Best navigation tool for EVs?

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RobbW

Well-known member
Joined
Jul 8, 2013
Messages
427
Location
Elgin, IL
Is there a recommended navigation tool that can be geared more toward driving an EV on the most efficient routes possible? Is there anything like Google Maps that gives you the options to select shortest routes, filter for ranges of speed limits, avoid tollways/highways, etc.? I want to find routes that allow me to go at a slower rate of speed and/or are the shortest possible routes between two points and/or maximize those variables. Is the built-in DVD nav system in the SE model best for this? Or is there something better out there? Thanks.
 
I used to use Google Maps Directions a lot on my everyday older computer, the beauty being that you could play "what if" games with alternate routes by simply dragging the route around to experiment with distances. Unfortunately, Google disabled this feature, now telling me I needed a newer operating system on my Mac, and on the iPad I seem not to have the versatility I once had - maybe I need to play with it more.

RobbW, to answer your question, for the short distances we usually drive in the i-MiEV, it's an exercise that's perhaps more trouble than it's worth. I don't know of any such nav tool.

That feature with the variables you mentioned, as well as altitude change, wind direction and speed, traffic conditions, ambient temperature, etc. I suspect could be thrown into a massive algorithm by a BEV manufacturer to provide a custom and presumably more-accurate Range Remaining display as well as trip route optimization. Even the first Leafs gave you warning if you've programmed in your destination and you aren't going to make it. Lots of room for development and I'm sure it's being refined constantly. Hmm, good excuse to stop by a Tesla store and see what they have nowadays.

I'm just fine with our i-MiEV's simplistic RR display using (we think) the known algorithm based upon how/where we drove the last 15 miles, with the RR display roughly compensating 10% for aircon and 20% heater. I find myself mentally compensating for speed and altitude differences (and sometimes headwinds) - RR hasn't failed to get us to our destination 'safely' in over 50K i-MiEV miles of driving. For longer trips, having the older Garmin show DTG in a large numeric provides a wonderful counterpoint to RR as we drive.
 
I've used Microsoft Street and Trips for many years to do basically what you're looking for. On motorcycle trips I'd do anything I could to avoid riding the freeways, so I was always looking for shorter routes on back roads. Streets has filters that you can select - 'Shortest Time,' 'Shortest Distance,' you can select sliding scales for things you'd like to avoid, like Freeways, Toll roads, City streets, etc, etc. Sometimes I would play with a route for hours at home on the laptop and then load it into my Garmin Nuvi 500 (which I still use to this day) to actually go ride the route and always know where I was going

Probably doesn't do you a lick of good however . . . . doubt it runs on IOS

Don
 
I use a combination of PlugShare and Google maps. PlugShare I use to get addresses of stations and their trip planner for rough distance estimations, then go over to Google maps if I want/need to modify the route (Windows/Linux user here and can drag the route on both). Then, I can copy the hyperlink and send it to my phone by email and have the route available for reference. I do this by having the route open in maps, then just center the map on my location, which naturally moves along with me as I go. Obviously no voice instructions by doing this, but good enough to simply glance at the map every so often for complicated routes to program. For simple routes, I just let Google nav do its thing with avoid highways enabled.

The Tesla navigation was impressive when I saw it. It plots out a route, including any necessary charging along the way. So, if you need to hit a supercharger to reach a destination, it will take you to the supercharger as a waypoint.
 
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