Civic duties

My Mk1 Panda (903cc and four gears) was quite noisy going over the Alps with skis on the roof, kit in the back and people in it.
Did it though, a few times, albeit not very quickly!

Have mercy on him... He's got two kids in private school... He can't afford to drive with a petrol tanker on his rear bumper filling up the car every 20 miles.

Stinger?
Phoar!
Now yer whistling’ dixi!

Coasts, yes. Recovers a bit, in the case of an EV, yes. Balances the energy expended in getting up the hill? Nowhere near.

Exactly. Motoring journos have done a lot of harm with this idea that energy regenerated through braking is somehow free.

EV coasting is an eye-opening experience all the same. I've always tried to manage my speed as far as possible in fossil cars by lifting off early and slowing down naturally without the brakes - at least, I though it was natural. Doing the same in the iX has shown me that, even in a 35mph/1000rpm gear attached to a big diesel engine, there's a whole lotta braking going on. There's a long, straightish hill near me on which I used to paddle the CLS into 7th (of 7) to roll down with minimal inputs and arrive at the bottom at a decent speed. If I try that in the iX's D mode, the increase in speed is surprising verging on alarming, so little resistance does the drivetrain offer. It also picks up speed when coasting down motorway inclines, which no fossil car I've ever driven has done. Very different experience.

My KIA puts between 2 and 3kW back freewheeling down the road. That's roughly what an electric kettle consumes.

What got me thinking about the regen was only replacing the front discs on my diesel Volvo after 13 years and the second set of pads. The discs were cream crackered not because of wear but corrosion on the inner surfaces. The rear discs are worn out every 50,000 miles with an interim pads change at half that distance. The cause, torque vector braking through software.

Watching the regen since the oxygen sensor was replaced the car appears happiest between 70 and 80 mph on cruise control 1,750-2,000 rpm when regenerating. It also, surprisingly to me, regenerates quite efficiently on overrun leaving it in a high gear slowing for a roundabout or whatever. That also reduces the soot level when it is not regenerating. Every day is indeed a school day.

Yes, DPF regen. Watch it through the OBDII port.

Run software on my phone shows soot level, DPF temp., pressure even see the glow plugs fire up to around 50% for that final bit of heat to around 640°C.

Can watch the EGR valve at the same time.