Driving & Charging
There’s little to be concerned about taking your EV on a road trip. Fast Chargers line the highways and you’ll have a way smoother and pleasant drive.
This is the big one. The question that holds back a lot of people who could be loving an EV right now. How is an electric road trip going to work?
Never fear - Link is going to give you the real deal on this key topic, and it is this:
You will never appreciate the smooth ride, silent acceleration and lovely, truck-passing torque of electric driving as much as when you’re in hour 10 on the interstate. And with automakers adding hands-free driving options to high-end EVs, long drives are poised to get even more pleasant.
But that probably wasn’t what you were worried about, was it? You’re wondering about charging. We can cover that too. (And we include our favorite electric road trip tips)
The starting point for electric road trips is when Fast Chargers really shine, and these are rapidly growing along highways everywhere across America. This growth will only accelerate, so road trips will continually get easier with every charger that is installed.
Just like you never let your gas tank get all the way to empty, you’ll never want to drive your battery all the way to zero. It’s smart to leave yourself a buffer - we recommend 5-10% of the battery when you’re driving on the highway (10-20 miles in most EVs).
At the same time, when you fast-charge an electric car, charging slows to a trickle when the battery gets above about 80% full. To make the best time on a trip, it’s smarter to unplug at 80%, drive to the next charger and recharge up to 80% again.
Between your 10% buffer and your fast-charging max of around 80%, that’s 70% of your battery that we call the “sweet spot”. That’s the number that we suggest planning your road trips around. If your VW ID.4 has a range of 260 miles, you’ll want to charge every ~180 miles to maximize efficiency.
Since we look at a lot of EVs and think about these kinds of things a lot, we divide EVs into three broad categories.
Does this mean a Subaru Solterra with 220 miles of range can’t go the distance if you’re heading a few states over? Not at all. We just recommend that if you’re frequently finding yourself on marathon drives, you’ll be happiest equipping yourself with a 250+ mile range.
We hate to criticize the Nissan Leaf. There were Nissan Leafs starting in 2013 when most of the electric cars available today were not even a twinkle in the eye of car designers.
However, the Nissan Leaf uses the CHAdeMO charging port for fast charging. While there are many CHAdeMO chargers installed already, because other car models do not use this standard there will be fewer installed in the future.
The new Nissan Ariya crossover SUV is switching to the standard “CCS” fast charging port. But for this reason, we do caution you about getting a Nissan Leaf if you plan to use your electric car for lots of road trips. (The Leaf is still a fantastic option for city driving, day-trips, and longer drives where you know that CHAdeMO chargers are installed - perhaps the most economic option available today!)
You can try out a hypothetical roadtrip using one of a growing number of road trip planners like Chargeway and Plugshare). EVGo, Electrify America and Chargepoint are just three of the largest of the rapidly expanding networks of chargers. On the horizon, the Tesla Supercharger network may open to other EVs.
On a full-day drive, you will likely find your route-planner recommending 1-4 stops, with a variety of options for where exactly you make these stops. Below is a a couple of screenshots from the Chargeway app showing a a suggested route and charging stop for a trip from San Francisco to Los Angeles in a Hyundai Kona EV.
For the next few years, even a very fast charge from a low battery level will take 20-45 minutes for most EVs, so the total time for your drive may tick up a bit. But the only real difficulty you should encounter is where you will get your gummy snacks and energy drinks because you won’t be fueling at gas stations. (Food and refreshment options tend to be nearby any charger however!)
To ensure you have the smoothest time possible, here’s a few of our tips for the best road trip experience:
Still not convinced that an EV can work for all the road trip you’re going to go on? Then set up a consultation with an EV expert and we can help understand your specific situation to see if we can find the perfect EV for you.
This is the big one. The question that holds back a lot of people who could be loving an EV right now. How is an electric road trip going to work?
Never fear - Link is going to give you the real deal on this key topic, and it is this:
You will never appreciate the smooth ride, silent acceleration and lovely, truck-passing torque of electric driving as much as when you’re in hour 10 on the interstate. And with automakers adding hands-free driving options to high-end EVs, long drives are poised to get even more pleasant.
But that probably wasn’t what you were worried about, was it? You’re wondering about charging. We can cover that too. (And we include our favorite electric road trip tips)
The starting point for electric road trips is when Fast Chargers really shine, and these are rapidly growing along highways everywhere across America. This growth will only accelerate, so road trips will continually get easier with every charger that is installed.
Just like you never let your gas tank get all the way to empty, you’ll never want to drive your battery all the way to zero. It’s smart to leave yourself a buffer - we recommend 5-10% of the battery when you’re driving on the highway (10-20 miles in most EVs).
At the same time, when you fast-charge an electric car, charging slows to a trickle when the battery gets above about 80% full. To make the best time on a trip, it’s smarter to unplug at 80%, drive to the next charger and recharge up to 80% again.
Between your 10% buffer and your fast-charging max of around 80%, that’s 70% of your battery that we call the “sweet spot”. That’s the number that we suggest planning your road trips around. If your VW ID.4 has a range of 260 miles, you’ll want to charge every ~180 miles to maximize efficiency.
Since we look at a lot of EVs and think about these kinds of things a lot, we divide EVs into three broad categories.
Does this mean a Subaru Solterra with 220 miles of range can’t go the distance if you’re heading a few states over? Not at all. We just recommend that if you’re frequently finding yourself on marathon drives, you’ll be happiest equipping yourself with a 250+ mile range.
We hate to criticize the Nissan Leaf. There were Nissan Leafs starting in 2013 when most of the electric cars available today were not even a twinkle in the eye of car designers.
However, the Nissan Leaf uses the CHAdeMO charging port for fast charging. While there are many CHAdeMO chargers installed already, because other car models do not use this standard there will be fewer installed in the future.
The new Nissan Ariya crossover SUV is switching to the standard “CCS” fast charging port. But for this reason, we do caution you about getting a Nissan Leaf if you plan to use your electric car for lots of road trips. (The Leaf is still a fantastic option for city driving, day-trips, and longer drives where you know that CHAdeMO chargers are installed - perhaps the most economic option available today!)
You can try out a hypothetical roadtrip using one of a growing number of road trip planners like Chargeway and Plugshare). EVGo, Electrify America and Chargepoint are just three of the largest of the rapidly expanding networks of chargers. On the horizon, the Tesla Supercharger network may open to other EVs.
On a full-day drive, you will likely find your route-planner recommending 1-4 stops, with a variety of options for where exactly you make these stops. Below is a a couple of screenshots from the Chargeway app showing a a suggested route and charging stop for a trip from San Francisco to Los Angeles in a Hyundai Kona EV.
For the next few years, even a very fast charge from a low battery level will take 20-45 minutes for most EVs, so the total time for your drive may tick up a bit. But the only real difficulty you should encounter is where you will get your gummy snacks and energy drinks because you won’t be fueling at gas stations. (Food and refreshment options tend to be nearby any charger however!)
To ensure you have the smoothest time possible, here’s a few of our tips for the best road trip experience:
Still not convinced that an EV can work for all the road trip you’re going to go on? Then set up a consultation with an EV expert and we can help understand your specific situation to see if we can find the perfect EV for you.
