Question about range

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Sheky

Member
Joined
Oct 5, 2012
Messages
9
If, for example, the RR after full charge is 75 miles:
After travelling, say 20 miles, the remaining range would be 55 miles, or hopefully even more
If it is less, how much less would be considered a problem?
 
Here is what I've experienced & noted

The RR gauge usually adjust the amount showing based on the state of charge and adjusts for approximately the last 10-15 minutes of driving style & conditions.

I live up on hills , so if I'm driving away from home to visit family, I am using very little power and often in regenerating mode.
Soooo - my RR gauge drops very little - I can travel 20 km (12.4 miles) and the RR Guage might drop only 10km (6.2 miles) - the gauge thinks I will continue driving down hill and estimates how far I can go with the remaining power at this rate of consumption.


Now on the other hand----

When I drive home I'm going up hill... I leave driving on mostly flat roads and the gauge estimates the remaining power & range as if I will continue to drive on flat roads---however
When I get 15km from my home ( at the bottom of the steep hill climbing) I know from experience I better have 30-35km showing on the gauge to get home.

The same thing happens when switching for driving back roads at slow speeds and switching to highway speeds - highway eats up a lot more juice & The gauge react accordingly.
 
Sheky said:
If, for example, the RR after full charge is 75 miles:
After travelling, say 20 miles, the remaining range would be 55 miles, or hopefully even more
If it is less, how much less would be considered a problem?
Sheky, the Range Remaining (RR) algorithm in the iMiEV is actually very good, and has been discussed here on a number of threads. The more consistent the terrain and the driving style, the more accurate it becomes. Most of us have learned to really rely upon it with the recognition of where/how we have just driven. Sandage just gave you a good example of this.

The beauty is that single trips for almost everyone in the United States are so short that an electric vehicle like the iMiEV satisfies well over 95% of these needs. There's an excellent discussion of this specific topic here: http://www.solarjourneyusa.com/EVdistanceAnalysis.php

If the trip or series of trips you're planning on taking exceeds your RR, then it's a simple matter of figuring out how to 'opportunity charge' somewhere along the way. For example, it's not unusual for us to rack up over 100 miles (160km) on our iMiEV in a day, and yet still have over "1/2 a tank" (8 bars) of 'fuel' left at the end of the day. You soon find out how convenient it is to have your own 'gas station' at home, and start off every day with a 'full tank'. Distant friends we visit soon get used to leaving their garage door open so we can plug in to either 120vac or their 240vac dryer outlet. Having driven EVs with a nominal range of 20 miles (32km), I know where the power outlets are at my doctor/dentist, supermarket, school, gym, etc., but am glad I now don't need to hassle with this in my iMiEV.

If opportunity charging is impossible (or there is not enough time to put back sufficient energy) for you to achieve your trip(s), you simply don't do it and use a different vehicle. For us, this is a rare occurrence, and the gasoline is getting stale in our hybrid/ICEs. The reality is beginning to sink in that for us it could probably be cost-effective to simply rent a car for those longer trips. Since it is all calculable in advance, there is NO 'range anxiety'.

In practice, the vehicle's single-trip range is just about anything you want it to be - YOU have terrific control over it with your driving style.

Do you have a specific distance problem you're trying to solve and how can we help you with it?
 
Sheky - JoeS is the guy to talk to about range extending. I've learned a lot from him. He's got all kinds of tips and tricks on making the car go the distance. The EV range will respond directly with the way you drive it. You said you bought your car used, how was used before? As a rental? A dealer demo? In a corporate fleet? Personal owner? If you drive the car using some of JoeS hypermile techniques you'll get the RR up. 75 MILEs isn't bad, the car is only rated by the EPA for 62 miles, so your RR is showing that you exceeding the EPA estimate. The higher the RR is showing after a charge, the better your driving style is.
 
Sheky said:
If, for example, the RR after full charge is 75 miles:
After travelling, say 20 miles, the remaining range would be 55 miles, or hopefully even more
If it is less, how much less would be considered a problem?
The 75 number you began with is based on your past operation of the car - Where and how you drove it. If you had done a couple of high speed runs and a few jackrabbit full throttle takeoffs, that number youldn't have been 75 . . . . likely much less

So, whatever number you begin with, the change in the number will be reflective of how you're driving the car right now - If you do a couple of full throttle starts, by the time you've gone 20 miles it may not be 55 as you predicted. On the other hand, if you're really careful (more so that you were yesterday) by the time you've gone 20 miles it may well be 60 and not 55

If you leave home with a full charge and need to go any distance which is near your maximum range, you can really extend that range by driving it carefully. I find we're usually super careful on the outbound leg (lower speeds, very careful take offs from standing stops, minimal usage of climate controls) and then when we're on the return leg where we can see that we have plenty of range remaining, we tend to drive it more like a normal car . . . . usually more A/C usage for sure

I'm sure that after driving an EV for several months, anyone could get back in their ICE and get several more MPG's than they've ever got before - You learn lots driving these things and it's a very enjoyable learning experience

Don
 
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