONITY quick charging columns, most batteries can be recharged to 80 percent during a half-hour coffee break. This means that long-distance journeys are no longer a problem with an electric car. And in comparison with diesel and gasoline, IONITY electricity is also really cheap: at the moment, customers pay 8 euros, 8 British pounds or 8 Swiss francs per charge, depending on their location. In Scandinavia, the price is 80 Norwegian, Swedish, or Danish krona.

6. Emission-free and sustainable over the entire life cycle
The more electric cars are on the roads instead of combustion engines, the better the air quality, since electric cars drive emission-free locally. Whether the electricity which powers the vehicles is also produced with a neutral carbon footprint is ultimately in the hands of the customer. Through its subsidiary Elli, Volkswagen already offers 100 percent green electricity in order to enable emission-free driving.
But sustainable mobility goes beyond the operation of the vehicle. That’s why Volkswagen has thought a step further – or, depending on your point of view, a step back: The Group’s goal is to be completely carbon neutral – from vehicle development and the necessary raw materials, in logistics and production, from the first to the last kilometer driven, right up to the recycling phase. Thinking holistically is the highest commandment in a sustainability strategy. Experts refer to this as Life Cycle Assessment (LCA). Translated for the customer, this means that they receive a vehicle that reduces environmental pollution to a minimum. 

7. Small engine compartment, more space
Whereas the combustion engine is normally housed in front of the driver’s cab, the electric motors sit directly on the axles. The largest component of the electric car is the battery. This not only provides energy but also a good center of gravity. Driver and passengers have significantly more space in the interior because the combustion engine and transmission tunnel for the connection to the rear axle are omitted. This means that the ID.3 looks like a Golf from the outside, but like a Passat from the inside. The large space also pleases the designers: in electric cars, they have a lot more creative freedom that they can use to provide even more comfort for passengers.