They say no one is as zealous as a new convert. The fallout from the dieselgate has shown that Volkswagen is finding religion in electrification, and the car company is certainly embracing it. Last year, now outed VW Group president Matthias Muller unveiled Roadmap E, which commits the company to electrify its entire lineup by 2030. It's building networks of 350 kW DC chargers. In Europe, it's going with other OEMs; here in the U.S., it's doing it alone(revealing Monday that Target and Sheetz, among others, will join the 100 Walmarts in the network). It has locked in $25 billion in battery electric vehicles (BEVs) for the European and Chinese markets, and barely the auto show goes on without revealing yet another BEV under the ID brand. The first of these will go on sale in 2020, with the van breaking ground in 2022.
But an electric car will hit the street a little early. Well, one particular street - the strip of road that goes to the top of Pikes Peak in Colorado. Volkswagen will use this year's Pikes Peak International Hill Climb to thoroughly test its new BEV platform and - if driver Romain Dumas sets a new EV record - to make some headlines. We saw a few renders of the ID R Pikes Peak back in March, but on Sunday in Alès in France it finally gave us our first look at the real thing.
Technical specifications are still few and far between. We don't know what the battery is; VW hasn't commented on that aspect yet. But since the run to the top of the mountain is only 12.4 miles (19.99 km), and you only get one try, the range won't be much of a concern. VW says that even at maximum attack, the run should only use about 20% of the pack's energy.
Implementation, on the other hand, is a very important priority. So the car's powertrain is optimized for power and the battery for power density. ID R Pikes Peak is a two-part
design with a total of 500 kW (670 hp) and 650 Nm (479 ft-lbs) ready to be launched. The car's weight has been kept under 2,425 lb (1,100 kg), and VW claims it can reach 0-60 mph in just 2.25 seconds, which is faster than a Formula One or Formula E car.
Of course, it should be noted that both series have rather restrictive rules. Peak Peak's technical regulations in the Unlimited class are primarily focused on the driver's cage being able to withstand rolling up a several hundred foot mountainside - something that remains a definite possibility for this scary course. As a consequence, the ID R Pikes Peak is one of the most extreme cars on the circuit, dominated by a huge front diffuser, a huge rear wing and pads on either side that aim to maximize downward aerodynamic force to keep it on the road, especially when it exceeds 14,000 feet (4,267 meters).
The choice of Romain Dumas as leader is a good one. When he wasn't busy driving the Porsche 919 Hybrid in the 2016 World Endurance Championship, he built his own car, and this year set the fastest time at Pikes Peak , just a week after winning Le Mans for his entry , He won last year , but for 2018, Dumas will have the backing of a full factory effort.Volkswagen says the goal is to set a new EV record. That's currently 8:57.118, set by Rhys Millen in 2016 in a Drive eO PP100. (Dumas' 2016 time in the petrol-engined Norma M20D is even faster at 8:51.455.)
But I have to wonder if the real target could be Sebastian Loeb's 2013 record of 8:
13.878. The IDR Pikes Peak is heavier than the Peugeot Peugeot 208 T16 Pikes Peak (1,100kg vs 875kg), and the Peugeot makes more power with an 875bhp turbocharged V6. But any internal combustion engine will lose power as it rises in height and air, which doesn't happen with batteries and electric motors.
After Sunday's opening ID R Pikes Peak began a two-week test in Alès. "It was absolutely fantastic to see the completed ID R for the first time and get it out for its first spin," said Dumas. "What Volkswagen has been able to put together from scratch over the last
few months, is my greatest respect. Obviously I'd seen the initial pictures of the car - but it's even more remarkable in the flesh. We now have a full testing schedule ahead of us and I'm looking forward to every meter!"
The team will move to Colorado in June, the race will be scheduled for June 24. And if all goes well, I'll be on site to see how they handle one of the toughest challenges in motorsports.
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