The Future Of The New Volkswagen Premium Class: The Volkswagen C Coupe GTE Concept

In March 2015 the Sport Coupé Concept GTE debuted in Geneva – a four-door sports car for markets on all continents, positioned between the B- and C-segment. Now the large C Coupé GTE is following – as a world premiere in Shanghai. The sports saloon with a length of around five metres sprints right into the middle of the C-segment.

The future of the new Volkswagen premium class

Klaus Bischoff, Head of Design of the Volkswagen brand adds: “The future of the new Volkswagen premium class models is indeed starting in Shanghai because the C Coupé GTE very clearly shows the new “face” of top Volkswagen saloons for the first time and an unparalleled superior design presence.” And he continues: “The sports saloon unequivocally demonstrates our premium standards. The evolution of the Volkswagen design DNA shown here will accompany us worldwide – also on the way to the new Phaeton. A further ground-breaking aspect is the fact that the progressive design reflects the technical innovations to be integrated in future models.”

System power 245 PS, fuel consumption 2.3 litres per 100 km

The C Coupé GTE presented at Auto Shanghai (20 to 29 April 2015) has one of the world’s most modern plug-in hybrid systems on board. It consists of a turbocharged direct injection petrol engine (TSI) with four cylinders, an 8-speed automatic gearbox, the electric motor integrated in the gearbox module and a lithium-ion battery. The TSI has a power output of 155 kW / 210 PS and the electric motor 91 kW / 124 PS. The battery integrated at the rear has energy content of 14.1 kWh. The hybrid drive develops 180 kW / 245 PS of system power and impressive system torque of 500 Nm. Thanks to the battery that can be charged both externally and whilst driving, the concept car can travel up to 50 kilometres powered purely by electricity i.e. without any local emissions. (Maximum speed in “E-Mode”: 130 km/h). It has combined fuel consumption (NEDC for plug-in hybrid vehicles) of 2.3 l/100 km; this corresponds to CO2 emissions of just 55 g/km. The vehicle has a total range of more than 1,100 kilometres. Despite being so efficient, the C Coupé GTE is an agile premium class model: the Volkswagen accelerates to 100 km/h in just 8.6 seconds and has a top speed of 232 km/h. The driver can choose between the operating modes “Hybrid”, “E-Mode”, “GTE” and “Battery Charge/Battery Hold”.

Hybrid

The concept car starts by default in Hybrid mode. The C Coupé GTE is a full hybrid, which charges its battery via regenerative braking and automatically utilises the right combination of TSI and/or electric motor according to the specific driving situation. As soon as the driver releases the accelerator pedal, and the battery is sufficiently charged, all drive sources are shut off and decoupled from the drivetrain. This is a special form of “coasting”. Zero emissions are produced in this mode. If the driver decelerates the vehicle and the battery is insufficiently charged, the electric motor operates as a generator and feeds the energy recovered from braking into the lithium-ion battery. In this case, the TSI is also shut off and decoupled.

Written By

Julian Hayes

Future Mobility & Technology Editor at Auto News Magazine. Covering the next frontier of electric powertrains, 800V architectures, solid-state battery chemistry, and autonomous vehicle platforms.

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