Plan for electric operation
It is important to plan carefully when driving in electric mode in order to achieve the longest possible driving distance:
Charge
- Charge the car regularly from the mains power circuit. Make it a habit to always start a journey with fully-charged hybrid battery.
- Find out where the charging stations are located.
- If possible, select a parking space with a charging station.
Note
Charge the car from the mains power circuit as often as possible!
Precondition
- Precondition the car before driving if possible using the charging cable connected to the mains power circuit.
- Avoid parking the car in a way that the interior cools down or overheats while parking. Park the car in an acclimated garage, for example.
- During a short drive after preconditioning of the passenger compartment, switch off the ventilation fan if possible.
- If preconditioning is not possible when it is cold outside, use seat heating and steering wheel heating first of all. Avoid warming up the whole of the interior which takes energy from the hybrid battery.
Drive
- For lowest energy consumption, activate the Pure drive mode.
- Drive at a steady speed and keep a good distance to other vehicles and objects in order to avoid braking. This driving style results in the lowest energy consumption.
- Balance the power requirement using the accelerator pedal. Use the indicator for available electric motor power in the driver display in order to avoid starting the internal combustion engine unnecessarily. The electric motor is more efficient that the internal combustion engine, in particular at low speed. See the section "Hybrid related information in the driver display".
- In the event of braking being necessary - brake gently with the brake pedal, this recharges the hybrid battery. A regenerative braking function is built into the brake pedal and can be reinforced with electric motor braking in gear position B.
- High speed results in increased energy consumption - the wind resistance increases with speed.
- Select Hold in the function view at higher speeds during journeys which are longer than the range of the electricity.
- If possible, avoid using the Charge function to charge the hybrid battery. Charging with the internal combustion engine increases fuel consumption and involves increased carbon dioxide emissions.
- Drive with the correct air pressure in the tyres and check this regularly - select ECO tyre pressure for best results.
- Choice of tyres can affect fuel consumption - seek advice on suitable tyres from a dealer.
- Remove unnecessary items from the car - the greater the load the higher the consumption.
- A roof load and ski box increase air resistance, leading to higher consumption - remove the load carriers when not in use.
- Avoid driving with open windows.
- Do not hold the car stationary on a hill with the accelerator pedal. Use the foot brake instead.