What is Range

When it comes to electric cars, range is often a major topic of discussion. The range, also known as range or reach, is the distance you can travel on a full battery charge. It is comparable to the distance a fuel car covers on a full tank of gasoline or diesel, with the important difference that charging an electric car takes longer than refueling a fuel car.

The range of an electric car is, simply put, the result of two factors: the capacity of the battery and the consumption of the car. The capacity of the battery is comparable to the fuel tank size of a fuel car, while consumption refers to how much power the car uses while driving. The larger the capacity of the battery and the lower the consumption, the further the car will be able to drive on a single charge.

What is meant by range

The range of an electric car is the distance you can travel on a single charge of the battery. It is comparable to the distance a fuel car covers on a full tank of gasoline or diesel. It is an important factor to consider if you are thinking of purchasing an electric car because it determines how far you can drive before needing to recharge. It depends on two factors: the capacity of the battery pack (comparable to the fuel tank size) and the consumption of the car. Electric cars with a larger battery pack and lower consumption will have a greater range than cars with a smaller battery pack and higher consumption.

Electric car consumption

Just as a larger and heavier car generally consumes more fuel than a smaller car, larger and heavier electric cars also consume more electricity than a compact electric car. For fuel cars, we often express consumption in liters per hundred kilometers, while for electric cars we talk about consumption in kilowatt-hours (kWh) per hundred kilometers. The most economical electric cars today consume just under 15 kWh per 100 kilometers in practice, such as the Mini Electric. There are also some larger models that fall into this category, such as the Tesla Model 3, Hyundai Kona Electric, and Dacia Spring. On the other end of the spectrum, we find larger crossovers like the Audi e-tron and the Jaguar I-Pace, which consume about 23 kWh per hundred kilometers.

It is important to remember that consumption is not only influenced by the car itself but also by your driving style. If you drive defensively, use regenerative braking (where energy is recovered during braking), and pay attention to your speed, you can achieve better consumption than when you press the accelerator pedal hard.

Range in the winter

Batteries perform best at temperatures between 15 and 25 degrees Celsius. Especially in winter, the range of an electric car can significantly decrease because batteries are less efficient at lower temperatures. Moreover, the heating in the car is often on during cold weather, leading to higher consumption. Many new electric cars are equipped with a conditioned battery pack, meaning the battery pack can be cooled or heated to optimize operating temperature. Although using a conditioned battery pack consumes energy, it can lead to less range loss in the long term because the batteries are kept at an ideal temperature.

How is range determined?

The range of an electric car is determined by the capacity of the battery pack and the consumption of the car. The capacity of the battery pack is the amount of energy that the battery pack can store. This is measured in kilowatt-hours (kWh). The larger the battery pack, the further you can drive without recharging. The consumption of an electric car is measured in kilowatt-hours per hundred kilometers (kWh/100 km). The lower the consumption, the less energy the car needs to travel a certain distance, and the further you can drive on a single charge.

To calculate the range, these two factors are taken together. For example, if a car has a battery pack of 60 kWh and a consumption of 20 kWh/100 km, then the car has a range of 60 / 20 = 300 kilometers. This means you can drive about 300 kilometers before you need to recharge. Keep in mind that the range in practice can vary depending on various factors such as weather conditions, driving style, and the use of heating and air conditioning.

What is the range of a car?

The range of a car is the distance you can travel on a single battery charge or full tank of fuel, depending on the type of car. For electric cars, the range is determined by the capacity of the battery pack (measured in kilowatt-hours, kWh) and the consumption (measured in kilowatt-hours per hundred kilometers, kWh/100 km). For example, if a car has a battery pack of 60 kWh and a consumption of 20 kWh/100 km, then the car has a range of 60 / 20 = 300 kilometers. This means you can drive about 300 kilometers before you need to recharge. For fuel cars, the range is determined by the size of the fuel tank and consumption (measured in liters per hundred kilometers, l/100 km). For example, if a fuel car has a tank capacity of 60 liters and a consumption of 10 l/100 km, then the car has a range of 60 / 10 = 600 kilometers. This means you can drive about 600 kilometers before you need to refuel.