AMIRZA786

You don't need an electric vehicle with a long range — buy one you can afford instead

• Many prospective electric car buyers worry about an EV's range, or how far it goes on a charge.
• But with new battery tech and more available charging, range shouldn't be a prime factor.
• EV-buyers should focus on other things instead, experts say.
• This article is part of a series called Getting Ready for Electric, a practical guide to buying your next EV

When car-buyers consider going electric, they typically wonder about the vehicle's cost, charging setup, and how far it can go on a full battery. But some experts say that in picking the right electric car, that last question of range is becoming less important — and less helpful.

Take the first Nissan Leaf, which offered a range of just about 73 miles when it debuted over a decade ago. Today, it can go 212 miles without plugging in. And that's for a $27,800 car. If you're willing to drop $138,000 on a Lucid Air Grand Touring, you don't have to worry about recharging for more than 500 miles.

These rising figures stem largely from improving battery tech. But even with better batteries, range isn't necessarily the best factor by which to select an EV.

That's because in reality, most drivers don't need long-range EVs.

"That's the key thing: Reassuring people in the first place about how far they're really, really driving," Nigel Zeid, an EV educator and sales specialist, told Insider. "You need people to understand how far they're actually driving in a day."

How much range is enough for your electric car?

Most estimates suggest a full tank of gas in an internal-combustion engine vehicle gets on average 300 miles. If drivers are good with that, a 300-mile-range EV should be more than enough.

"For vehicle range, we will reach a 'good enough' number, especially as charging infrastructure gets built out in more and more places," Scott Case, CEO of firm Recurrent. "You don't need batteries that go 800 miles when it's convenient and easy and quick to recharge every 300 miles.

"You will start to see fewer and fewer cars that have the really long range," Case added, "and somewhere between 250 and 350 miles of range is probably where the market settles out."

How you should pick your electric car instead

Prospective EV-buyers can dive into other variables instead, like ease of charging, cost, and vehicle particulars.

The nation's charging build-out has a way to go in terms of affordability and functionality, and even availability. The US needs four times as much charging infrastructure by 2025, and eight times as much by 2030, to accommodate the coming influx of EVs, according to an estimate from S&P Global Mobility.

And automakers can't expect all EV-buyers to plug in at home, given various living arrangements, income, and geographic barriers.

"We estimate that roughly a half of American car buyers could plausibly install and control a home charger sometime over the next five years," Patrick Anderson, founder of Anderson Economic Group, said.

Whether a vehicle qualifies for federal EV tax credits might be another factor.

Meanwhile, another thing car-buyers should focus on: Until recently, there weren't many EVs available that spoke to the top segments in the US: pickups and SUVs. That's shifting, said Steve Patton, EY Americas mobility sector leader.

"It's no surprise and no coincidence that most of the new models being introduced or planned to be introduced over the coming months are around that segment," Patton said. The automaker "has to produce the vehicles that we as consumers want to purchase."

https://www.businessinsider.com/car-...ge-cost-2023-2

LeX2K

This obsession with range is very odd to me. Instead of focusing on short trips which is 99% of driving people focus in on the 1% as a reason an electric vehicle might not work for them.

SW17LS

I think as charging networks get more widespread people's focus on range will shift.

For me its purely about travel, I want to be able to drive 400 miles on a trip and not have to make multiple stops to charge. One stop for 15-20 minutes or so is fine with me. Thats why I want range. Day to day 150 miles is more than enough range.

Striker223

It's not the same. Stop trying to force people into something that doesn't work for them and they don't want.

Real world EV range is not what it's made out to be, I've only ever gotten 2/3s of rated. If I'm aggressive it's under half. It's also very hard to accept charging vs adding 600 miles in 1.2-3.5 minutes

It may be fine in dense areas but not everywhere where a "normal" drive is 60-80 miles. They do much better in traffic sure but if that's a rare occurrence it's not that important of a factor.

RNM GS3

I feel this forum went from Car Chat to EV Chat.
Even the non-EV threads end up EV related…

LeX2K

People have that much power over you? Seems to me you can buy what you want.
Don't like don't read. Make some threads not about electric vehicles.

AMIRZA786

Real MPG range for ICE is not what its made out to be. Why is it that I pretty much get the range promised, sometimes more? Most people aren't you, with all due respect

GFerg

300 mile range would be a minimum for me as I make frequent enough trips to NYC and Central NJ from Philly. Factor in charging to around 80 percent only and other misc short trips while there, I would have to plug in every time before turning around or I would be cutting it close and my anxiety would be through the roof. Lol. Just not there yet for me.

Day to day is more than enough as I'm mostly remote and walk a lot when I go out.

SW17LS

To be fair, you seem to be the most aggressive driver I have ever seen. If a car has 250 miles of range, 65% of that is 163 miles. Very few people drive more than 163 miles in a day. All we have to do is look at the national average of miles driven in a year in the US, which is 14,263. There are 260 working days in a year, if you consider that 75% of a vehicle's use is commuting to work and back, thats an average of 41 miles per working day driven in the US, and 21 miles per non working day. So, even if you only got half of a low range vehicle (250 miles)'s range, 125 miles thats way more than the vast majority of Americans drive in a day.

60-80 miles even one way is no issue in a modern EV, and that will just get better.

No issue with you saying you don't want that, but most people who say an EV won't work for them, one actually would. Just be real about it. I drive huge expensive vehicles, it would be like me saying a Corolla wouldn't work for me. Of course it would, I just don't want one.

I would say there is a 50% chance my next car is an EV, and an 80-100% chance that the car after that one will be. I have no concern about any usage I would possibly do in a day, the only concern I have is travel. Not having to get gas in my daily life is a huge benefit. Just on Tuesday I was running late for an appointment and I got in the car and forgot I had to stop and get gas which put me even more behind, and I had to stand out in the cold rainy weather. Having 350 miles of range every morning when I get in the car is very appealing to me.

But, Monday I am driving to the Pocanos to go skiing with a friend, it will be very cold and I will be in my car. Can't charge it at his cabin...with 120V it would take 50 hours. Don't want to take the Pacifica because I don't like driving it. Thats the kind of thing that keeps me from doing it. If I had a nice SUV or something other than the Pacifica I liked to drive on a trip I would be way more likely to do it now and just not drive my EV on trips at all.

SW17LS

I just looked at my miles driven today on Google Maps. Today was a busy day, I drove from my house down to downtown DC to show a house, then I drove to my office and worked, and drove home. I drove 44.7 miles. If I look back in my timeline, the most I have driven in a day that didn't include travel was 104 miles and that included a trip to Baltimore and back, which is not typical. How would an EV with 300 miles of range not work for me?

Striker223

No but I dislike being preached to incessantly when it's not even on topic

Striker223

I get more than promised on the window sticker and I will bet you that most people fall on my side of the argument.

I don't get to range promised in an EV since I drive them to their power/performance envelope like I do most cars and I also don't live in the cali bubble world. You are by definition the average market consumer many many many things are built for/toward.

I'm an extreme exception.

Striker223

I'm actually not aggressive it all, difference is when I go fast I send it. I'm usually extremely defensive and have huge following distance and spacing with very gradual acceleration and braking. I normally never use more than 2k rpm in the Audis....

However when I don't drive normally I max out what the car can give. Fast at times doesn't equal aggressive or even unsafe since if I lose it the only person hurt will be me.

Striker223

It probably would, I did 187 today one way and 90 back. If I was in an EV it may or may not have had the range depending on how it was driven and if it got colder or not when I was out.

I don't want to care about that and there are no benefits for me to have one.

AMIRZA786

No one is preaching to you. I don't know why you think that. You either are interested in EV'S or you are not, it's that simple. You just can't get it through your mind that they are a viable option for many people who think they are not. If you don't think they work for you, and if it bothers you than just don't read these threads. There are many threads that are not relevant to me, and I just don't read them