Electric cars have revolutionized the way we think about and use automobiles, but the one challenge they face is that they don’t have the same long-range capabilities as traditional gas-powered vehicles. Fortunately, there are many ways to extend your electric car’s range, thus decreasing range anxiety and increasing your enjoyment of the car. In this article, we’ll show you how to maximize your electric car’s range and extend stress-free trips.
1. Maximize Your Electric Car’s Range
Driving an electric vehicle brings with it the benefit of free and zero-emission fueling, but it also has its downside—namely, a shorter range. Whereas traditional vehicles benefit from the extra boost provided by gasoline, EVs tend to be limited in terms of mileage they can cover before needing to “refuel”. So how can you ?
Here are some tips to help you get the most out of your EV’s battery:
- Plan Long Trips: Prepare for long trips during “off-peak” times, such as late at night or early morning when traffic is low. This way, your vehicle won’t be wasting as much battery power.
- Maintain Battery Capacity: Make sure to keep your battery at full charge overnight and never let it go below 20 percent. Full charging is important for maintaining the optimal range capabilities.
- Keep the Cool: Since temperature plays a big role in battery performance, make sure to keep the cabin cool during long drives by pre-conditioning it with air-conditioning.
By employing these simple yet effective tips, you can better ensure your electric vehicle will have the range it needs to take you to all of your desired destinations.
2. Make the Most of Battery Power
Using your laptop or tablet’s battery power efficiently can be a challenge. However, the following tips can help you make the most of the available battery power:
- Dim the screen brightness. When you’re on battery, try to dim the screen brightness as much as you can. This can usually be done using the keyboard shortcut Fn and F6 or F7.
- Disable Bluetooth. If you’re not using your laptop’s Bluetooth, go ahead and disable it! This will help save battery power.
- Turn off Wi-Fi. Just like Bluetooth, if you’re not using Wi-Fi, make sure to turn it off.
- Disable automatic updates. Automatic updates can be useful, but they can also be resource-intensive and drain your battery quickly.
- Close unnecessary applications. Unnecessary applications can also drain your battery; closing applications you don’t need can extend your battery life.
And that’s it! With a few simple tweaks, you can optimize your laptop or tablet to make the most of its battery power. After all, who doesn’t want to get more battery out of every charge?
3. Optimize Regenerative Braking
As technology marches forward, so to do cars. It is essential to keep up with the latest advancements to optimize your ride. One of those advancements includes the addition of regenerative braking systems that optimize the braking power of your vehicle. Here is a quick list of the ways you can :
- Start Slowly – The first step to making the most from your regenerative brakes is to start slowing down gradually. It will help your system get adjusted to the incoming energy.
- Stay in Gear – Staying in gear for a longer time when you gradually decelerate will ensure smooth functioning of the regenerative brakes. This will expel the potential jerk due to sudden deceleration.
- Anticipate Heavy Braking – It’s important to anticipate heavy braking and to plan accordingly. When you prepare to come to a stop, take your foot off the accelerator and move it to the brake. Doing this will help the regenerative brakes kick in earlier, maximizing the energy efficiency of the car.
In the end, driving efficiently is key to get the most out of regenerative braking. When you make it a habit, you won’t believe how much money you could save in fuel costs. It is also beneficial for the environment, reducing the emission of harmful pollutants.
4. Invest in Smart Charging Strategies
Implement Time-of-Use Pricing
One of the most effective strategies for reducing electricity costs while still keeping the environment in mind is time-of-use pricing. This allows businesses to purchase power during periods when electricity supply is plentiful, and store it for later use when electricity is more expensive or in short supply. This strategy can provide significant savings as it reduces peak demand and increases the amount of time businesses spend using renewable energy sources like solar and wind.
Automate and Schedule Your Charging
Smart chargers can also be used to automate and schedule the charging process. This allows businesses to charge their vehicles according to pre-defined ‘rules’ and can further lower their electricity costs by timing the charging process when the electricity demand is low. Automated tehcnologies like intelligent controllers can also be used to ensure that large fleets of vehicles are charged on a first-come first-served basis, thus ensuring maximum efficiency.
- Automatically switch between time-of-use pricing and off-peak tariffs
- Automate and schedule charging
- Reduce peak demand and increase the amount of time using renewable energy sources
- Utilise intelligent controllers to ensure maximum efficiency
Extending electric car range is an achievable goal that can benefit a wide variety of drivers. With the increased range, electric cars can become even more viable and accessible, opening new opportunities for those looking for an economical, eco-friendly car alternative. Learning how to extend electric car range can be a great way to get the most out of your car and explore your world with less emissions and less impact on the environment.