Range extenders as a revived interim solution: Where is this heading?

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The VW ID. Era 9X is the new 5.21 m long SUV that the SAIC-VW joint venture offers on the Chinese market. It has a traction battery with either 51 or 65 kWh capacity and a 220 kW electric motor on the rear axle. To move the vehicle, which weighs over 2600 kg, over very long distances, the ID. Era 9X always has an additional so-called range extender. This is a four-cylinder combustion engine with 1.5 liters displacement and 105 kW output.

This example is typical for the range extender drive. Literally translated, it means range extender. There is no exact definition anywhere of what exactly this is. Nevertheless, the term is read everywhere – for example, in the European Commission's draft on the so-called end of the end of the internal combustion engine. It states that passenger cars with “plug-in hybrid drive (PHEV), range extenders, mild hybrids, and combustion engines should play a role beyond 2035 in addition to electric cars.” This is fine lobbying; speak. But what is meant?

A range extender is a serial hybrid drive

If there is no legal definition, convention must suffice. Range extenders usually refer to the combination of combustion and electric motor without mechanical connection. The combustion engine drives a generator, whose electricity flows either into a battery or directly into the electric motor. The formal advantage is that this serial hybrid drive has fewer mechanical parts than other designs, requires less space, and costs are lower. In addition, the combustion engine can operate at its optimal operating point. This sounds logical.

Double effort

On the other hand, there are the disadvantages. Two drives mean double the effort with necessary maintenance and corresponding risk of repairs. The cost reduction for battery cells is significant and continues. In plain terms, it is not automatically the case that the additional effort for the combustion engine, including the fuel tank, exhaust system, and cleaning, is cheaper than a higher energy content in the traction battery.

Furthermore, the efficiency in many operating states is poor. The fuel consumption is inherently high, which is accompanied by corresponding CO₂ emissions. Although protecting the global climate has strangely gone unfashionable lately, this aspect should, of course, not be disregarded.

Buying a car is never purely rational

Perhaps range extenders are primarily about psychology: the fear of not being able to travel far enough with an electric car and having to charge for a long time somewhere could be solved with the range extender. The fact that the automotive industry can also sell depreciated combustion engines temporarily and with goodwill is readily accepted.