Load-carrying with an EV: Does extra weight really reduce overall driving range?

02/18/2025 01:46 PM

So far, the vast majority of electric vehicles that have hit our market have been limited to people-carrying rather than load-bearing.

There are plenty of electric SUVs, sedans, and hatchbacks on the market, but fewer brands have developed electric vehicles for work purposes.

There are a few out there – Peugeot has a selection of electric vans in the e-Partner and e-Expert, the LDV eT60 was the first electric dual-cab ute in the country, while the Ford E-Transit was the brand's first electric vehicle to hit Australian roads outright.

However, complaints we see in the comments section on Drive articles revolve around the limited driving ranges for business-oriented electric vehicles. Especially when you begin loading the cargo areas. Likewise, trades often can't justify the expensive price outlay asked for electric commercial vehicles at the moment.

We can't control the latter, but to test the former I've sampled a brand-new Volkswagen ID. Buzz Cargo SWB electric van to see how it handles actual work.

MORE 2025 Volkswagen ID. Buzz Cargo review

Timed with moving house from Geelong back to Melbourne, I've been filling the VW ID. Buzz Cargo with as much stuff as will physically fit inside the load compartment over the past fortnight, and logging the energy consumption to see the impact of carrying loads.

While this isn't a completely scientific test – I wasn't able to weigh the van and contents every time I did a run – I can make some inferences from my frenzied logistical runs across Melbourne. Most loads of furniture weighed between 200-250kg including vehicle occupants. This is roughly a third of the ID. Buzz Cargo’s total payload capacity.

The Volkswagen ID. Buzz Cargo SWB costs $79,990 (plus on-road costs), and to give you the Cliff notes on specification, it caters for up to 774kg of payload capacity, contains a 79kWh battery, and Volkswagen claims a total driving range of 431km.

It also packs in features such as a 12.9-inch touchscreen with Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, an adaptive cruise control system with lane-centring, dual-zone climate control, power-folding mirrors, leatherette-wrapped steering wheel, and more USB-C ports than you'll likely ever need.

The specification loaned to us included a pair of power-operated side doors which made for easy access loading in items up against the bulkhead, while the rear top-hinged boot was also powered.

That was less helpful for loading items in the back; waiting for the door to gradually open wide took an annoying amount of time.

Volkswagen states owners can stow twin Euro pallets in the back which is a handy practicality for business, though you have to be far more discerning when placing loose items in the ID. Buzz Cargo.

Total volume is claimed at 3900 litres which lags behind even the smallest Volkswagen Transporter vans at 5800L – however, that's par for the course when engineers dictate you have to fit a 79kWh battery underneath the floor.

This ultimately means the load floor is quite high, too. It can be tricky to manoeuvre large items once they're actually inside the load compartment, but we fit in as much as we could every time the van was sent between houses.

There's lighting in the back compartment so you can see while you work, plus the added partition between the bulkhead and the load area lessened that typical, drummy noisy van phenomenon.

Of course, the lack of outright engine noise and smooth driveline were welcome sensations in a van. 

I clocked up 1536km over the course of a week travelling between Melbourne and Geelong, and given that stretch comprises a substantial portion of freeway, I was surprised with the van's relative efficiency.

You see, Volkswagen claims the ID. Buzz Cargo consumes 22.2-20.4kW (European data) of electricity for every 100 kilometres of distance travelled – already an impressive figure for a large electric van.

However, much of the time I spent in the van returned a sub-20kWh/100km energy economy.

Anecdotally, we tend to look favourably on energy consumptions below 20-25kWh/100km in large electric vehicles, but the Volkswagen ID. Buzz tended to do better than that figure even while loaded up…

The first two trips to Melbourne averaged out at 17.3kWh/100km with approximately 200kg on board each time, while a run later in the week with a 250kg load yielded an 18.7kWh/100km consumption.

Overall, the average energy consumption for the times when the van was loaded with approximately 200-250kg on board totalled 17.8kWh/100km.

Conversely, travelling the same stretch with nothing on board but myself as a driver, the Volkswagen ID. Buzz Cargo recorded an average of 18.7kWh/100km.

Surprisingly, it was when the ID. Buzz was completely empty that the electric van was at its least efficient.

With that in mind, it's clear that the differences in efficiency between having a load of 200-250kg and hauling nothing whatsoever are, at best, minimal.

This is an unexpected result.

Considering there's a relatively small delta of 0.9kWh per 100km, it's likely that this difference is best explained by driving behaviour and traffic conditions, rather than load weight.

It could be the case that the loads I was carrying on-board the ID. Buzz were not heavy enough to move the needle.

The one key takeaway from the experience with the Volkswagen ID. Buzz is that this electric van is surprisingly efficient overall. Against Volkswagen's claim 22.2-20.4kWh/100km, it continually returned a rating of beneath the 20kWh/100km mark – regardless of whether it was loaded or not.

I'm keen to try the experiment again with a heavier load to see whether that impacts total driving range to a larger extent.

However, it is clear that electric vehicles are well and truly catching up to conquering hard yakka.

Could you see an electric van or ute fitting in with your business? Let us know in the comments below.

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