While the race for autonomy remains one of the main battlegrounds of electric car manufacturers, this study comes to reshuffle the cards. According to researchers at the University of Delaware, a car with 230 km of autonomy would actually be enough for a large number of drivers.
When buying an electric car, range is obviously one of the main concerns for buyers, if not the most important. For many years now, manufacturers have been investing massively to enable their “watted” vehicles to go even further.
In particular, this involves the integration of additional battery cellsor the development of their own electric motor unit, like Volkswagen which recently announced the upcoming launch of its powertrain “fully optimized down to the smallest detail”.
But in itself, is this race for autonomy really essential? Not really if we are to believe this study published by American researchers from the University of Delaware. During this experience, scientists followed 333 owners of thermal cars residing around the city of Atlanta, in the State of Georgia.
The race for autonomy is not really a necessity according to this study
First, they looked at the driving habits of each respondent going back to 2004, before compare their annual mileage with the range of a selection of electric cars.
Unexpectedly, the researchers found that 37.9% of respondents could actually settle for an electric model with a range of 230 km before having to go through the refill box. In fact, these 230 km, which many electric cars available on the market today offer, would be enough to carry out the daily journeys of users.
230 km range is enough for many drivers
And this without having to stop during the day at a charging station. Of course, having more autonomy allows you to travel longer distances. But nevertheless, it comes at a cost. Who says more autonomy says more imposing and heavier battery, this which inevitably increases the weight of the vehicle and its energy efficiency. In addition, greater autonomy will also drive up the price of the car.
To offer electric vehicles under the €25,000 markmany manufacturers are going to make concessions on autonomy, such as Tesla’s mysterious Model 2 or the future electric Renault R5, which should be equipped with a 22 kWh battery (270 km in the WLTP urban cycle).
And what about drivers who want to cover greater distances? For occasional needs such as vacations for example, the researchers rightly suggest that it will be more economical for users to rent a suitable vehicle to make these exceptional journeys. In itself, this study only confirms figures revealed by previous studies. In France, the average annual mileage is 13,117 km, i.e. 36 kilometers per day. A distance that all electric vehicles on the market can cover.
Source: Clean Automobile