WOLFSBURG, September 18 — Volkswagen has unveiled the Mission Efficiency, a near-production electric car prototype it calls the world’s most efficient, after the vehicle set three world records. The car is built on series production technology from the ID. Polo and ID.
Cross, which use the MEB+ platform with front-wheel drive. The shift here is not a concept-car stunt.
Volkswagen says the records were set with affordable, large-scale production technology rather than specialist hardware.
Three records, one teardrop
The first record is a drag coefficient (Cd) of 0.158, which Volkswagen says is a new record for road-approved cars. The second is a consumption figure of 6.48 kWh/100 km during a so-called “ideal trip,” in which speed remains constant at 68 km/h, there are no uphill slopes, and peripheral consumers such as the air conditioning system are deactivated. The third is that the Mission Efficiency is the most economical near-production electric car in its class, thanks to its aerodynamics and a highly efficient electric drive from the ID.
Polo. The aerodynamics package includes a flow-optimised teardrop shape, a small frontal area of 2.08 m², active cooling air flaps, clad rear wheels, and a fully clad underbody.
The doors feature frameless windows, and the door handles are integrated into the outer skin for optimum air flow. Volkswagen says that from speeds above 80 km/h, consumption is more than 30 percent lower than in the standard version of the ID. Polo, and that at 140 km/h the Mission Efficiency requires about as much energy as the ID.
Polo at 100 km/h.
The Vienna run, by the numbers
On an officially documented consumption test drive over a distance of 1,278.36 km from Volkswagen’s German Development Centre in Wolfsburg via Poznań, Poland, and Olmütz, Czech Republic, to the Austrian capital Vienna, the Mission Efficiency achieved real consumption of 7.51 kWh/100 km including charging losses, or 6.89 kWh/100 km without charging losses. The route was completed with an average speed of 67.72 km/h and a top speed of 138 km/h.
The 54.9 kWh net battery was charged only once during the journey, and on arrival in Vienna it had a remaining range of 164.0 km. The vehicle was developed in Wolfsburg and built by the team of Kai Grünitz, Board Member Technical Development for the Volkswagen brand and Brand Group Core.
It adopts two features from series production: a 99 kW (135 PS) electric motor and a high-voltage battery.
What the bosses are saying
Thomas Schäfer, CEO of the Volkswagen brand, Head of the Brand Group Core and member of the Group Board of Management, framed the project as a statement about who the technology is for. “Mission Efficiency is the ideal way to demonstrate what distinguishes Volkswagen in the electric age: technology for the masses – not just for the few,” he said. “Rather than using specialist technology, the vehicle set its three world records using affordable production technology from the ID.
Polo and ID. Cross, based on the MEB+ platform with front-wheel drive.
This shows how much potential efficiency we can add to the latest generation of our electric cars. Developed in Wolfsburg and built by Kai Grünitz and his team, the Mission Efficiency is a symbol of German engineering expertise with clear customer benefits.” Grünitz pointed to the drive system underneath the bodywork. “The new Mission Efficiency impressively demonstrates the incredible potential of the drive system in our new ID.
Polo,” he said. “Developed for all models based on MEB+ with front-wheel drive, the system is extremely light, very efficient and thus the ideal drive system for our record-breaking vehicle.
The Wolfsburg team behind the Mission Efficiency has achieved something outstanding: on the one hand, the crew has proved that Volkswagen is one of the world’s leading manufacturers in the area of aerodynamics. On the other hand, they are also showing that you can build the most efficient car in the world using affordable, large-scale production technology.” Watch this space. The trend underneath these three records is that efficiency is migrating from halo models into the MEB+ front-wheel-drive family — and the ID.
Polo is where that promise now has to hold up on the road.
