Looking Down the Road: EV's Mileage Range Is Likely to Be a Highly Charged Issue
By Scott Doggett June 3, 2010
By Danny King, Contributor
Prospective buyers of electric vehicles, repeat after us: "Real world mileage may vary."
It's a fact that will become progressively more relevant as cars such as the Chevrolet Volt plug-in hybrid electric vehicle and the Nissan Leaf battery-electric vehicle are introduced to the American public later this year, yet the point will apparently be lost on many, according to a Wall Street Journal article published earlier today.
Drivers who leased BMW's all-electric Mini-E said they usually got about 100 miles on a single charge, compared with the approximately 156 miles originally estimated by BMW, according to the Journal. BMW, which estimated that the largest single-charge range by one of the Mini-E users was 127 miles, said its tests weren't under "real world" conditions, and that the Mini-E's range was plenty for most needs, the newspaper said.
Still, it's an issue that even the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency is still grappling with - and it will need to make some decisions soon. Global battery-electric vehicle shipments, which will be in the 20,000 range this year, will surge to about a half-million vehicles in 2016, Strategy Analytics said in March, citing what it called its "moderate" scenario.
The EPA, which tests U.S. production cars and sets fuel-economy figures for them, is still working on a way to properly test electric vehicles and standardize their mileage figures.
Nissan, which estimates a 100-mile range for the Leaf, emphasizes, along with all automakers, that single-charge EV range depends a number of factors, including air-conditioner use, outdoor temperatures, and vehicle speed. Sister publication Inside Line, when it test-drove a prototype version of the Leaf in March, reported that steady top-speed freeway driving would bring the Leaf's single-charge range down to about 60 miles.
And for extended-range vehicles such as the Volt, the issue gets thornier because MPG figures are dependent on how often the car is recharged, and how long it takes for the driver to draw down the fuel tank after the Volt's estimated 40-mile all-electric range is used up.
GM said in April that the car would be able to travel more than 300 miles from its gas-powered on-board generator engine after the initial power from the electric motor is drained, but it declined to disclose tank size or be more specific about the car's range.
Of course, the troubles aren't likely to end once the EPA comes out with a method of measuring all-electric and plug-in hybrid vehicle mileage.
For example, Honda Civic Hybrid owners in 2007 sued the company for what they said was an overstatement of the car's gas mileage figures in its EPA ratings for the 2003-07 model years.
While the ratings were 49 miles per gallon in the city and 51 miles per gallon highway, some plaintiffs said they were getting as little as 31 miles per gallon and said the company should've made a better effort at informing owners that their mileage may be less than advertised.
Despite the many articles we and others have written warning of EV mileage estimates, we won't be at all surprised to learn of lawsuits being brought against electric-vehicle makers by people who planned a 100-mile Sunday drive in their plug-in automobile but got stranded because it ran out of juice after only 80 miles.
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This is a well written article. The fact that so few have driven the Leaf in real world conditions more than once around a test track should be of concern.
The LA4 test cycle produced results of 156 miles for the BMW Mini-E. To be fair to BMW, they told all their drivers that real world range would be 100 to 120.
Although some drivers of the Mini-E have a hard time getting 100 miles our of their ride, I would say thats about right.
After 15,500 miles of normal keeping up with traffic driving I can eaisly get 100 miles on a charge,If I drive somewhat conservatilvly (65-70 mph on freeway mixed with city driving) I can get 110.
The concern for the Leaf is that the same LA4 test cycle produced a 100 mile range.
In the real world based on my experiance in an electric car, that will be between 65 and 75 miles a charge.
Nissan should let drivers drive the car for a few days to see what the average real world is. If it is near 100 great! If it's not they need to come clean.
BMW told us to expect 100, Nissan has yet to say it will be less than 100.
That could be a huge problem for Nissan.
Honesty in real world range is really important.
Peder
I can't see that Nissan's honesty is in question. They have specified upfront that the 100 mile range is on the LA4 cycle, and so under the conditions you specify likely range is around 65 miles or so.
It is a comfortable city commuter, and doesn't pretend to be anything else.
We used to have a Ford Econoline van that was converted to LPG. We carried a regular 25 pound gas grill tank as a "spare" which was good for an emergency. There was a hose connector to hook up this emergency measure. One could drive across the country from hardware store to hardware store this way, although very expensive.
Nobody has addressed what to do with your Leaf when it runs out of power. Tow it? Carry a Honda generator and a few gallons of gasoline to put in enough charge to nurse it along? Then you'd have a Chevy Volt! My money is still on the Volt.
Does the Leaf have a DTE (distance till empty) read out?
Such a frontier!
'Does the Leaf have a DTE (distance till empty) read out? '
Of course. And read outs on how your driving style is affecting the distance you can cover, and a range indicator into which you can put your destination which shows if you are going to make it, and an updated map of public charge points showing on a display.
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