After finishing up the InsideEVs 70-mph highway range test (video review to follow next week) with the Volkswagen ID.4, we stopped at an Electrify America DC station to test out the vehicle's DC fast-charge capabilities.
The ID.4 First Edition that we had on loan has an 82 kWh battery, of which 77 kWh is usable. Volkswagen states the vehicle has a maximum DC fast charge rate of 125 kW and that the vehicle will charge from 5% to 80% in 38 minutes.
The temperature was in the low 40's (about 5°C) when I plugged in, so I wasn't sure if the battery would be too cold to accept the maximum charge rate of 125 kW. My concern was quickly erased when I plugged in and in less than a minute the car was already drawing 120 kW.
A few seconds later it reached 128 kW and bounced between 128 kW to 127 kW up until the ID.4 was at 30% state of charge - which only took 11 minutes. It reached 50% SOC in under 20 minutes and by then the charge rate had dropped to 95 kW.
Notable timestamps:
- @0:05 Introduction
- @3:40 Recording of DC fast charging begins
- @3:47 10% SOC in 3 minutes
- @3:56 20% SOC in 8 minutes
- @4:03 30% SOC in 11 minutes
- @4:10 40% SOC in 15 minutes
- @4:20 50% SOC in 19 minutes
- @4:31 60% SOC in 25 minutes
- @4:43 70% SOC in 31 minutes
- @4:58 80% SOC in 38 minutes
- @5:30 90% SOC in 48 minutes
- @6:05 Wrapup
It reached 80% state of charge in 38 minutes, the exact time that VW promised that the ID.4 will charge from 5% to 80%. I charged the ID.4 from 2% to 80%, so I actually did slightly better than VW's promised DC fast charge time. So at the very least, we know Volkswagen didn't overpromise on the ID.4 when it comes to DC fast charge times.
The 100-miles of range test
One of the things I like to test when I'm DC fast charging is how long it takes to replenish 100 miles of driving range. Since the ID.4 has a 250-mile EPA range rating, it requires 40% of the usable capacity to travel 100 miles, according to the official range figure.
Since we plugged in at 2% I wanted to see how long it would take to reach 42% and add the 40% SOC necessary to drive 100 miles. That happened in 16 minutes, which is pretty good. The fastest time I've recorded so far was my 2019 Tesla Model 3 that added 100 miles of range in 6 minutes and 36 seconds.
Still, 16 minutes for 100 miles of range is right up near the top of our list for metric. The ID.4 will be a fine road tripping car, in my opinion, provided there are 150 kW charging stations along the route.
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I unplugged at 90% state of charge which took 48 minutes total. As with most EV's, the DC fast charge rate really tapers off dramatically once you get up near 80% SOC, and by the time the vehicle was 90% charged, it was only accepting 38 kW. At that point, it's really not worth waiting at the station, unless you really need the extra miles to make it to your next destination.
So check out the video and let us know what you think about the ID.4's DC fast charging. As always, please leave your thoughts in the comment section below.
Source: State of Charge (Youtube)