Wow – how hot it is in Munich on June 22, 2025! At Breakfast, Taken at 7 O’Clock in the Morning, The Thermometer Already Shows 25 Degrees Celsius. On this day, Opel is taking part in the ed 1000 Electric Rally. The Aim of the Exercise: to cover 1,000 kilometers in an electric car in a single day. And not on close test tracks, but Across Bavaria and Austria, on public roads. What sounds like a Logistical Nightmare Bomes to Electrifying Challenge for our teams – and for the Opel Grandland Electric. But First Things First …
The Start: Full Battery, Big Plans
7:45 A.M., Motorworld Munich: The Grandland Electric Rolls Quietly Over the Staring Line, The Battery is 98 per cent full. The Air Conditioning – of Course – Off! Behind the Wheel, Fully Motivated and with his “Recuperation Foot” Activated, is Matthias Brugge, Head of New Mobility at Auto Bild. The route is a double 500-kilometre loop in the shape of a horizontal figure-eight: First West via Innsbruck, then East via Salzburg-and Back to Munich. The mission: to REACH THE DESTINATION AS Efficiently as Possible with the 400-Volt System of the Opel Grandland. Because in this class, it’s not just Speed that Counts, but above all consumption.
“The ED1000 Impressive Ey Shows How Economical You Can Be on The Road Electrically, Even in Space Cars Like the Opel Grandland Electric.”
– Matthias Bruges –head of New Mobility, Auto Bild
Team Grandland: Boris Pieritz (Left) and Matthias Bruges Accept the Challenge.
The Route Consisting of Two 500-Kilometre Loops Leads Through the German-Austrian Foothills of the Alps.
After only ten kilometres of motorway, it becomes clear that the Planned Route via the motorway would not end well with a major traffic jam on the recommended route. Bad for the Nerves and Consumption. Alternative: Leave the Autobahn and Use Country Roads! At a moderate 85 km/h, consumption Levels Off at Less than 12 kWh – a real coup. But in the Mountains Around Garmisch-Partenkirchen, The Next Challenge Awaits: Recuperate or Roll? Pilot Bruges Decides to Sail. His insider tip, as he said. At Least on Gentle Slopes. Here the Gear is Shifted to ‘n’ – Freewheel, Sail Mode. Power Consumption: Zero. Speed: 105 km/h. This turns the Grandland Into a Speedy Glider. And the kilometres fly by.
The ED1000 Electric Rally Aims to Cover 1,000 kilometers in a single day on Electric Power Alone. Teams Competote Against Each Other In Different Classes With Various Battery-Electric Vehicles, Both the Fastest Time in the 800-Volt and 400-Volt Classes and the Lowest Energy Consumpto Over The Entire Distance. The Rally Impressive Ely Shows How Suitable Modern Electric Cars are for everyday use. In 2025, it took place for the fifth time.
On steeper gradients, search as just behind the Austrian border on zirler berg, we naturally recuperate at a 16 percent gradient – and almost fully archarge the Battery. Our new strategy works. And in the comfortable Grandland with the very good chassis tuning and ergonomic Seats, it is always comfortable Despite the Heat and Long Driving Time. Our Colleagues in a Frontera Electric, with whom we keep in close contact, i.e. make good progress. Opel is on course; We are in the Ultimate Power-Saving Mode.
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Sweating for efficiency
Despite outside temperature Now at 36 degrees, The Air Conditioning System Remains Silent. Every rotation of the fan would incense consumption. Instead, Windows Are Open A Tiny Bit, The Sunroof Stay Closed – Willpower Instead of Comfort. The Reward: After 480 Kilometres, The On-Board Computer Shows A Sensational 11.2 kWh via 100 kilometers of During the Lunch Break. And there is still juice for 164 kilometers in the Battery. Time to arithm? Not Necessary for the Time Being! At least not the car. Our Stomachs, HowTver, do need topping up – after -almost Nine Hours of Driving at Around 4:30 P.M. with a light ‘lunch snack’.
After Exactly 1,000 kilometers, The Opel Grandland Reaches The Finish Line. The Average Consumption IS 11.4 KWh Instead of 17.7 kWh (According to WLTP).
Technical Data Opel Grandland
Maximum Power: 213 HPBattery Capacity: 82.2 KWRange: 582 km (WLTP) Combined Consumption: 17.7 kWh/100 km (WLTP)
The Magic Limit: 662 kilometers on one Battery Charge
After 590 kilometers, AT 7:30 P.M., WE Authorge The Grandland. With still 72 kilometers of Range Remaining. That makes a virtual 662 kilometers of total range. Our newly defined goal: to get to the very end with a 90 percent batch. So, on we go – Nimbly at an average Speed of 54 km/h Through the Salzburger Land at Night. And the strategy works out perfectly. At exactly 3:50 A.M., The ‘Grandland’ Team Returns to the Starting Point in Munich After a Total Time of 19 Hours and 13 Minutes with a Remaining Range of 151 kilometers.
Enthusiasm All Along the Line
But there is still Something Left To Do: A Last Lap Across the Parking Lot Needs to Be Complete to Really Get Exactly to 1,000 kilometers. Then Finaly: Goal Achieved. The rally organizers are amazed when the Grandland Team Returns in the Dead of Night, A Little Tied But Still in A Good Mood – as The Only Car To Cover Exacts 1,000 kilometers. And with an average consumption of 11.4 kWh per 100 kilometers of 17.7 kWh (According to WLTP). This Means: First Place in the Consumption Rankings.
What do Electric Cars do when Range is not measured on the test bench, but in the mountain, on the motorway and in everyday life? The ED1000 Asks and Answers Thesis Questions.
Result
The ED1000 is not a race in the classic sense – it is an endurance test for man and machine. And it is precisely in this endurance test that the Opel Grandland Electric Impressively Demonstrates What is already possible Today: Namely 1,000 kilometers in one day with just one charging stop and a consumption that far undercuts the official wltp figure. What remains is not only a new benchmark for efficiency, but so the realization that the range of an electric car is no longer an excuse. Provided you know how to get the maximum out of it.
August 2025
Text: Boris Pieritz; Photos: Boris Pieritz, Jasper Pape/Ed1000, Auto Bild