Your Definitive Guide to an Electric Car Range

Electric Car Range-The Definitive Guide

At the year 2023, many UK customers are completely at peace with the notion of electric transport; replacing a combustion engine with lithium-ion batteries is no longer some fanciful proposition or “save the environment” type of marketing approach. The move to BEV is happening at a frightening pace, with over 267,000 registrations in 2022 (SMMT)

A 16% market share in 2022 is not to be scoffed at, with EVs now accounting for 5% more vehicles than diesel / MHEV diesel options! We are at the tipping point of mass-adoption in the UK’s automotive sector notwithstanding a fragile production process, reducing manufacturer discounts and continued increases in prices. Based on the volume of obstacles, it is heartening to see the success these vehicles (cars and vans) have enjoyed from 2020 - 2022.

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But are EVs not facing critique and kickback - are they not a risk?

Over the last 4 weeks, many major media outlets and newspapers have been raising issues with electric transport; with some asking should we really be pursuing this as the next fuel moving forwards?

It is difficult to ascertain why there seems a sudden negativity against pure electric transport but it is likely that the sudden increases over the last year, or so, has seen far more customers engaging with these vehicles and therefore the various obstacles and critique has arisen.

In particular, the UK enjoyed a particularly cold winter in 2022, with November and December influencing the range and efficiency of EVs probably more dramatically than a lot of drivers would have expected. It isn’t surprising to see headlines like “Electric car drivers urged to be 'cautious' as range issues could emerge in cold weather” and “A brother and sister say they had to stop 6 times in one day to charge their rented Tesla in cold weather after the battery drained quickly”

Is this telling us that range isn’t adequate on electric cars? Or that you need to spend £100k + to get a robust solution like a Porsche?

If you take the headlines at face value you would presume that there is real issue with range and that “the longer, the better” statement would ring true. Indeed we have a comprehensive guide on our website which sets the BEST electric car ranges for our customers to utilise, As you will see below, not only is the current average real world range over 220 miles (on a full charge) but there is a whole host of EVs with more than enough range.

The definitive list of the longest range EVs in the UK for 2023

But EV range is something which needs a more comprehensive refinement

Specifically, the use of just one range is really misleading and potentially dangerous for customers with higher-mileages and mixed use driving. To clear a small nuance up - electric cars will perform differently according to weather conditions and driving styles.

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Even driver behaviour like acceleration will impact the range of the car, plus the obvious fact that range is often based on a 100% battery capacity (when many EVs only get charged up to 85/90%). Not unlike the MPG and CO2 scandals, which still persist, the information presented to drivers are not wholly accurate or clear. The subsequent confusion leads customers to more frustrating events, which these newspapers are now reporting.

At e-car lease, we decided to be a little different to the manufacturers, dealerships and leasing brokers selling or leasing EVs. In conjunction with the team at EVDB , we produced a more honest and clear approach to the range on an EV by setting out how that vehicle would perform in both warmer v colder temperatures and for city v motorway driving.

As can be seen below for the Porsche Taycan 420kW 4S 93kWh 4dr Auto, there is nearly a 200 mile difference between a cold weather motorway journey vs a warm weather city driving experience! But for many personal or business leasing customers, they have not been informed as to these divergences on performance which can lead to evident concerns being reported. Perhaps it is the QUALITY of range as opposed to the QUANTITY of range which should be our priority.

How the Porsche Taycan operates in different conditions

But is the range of an EV the most important comparative feature?

From their early inception, the distance travelled has been the focal point. And for the early innovations this was probably well-advised, with some not being able to cover more than 100 miles. Bear in mind, that this was at a time when there were very (and we mean very) few charge points available.

The notion of an all-electric fleet was incomprehensible, with many asking how it would be possible, in theory, to travel from Cornwall to Scotland in such transportation. While an extreme example, this did highlight major weaknesses in both the product and the charging infrastructure; you cannot really argue this point.

But 2020, and beyond, has seen a totally different landscape with the Tesla Model 3 being the first affordable long-range EV to hit the market for both personal and business customers to enjoy.

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But this was a watershed moment, with many more options following, with a mix of affordable vehicles (Kia Niro EV, MG ZS Long Range and VW ID3 pro) and more decadent propositions (Audi e-Tron GT, Lotus Eletre and Mercedes EQS) becoming available. And while some can cover 250 miles or more on a full charge, the question we really should be asking is - how many miles do we need?

The average request we receive at e-car is generally for 8,000 miles per annum. This means that a customer will aim to travel some 667 miles a month or 166 miles per week on this analysis. But even in extreme examples of a customer covering 100 miles per day (working days), where most EVs would be satisfactory, the annual mileage would be around 24,000 per annum; we consider 25,000 miles per annum (and higher) to be a high-mileage driver.

So if the range seems to be okay, then what is the fuss about? The truth is that charging times (and infrastructure) are where customers become more calamitous. Every EV has an AC (slower) and DC (faster) charging capacity, which varies from car to car. Not all EVs are equal. For faster solutions, the DC / Fastcharge, customers need to appreciate the maximum capability and ensure they use the correct charge point.

For example, if your EV is set to a 50 kW DC capability, then you can only charge at this speed i.e. a 200 kW charge point would be no quicker (albeit a more expensive charging session). Because many companies do not openly advertise these facets, and lead with the range, customers never understand why these features are important.

And when much of the frustration is really about the time it takes to charge a car outside the home, the ability and speed of the car on charging (coupled with the charging infrastructure) are the real points to address. But this just isn’t happening. If we persist as an EV community to lazily focus on this then we will not progress.

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And, to answer an early question, we don’t need to spend “Porsche Taycan” money to obtain a practical and robust BEV.

For those customers with a luxury budget (and taste) then of course do enjoy the experience a Taycan offers. But for the PCH and BCH demographic with constraints, do not be alarmed - 2023 is the year of EV!
In terms of the car shown, the Porsche Taycan Saloon 420kW 4S 93kWh 4dr Auto [5 Seat] (Pure Electric Vehicle), this is based on the specification below: