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To
coincide with the foundation
event held in Berlin for a
National Platform for Electric
Mobility and in the presence of
German Chancellor Dr. Angela
Merkel, Volkswagen has unveiled
the Golf blue-e-motion and has
outlined its future programme
for electric and hybrid
production vehicles.
Following on from the Touareg
Hybrid which goes on sale this
summer, in 2012 a hybrid Jetta
will be launched before hybrid
versions of the Golf and Passat
join the range in 2013.
Also in 2013 the first of the
all-electric vehicles will go on
sale in the form of the Up!
blue-e-motion followed closely
by the Golf blue-e-motion and
the Jetta blue-e-motion. Joining
them in the same year will be an
electric version of the Lavida
for the Chinese market.
The Golf blue-e-motion adopts an
electric motor developing 115 PS
and 199 lbs ft of torque powered
by lithium-ion batteries with a
capacity of 26.5 kilowatt-hours.
This allows the Golf
blue-e-motion to accelerate to
62 mph in 11.8 seconds before
reaching a top speed of 86 mph
with a range between charges of
over 90 miles.
The batteries are neatly located
in the boot of the Golf
blue-e-motion, under the rear
seats and in the transmission
tunnel to leave a boot capacity
of 279 litres. The batteries
are kept at the optimal
temperature through the use of a
secondary cooling system.
Mounted in the engine bay, the
electric motor, transmission and
differential along with
high-voltage pulse-controlled
inverter, the 12 Volt electrical
system, DC/DC converter and
charging module are all
incredibly compact and account
for a rise in overall weight of
only 205 kg when compared to a
conventional diesel Golf.
The Golf blue-e-motion will take
its next step in 2011 when a
fleet of 500 prototypes begin
testing in real-world conditions
ahead of production starting in
2013.
On
unveiling the Golf
blue-e-motion, Prof. Dr. Martin
Winterkorn, Chairman of the
Board of Management of
Volkswagen AG commented: ‘Future
electric cars give us enormous
opportunities for reshaping
mobility to be even more
sustainable. When it comes to
the environment, however, we
must ensure that the energy used
to operate these electric cars
is produced from renewable
sources. Since automotive
manufacturers do not have any
influence on the types of power
plants that are built, the
federal government must ensure
that eco-friendly energy sources
are utilised. Only then will we
experience a genuine transition
to a new era.’
Completing the unveiling, the
German Federal Minister for
traffic, building and town
development Dr. Peter Ramsauer,
was given a tour of the new Golf
blue-e-motion by Dr. Ulrich
Hackenberg, Member of the Board
of Management, Volkswagen AG
with responsibility for Vehicle
Development.
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