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The very idea of an electric vehicle gives plenty of car buyers range anxiety. While a car with an internal combustion engine will travel an average of 400 miles on a full tank, electric cars haven’t quite managed to reach this milestone. Even though most car journeys are short, drivers prefer to have the option to drive the length of the country without a prolonged stop or to get stuck in traffic without panicking over where the nearest charging station might be. Improved battery technology means that electric cars are going further than ever before, with a number of models promising ranges in excess of 250 miles. However, as with official miles per gallon figures, the theoretical maximum range of an EV is determined in controlled conditions that significantly differ from real-world driving. With that in mind, we reveal the various factors that will prevent your car reaching its theoretical maximum.
All cars are less efficient in cold weather. In general, electric motors are more efficient than internal combustion engines. However, much of the energy from conventional cars is converted into heat, which is particularly useful on those chilly days. Therefore, your efficient EV will have to dedicate some of its battery power into an electric heating system to clear the windscreen, as well as keeping the driver comfortable.
Additionally, many cars use heating and cooling systems to keep the battery at the optimum temperature as cold weather inhibits the flow of electrons. That’s the same reason why your conventional car might not start in freezing conditions. All this extra heating uses up a significant amount of your car’s energy. With a lower range than a conventional car, this reduced battery power will make a much bigger impact.
There’s a reason that car designers spend such a long time in wind tunnels, and it’s nothing to do with getting that classic swept-away look. The more aerodynamic a car is, the less drag the car will encounter. Essentially, that means that if a car is more streamlined, it won’t have to work as hard to move through the air. That’s why driving with the top down or with a roof rack is far less efficient. If you’re driving into a headwind, the motor will require more power to keep you going at the same speed. In racing, drivers often use the slipstream of another car in order to enjoy a more efficient drive, but for everyday purposes, it’s more important to always maintain a safe distance.
When driving an EV, if you’re moving, you’re not charging (at least until wireless charging roads become the norm). That means if you’re using the radio, charging your phone or enjoying the comforts of your heated seats, you’re using power that could be used for extra miles. While these aren’t generally major power drains on their own, if you’re aiming for the most efficient drive possible, it all adds up to less power to put on the road.
Laws of physics dictate that driving uphill will require more energy than driving across an even surface. No matter what speed you travel, it’s going to take more power to conquer an incline than it would to drive straight ahead. Driving downhill will conserve energy but that may also mean braking more often, which in turn, will mean a loss of energy through heat. Similarly, if you are driving through winding roads where regular braking is required, you’ll be using more energy than you would travelling the same distance in a straight line.
The faster you go, the more power you’ll use, so if you’re driving on a motorway consistently at 60mph, your range will be significantly lower than if you are consistently driving at 30mph. If you are fast on the accelerator and late on the brakes, this will also use up far more energy. That style is also highly inefficient when driving a conventional vehicle but it comes into far greater focus when you want to maximise your range. You can observe your range using your dashboard readout and modify your driving behaviour accordingly.
If you’re wondering what sort of impact different conditions might have on your driving, Renault offers a driving range calculator for their electric bestseller, the ZOE.
