When you buy an electric car, you often see it has a certain range that has been certified by the company. Like in India, we look for the MG Comet EV, then its lab-tested range is advertised as 230 kilometers in a single charge, while in the case of the Tiago EV, it is advertised as 315 kilometers in a single charge. But in real-world conditions when you drive these cars on the road, you never get this lab-tested range.
So, what are the reasons why you never get the lab-tested range? What factors affect the car’s driving range? Let’s discuss these in detail below and find out about the factors that affect the actual range of an electric car.
1. Road conditions
The very first factor that we see while driving an electric car is the condition of the roads. If the road conditions are good, then you can get a slightly better range, but if the conditions are not good like uneven surfaces, bumps, potholes, traffic congestion, and frequent stops then in this case, you cannot achieve the lab-certified range.
2. Weight of the car
Every manufacturer tests the battery range in a lab-tested environment. So, in that test range, there is no weight on the motor, no air resistance, and no pressure from surroundings. In short, the natural conditions are limited with moderate speeds and temperatures in lab tests, hence the certified range is always more than in the real world.
But in the real world, the weight of the car, the weight of the passengers, air resistance, and tire friction all together put a load on the electric motor, and here, the motor consumes more power, and finally, the battery range drops by 5-10%.
Apart from this, you can also understand it in this way that if Maruti car has a battery pack of 24.3 kWh and Tata car also has the same battery pack, then the range of Maruti car will be more because Maruti cars generally weigh less than Tata cars.
3. Battery condition
The condition of the car’s battery doesn’t remain the same in every condition; it degrades month by month, year by year. It’s not like when you purchased a car with a battery capacity of 17.3 kilowatt-hours, you will get the capacity of 17.3 kilowatt-hours every time. No, it’s not like that. This is a natural process, and the battery degrades over time. When this happens, you get the range according to that and hence experts say Year by year, as time passes, the range of your car will drop.
A study by the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) in the United States found a strong correlation between battery size and range, with larger batteries offering a clear advantage . However, even the most advanced batteries experience some degradation over time, with a decrease in overall capacity reported by the American Automobile Association (AAA) to be around 2% per year on average.
For example, suppose you have purchased a car now. Its battery capacity is 24.3 kilowatt-hours, and the claimed range is 315 kilometers. So, in the real world, it will first give a range of 280 kilometers, and after six months, the range will drop from 280 kilometers to 270 kilometers. After one year, the range will be around 265 kilometers, and after five years, you will find out that the battery range is around 230-240 kilometers.
4. Driving style
The battery range also depends on your driving style and what facilities you are using, like air conditioning, music, etc. Based on driving speed, braking and the use of facilities, the electric car’s range can drop by 2-3%. If you can control the use of these facilities and maintain a steady speed and practicing smooth maneuvering, then you may get a more extended range, as we have already discussed in a separate article.
All this has been proven in a study that was conducted by the California Air Resources Board (CARB). They found that maintaining a steady speed and practicing smooth maneuvering could improve range by 20%. Additionally, research from the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers demonstrated the use of regenerative braking which helps capture energy during deceleration and a top up the car battery slightly.
5. Weather conditions
Though car manufacturers do a lot of tests and check the capability of the car at extreme temperatures in different seasons like summer, winter, and rainy season, the battery range still fails to meet the certified range. The biggest reason is unpredictable weather conditions, which could be too hot or too cold, or flooding situations. In these tough conditions, the car’s battery drains quickly, and you don’t get the certified range claimed by the car manufacturer.
Overall, it has been seen that whatever range has been claimed by the EV car manufacturers, you will get 20% less in real-time, real-world conditions. If a car is certified to give a range of 230 kilometers, then in the real world, it will end up with 180-190 kilometers. Similarly, if another car is advertised as 315 kilometers in a single charge, then it will give a range of 260-270 kilometers only.
Therefore, never go with the range mentioned in the car brochure. The real world scenario is a bit different, and you always get 20% less range than claimed by the electric car manufacturer, and over the years, this will also decline and eventually you will have to get a new battery pack.
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