EVS consume more and gas cars less fuel than gauges indicate
Electric cars might not be quite as efficient as advertised, according to a new report.
ADAC, a European motoring association similar to the Canadian Automobile Association ( CAA), recently tested 15 electric vehicles on a 22- kilowatt charger. The goal was to compare the amount of electricity the cars’ onboard computers said was needed to get to a full charge versus how much the charging system delivered.
Pretty much every EV was underestimating how much charging it required, showing significant variation between the stated power consumption and actual amounts required to fully recharge the car.
The worst abuser was Tesla, with its Long Range Model 3 requiring 25 per cent more electricity than its onboard computer claimed. The Standard Range version lied less, but still needed 18 per cent more than it claimed. Meanwhile, Kia’s e- Niro was the most accurate of the EVS, its deviation from reality being about 10 per cent.
The variation is at least partially explained by losses in the charging process that do not show up on the car’s computer, but a portion may also be the result of optimism in the onboard estimations.
Interestingly, ADAC says most of the non-electric cars it tested were actually more efficient than their load indicators claimed. In fact, the vast majority — 51 of 64 cars tested — consumed less fuel than their onboard fuel-economy meters were indicating, with Audi’s Q2 35 TDI Quattro consuming a whopping 13.8 per cent less diesel fuel than its computer claimed.