A new study shows that EVs have more than enough range to take care of our daily driving in the U.S.

Data from thousands of EVs shows the average daily driving distance is a small percentage of the EPA range of most EVs.

For years, range anxiety has been a major barrier to wider EV adoption in the U.S. It’s a common fear: imagine being in the middle of nowhere, with 5% juice remaining in your battery, and nowhere to charge. A nightmare nobody ever wants to experience, right? But a new study proves that in the real world, that’s a highly improbable scenario.

After analyzing information from 18,000 EVs across all 50 U.S. states, battery health and data start-up Recurrent found something we sort of knew but took for granted. The average distance Americans cover daily constitutes only a small percentage of what EVs are capable of covering thanks to modern-day battery and powertrain systems.

The study revealed that depending on the state, the average daily driving distance for EVs was between 20 and 45 miles, consuming only 8 to 16% of a battery’s EPA-rated range. Most EVs on sale today in the U.S. offer around 250 miles of range, and many models are capable of covering over 300 miles.

  • LemmyIsFantastic@lemmy.world
    87·
    9 months ago

    I get shit on every fucking time I say this. Forcing people to EVs is stupid as fuck. PHEV is the sweet spot to reduce emissions.

    • Rayspekt@kbin.social
      43·
      9 months ago

      From a use perspective, yes. But do you really want to produce and carry around all parts needed for a combustion engine when you need it 10% percent of the time? It’s like constantly driving around with a trailer attached because you might need to sleep in it three days a year.

      • LemmyIsFantastic@lemmy.world
        42·
        9 months ago

        Not really. In practice it has zero effect on my daily commute. I might lose a few kwh due to weight but it’s nearly trivial. Engine maintenance might be 1-2k over 5 years and that’s well worth the ability to drive electric 98% of the time and not having an ounce of range anxiety. Far less cumbersome than adding hours to my traveling when I need range. I believe the vast majority of Americans probably fall into this use case.

        The PHEV f150 is the perfect truck for most truck owners and believing folks are going to deal with 100 miles of range just ain’t happening.

        • Rayspekt@kbin.social
          31·
          9 months ago

          What you say is right, but I’m not only talking about enrgy consumption i use but also during production. There is a lot of stuff you dont need for a EV-only car that you have to manufacture additonally and a lot of that stuff consumes significant amounts of energy and materials.