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Going on vacation with an e-car? Don't overestimate the range

2022-05-04T08:49:34.020Z


Going on vacation with an e-car? Don't overestimate the range Created: 05/04/2022, 10:35 am By: Olga Krockauer Another holiday or business trip with an electric car needs to be well planned. © Marijan Murat/dpa (archive image/symbolic image) If you are planning another holiday or business trip with an electric car, you should plan enough time. What else should you, as an e-car driver, be aware


Going on vacation with an e-car?

Don't overestimate the range

Created: 05/04/2022, 10:35 am

By: Olga Krockauer

Another holiday or business trip with an electric car needs to be well planned.

© Marijan Murat/dpa (archive image/symbolic image)

If you are planning another holiday or business trip with an electric car, you should plan enough time.

What else should you, as an e-car driver, be aware of?

  • In practice, the range of an e-car is often much smaller.

  • This is due to the power consumption of the e-battery, which cannot be precisely calculated.

  • If you follow a few rules, you can increase the range of your e-speedster quite a bit.

The range of electric cars is constantly increasing

Drive faster, get further?

Unfortunately, this is not always true – at least not in relation to electric cars.

The gap between the information provided by the manufacturers and the real

ranges of electric cars

is due to the fact that car manufacturers mainly base their calculations on city and intercity journeys.

If you often drive on

highways

, you use up the battery charge faster.

E-cars sometimes

barely manage more than 400 kilometers

with a full charge.

The range of electric cars has increased steadily in recent years.

However, this well-known problem is still perceived as a challenge, especially on longer journeys.

Because another vacation or business trip only works with good planning and sufficient time buffer.

According to the ADAC test, the larger models such as the

Tesla Model 3

(in the ADAC test: 305 and 425 kilometers depending on the version), the

Mercedes-Benz EQC

(335 kilometers) or the

Hyundai Kona

(435 kilometers) were the clear range Winner.

Power consumption is important for the range of an electric car

The larger the

e-battery

,

the farther your e-speedster can go?

Not necessarily.

In its realistic Ecotest, ADAC showed that the range of an electric car – across all brands – depends heavily on power consumption.

High speeds or low temperatures also

have a negative impact on the range

.

Thus, under real conditions, the energy is not fully used for the drive.

In the summer, electric cars lose around 20 percent of their range because of the cooling of the battery and the air conditioning;

up to 40 to 50 percent of the range is lost due to the heating in winter.

E-car range in winter: That's what matters

As soon as temperatures outside fall below zero,

the energy consumption of an electric car increases

- and the range decreases.

This varies a little from model to model.

But the reasons are mostly the same.

On the one hand, the heating of the interior, including the windows, steering wheel and seats, draws power from the drive battery.

On the other hand, the electric battery is also heated: The battery needs a temperature of 20 to 40 degrees Celsius for the electrochemistry to work best.

The larger the battery, the more energy is required.

According to ADAC.de

, drivers of e-cars have to reckon

with this loss of

range

in winter (on short and commuter routes):

Range by car model

at +14 °C

at - 7 °C

Loss

Fiat 500e

244 km

182 km

25%

Renault Zoe

351 km

244 km

30%

Hyundai Kona electric

215 km

147 km

32%

Ford Mustang Mach-E

300 km

202 km

33%

Lexus UX300e

224 km

141 km

37%

Nissan Leaf e+

332 km

210 km

37%

VW ID.3

324 km

162 km

50%

Source: ADAC.de

Tips for e-drivers: reduce power consumption, increase range

With these tips

you can reduce the power consumption of your electric car

and

increase the range even in cooler temperatures

:

  • Preheat your e-car before

    driving – while it is still charging.

    This can be done via app or programming.

    Depending on the model, about 15 minutes is enough.

  • Give up the car heater and

    use the heated seats instead

    .

    Some brands have a savings function.

    The driver's seat is primarily heated: Use this if you are traveling alone.

  • Even if you

    switch the heating to forced air

    , you warm up the interior faster.

  • Short journeys

    with long idle times

    in between cause the interior and the battery to cool down.

    Avoid

    these to increase the range of your electric car.

  • Park safely

    in garages and multi-storey car parks.

    In this way you avoid extreme cooling of the battery.

  • When fast charging, it is more effective to do it in the evening after driving when the battery is still warm.

    Because a cooled e-battery severely limits the charging performance.

    It is therefore more effective to

    charge

    with high power than in the morning before driving.

  • Driving

    in Eco mode

    reduces or eliminates wheel spin.

    This also saves energy consumption and increases the range.

  • When braking, your electric car recovers energy.

    But when it's cold, this process, also known as recuperation, can be noticeably weaker.

    You should therefore adjust your

    braking behavior

    in

    winter

    .

  • Consider buying a

    heat pump

    , which some manufacturers offer separately.

How to increase the range of your electric car

Not only in winter: In general, you can do something to get as far as possible with your electric car:

  • Anticipatory driving

    takes on an additional meaning with electric cars: Accelerate gently and do not brake to a standstill.

    Let the vehicle roll to keep consumption as low as possible.

  • Even if driving an electric car is particularly fun, driving too fast is counterproductive

    .

    The slower

    you drive,

    the further

    you get.

    This also applies to the motorway: a speed of 100 km/h or less is ideal.

  • If you increase the

    tire pressure

    ,

    you reduce the rolling resistance and the range of your e-car increases.

    The recommendation of the manufacturer still applies as a guideline here.

    But: About 0.5 bar more is no problem and can already improve the range by a few kilometers.

    The aerodynamically optimized rims do the same!

  • Tidy up your vehicle regularly to

    reduce weight

    .

    The loaded roof rack can also have a negative effect on the range and does not have to be taken along unnecessarily.

    Because: Reduce the driving resistance, increase your e-car range.

  • Don't use the air conditioner

    because it uses a lot of energy.

  • Use

    the vehicle's recuperation: As soon as you take your foot off the gas, the wheels drive the engine.

    In doing so, it feeds energy back into the battery.

    If you can set the level of recuperation on your electric car, choose as high a level as possible, especially in city traffic.

In principle, it is worth

thinking about the

specifics of your own mobility behavior before you buy an e-car.

Do you tend to drive long or short distances?

Do you travel a lot in the city or only in the surrounding area?

This helps to decide on the right model.

A larger e-battery makes more sense over long distances, for example.

You can also find out where you can charge your e-car for free.

(OK)

Source: merkur

All tech articles on 2022-05-04

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