Since their beginnings, the small electric Peugeot have been far from referring to the question of autonomy. To correct the situation, the Lion brand has made some modifications to the e-208 and e-2008. With an increased radius of action to the key, on the cycle of homologation and especially in cold weather.
In our autonomy tests, the e-208 and e-2008 have not sparked so far. This city car and this urban SUV offer a less than average range. The fault, in particular, to an excessively high energy consumption. While waiting for their restyling in 2023 when the two models will welcome major developments (new Nidec engine and improved battery chemistry), Peugeot is bringing a series of small technical improvements from the production of the month of December. By cumulating them, the e-208 gains between 15 and 22 km of autonomy on the WLTP cycle, while the e-2008 progresses from 10 to 25 km. All this without touching the battery, whose useful capacity has stagnated at 46.2 kWh. Contrary to what sometimes happens with other manufacturers like Tesla, the news is not limited to software. Consequently, models already on the road will not benefit from these developments.
TO READ. Range of electric cars: the results of our tests
Greater gain in cold weather
To obtain these gains, the engineers of the Lion first revised the gear ratio of the reduction gear, a component which replaces the gearbox of thermal models. Thanks to this, the electric motor, strong of 136 hp on the e-208 and e-2008, can work in a more favorable operating range. Very low rolling resistance tires are also adopted, but not across the range. They benefit from the energy class A +, which designates the compounds most conducive to reducing consumption. Finally, thanks to the addition of a hygrometry sensor, the software that controls the heating and air conditioning has been revised. The thermal management of the passenger compartment will be more efficient in terms of energy consumption. According to Peugeot, the gain in autonomy in cold weather would therefore be even more obvious than on the WLTP cycle. Good news because it is one of the main Achilles heels of electric vehicles.
TO READ. Electric cars: what loss of range in cold weather?
