On the sunny side

Audi manager Bernd Ritter lives with his family of three around 25 minutes’ drive from the Audi Forum in Ingolstadt. As you approach his house, there’s one thing you notice right away: solar panels on the roof. It’s part of a private modernisation project which extended over several years. The engineer spent around €73,000 on having a household power plant installed in four stages. It began in 2014 and currently consists of solar cells with a power output of 15.5 kilowatt peak (kWp) on the roof and two batteries in the cellar with a total capacity of 27.6 kilowatt hours (kWh). “The sun is always there and has enough power to supply us with the energy we need. Why shouldn’t we use it? I do realise I’m in the fortunate position of being able to afford a household power plant. Other people might spend that kind of money on a sports car, but to me, this project is more exciting. It’s important to me to do my part in helping energy move towards renewable sources.”

But because of the weather where he lives, things aren’t always quite so sunny for Bernd Ritter and his household power plant. In winter, when the days get shorter and the skies are often cloudy and even full of snow, power yields can drop because of a lack of sun. The system responds appropriately by connecting to the mains and obtaining ‘outside power’ to cover lean periods before a deficit occurs. Bernd Ritter can use his battery manufacturer's customer website to analyse when his household and vehicles are being supplied with solar power – surfing on the green wave, as it were – and when electricity has to be bought. “I’m interested in the statistics, of course – per day, per month, per year. Consumption and production are really easy to track this way. Yesterday for instance, I didn’t need any extra electricity, I was 99% autonomous. The system has to tune in now and again because of the frequencies, so it’s normal to miss a percent or two,” says Ritter. “Ah, take a look here: here you can see that my wife came home and charged the Audi A3 Sportback e-tron ².” So it’s not just the bigger picture you can examine, it’s the details, all the way to a map showing other owners of household power plants made by the same supplier as the Ritter family’s, with mini-profiles – but only if they’ve agreed to share their data. It would be going a bit far to describe it as a contest, but Ritter’s voice does carry just a touch of pride when he clicks on the list: “I’m the biggest solar power producer here in our area.”

Home is naturally a fixed point within this self-made energy supply world, but travelling and being mobile is a major part of family life too. So being able to charge up at your own property is a key to the benefits of electric mobility. The Audi A3 Sportback e-tron can cover up to 50 kilometres in electric mode, while the Audi Q7 e-tron quattro manages up to 56 kilometres.

“I drive an average of 20 kilometres a day, for which I charge up at home and at work,” Bernd Ritter says. It’s a range that allows him to commute without producing emissions locally using the electric mode of his e-tron. And without producing much noise either.

Ritter concludes with a prediction for the future of mobility: “As far as purely electric vehicles are concerned, range will be a major factor alongside the fact that you’re producing no local emissions when you drive. I think there’s going to have to be a stronger focus on infrastructure in the next few years. You need a range of at least 400 kilometres, then you need at least one quick-charging station within that range. I’m already really looking forward to the moment Audi’s fully electric model becomes available.” The future of electric mobility remains an exciting topic and one thing is for sure: the Ritter family is already surfing ahead on the first wave.