What’s a “good” miles/kWh?

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user 1485

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May 14, 2018
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So I only have a slight idea what I’m doing driving an EV, and my dash is telling me 4.6 mi/kWh so far (600 miles). Miles wise I’m probably pretty close to even city/highway. Is that good? Bad? Like I said I’m new to this so I’m still learning all the tips and tricks.
 
That's pretty good. The rough rule of thumb is 4 mi/kWh Hightail and 5 mi/kWh city

Biggest thing to remember is those numbers don't take in to account climate control. The A/C tends to knock those numbers down 5-10%. The heat is even worse, especially in the models without heat pump. On cold winter days I'll often get 3.5 mi/kWh on mixed city/highway driving.
 
johnnylingo said:
That's pretty good. The rough rule of thumb is 4 mi/kWh Hightail and 5 mi/kWh city

Biggest thing to remember is those numbers don't take in to account climate control. The A/C tends to knock those numbers down 5-10%. The heat is even worse, especially in the models without heat pump. On cold winter days I'll often get 3.5 mi/kWh on mixed city/highway driving.

This is my experience as well. Depending on season and where you love you can expect those number to drop .5 M in the winter and go up .5 in the summer.

As a certain retired southern Californian on the forum will point out, you can average 6 m/kWh if you stay below 45, never drive up more than a 3 degree incline, live in a moderate climate, have a light tailwind, and never use the HVAC. But he's right 6mpkWh is doable and helps by keeping a lower cycle count on your battery.
 
Cool, thanks! I don't want to get too crazy with maximizing my MPE (miles per electrons? haha), as part of the reason I picked the e-Golf is because it is still fun to drive. But good to know I'm heading down the right path, so to speak.

See you all out on the roads!
 
Our average for the past 6000 miles is 4.3 mi/kwh. Mostly city miles. Central coast beach town climate. Climate control for comfort only when needed. We drive pretty much normally as we would in our ICE cars.
 
My average on the eGolf has been about 4.5 miles/kWH. But I live in a hilly area and the elevation difference between home and work is over 1000 feet. If I lived in a flat area, say where the "certain retired Southern Californian" does, I could probably achieve another mile/kWH.

On my 2012 Leaf, getting even 4 miles/KWH is considered good. Usually it's in the mid-3 range for a car that supposedly prioritized aerodynamics over looks.
 
6.1 to 6.6 miles per kwh. Almost all city Blvds. 110 miles or more capable on a full charge with 7 to 10 left in the tank. 2015 SEL e-Golf. I drive in D mode, and shift to D1 or D2 to slow down. Conserve momentum. It's a great urban crawler, mine hardly ever sees freeway use, that's what the TDI is for.
 
I average 4.6 to 4.7 miles per kWh in hilly San Francisco stop and go driving with 3-4 people in the car.
 
NeilBlanchard said:
We have a 2017 SE, and with 3 drivers, we are averaging 5.7 miles / kWh over that last 900+ miles.

That is damn good, IMHO. Remarkable, for certain.
 
JoulesThief said:
6.1 to 6.6 miles per kwh. Almost all city Blvds. 110 miles or more capable on a full charge with 7 to 10 left in the tank. 2015 SEL e-Golf. I drive in D mode, and shift to D1 or D2 to slow down. Conserve momentum. It's a great urban crawler, mine hardly ever sees freeway use, that's what the TDI is for.

6.6 m/kwh is impressive. The best I could do was 6.2 m/kwh in a city commute. For driving a highway, that is what you need to use D2-D3 frequently to slow down for a traffic. Have you tried that before?
 
Today on highway 30 miles. I was driving mostly 50-55mph with some stop and go. My average was 6.1m/kWh without AC and 95% of the road is flat.
Usually I drive 65 mph with cruise and the average is in 4.5 - 5.1 range without AC.
 
At 18,000 miles, my lifetime average is 4.3 mi/kWh. Driving has mostly been on highway, with speeds somewhat limited by traffic and road conditions. Minimal use of climate control.

So far after 2 weeks with my 2018 i3 I'm only at 3.5 mi/kWh. Ouch.
 
BlueThinker said:
JoulesThief said:
6.1 to 6.6 miles per kwh. Almost all city Blvds. 110 miles or more capable on a full charge with 7 to 10 left in the tank. 2015 SEL e-Golf. I drive in D mode, and shift to D1 or D2 to slow down. Conserve momentum. It's a great urban crawler, mine hardly ever sees freeway use, that's what the TDI is for.

6.6 m/kwh is impressive. The best I could do was 6.2 m/kwh in a city commute. For driving a highway, that is what you need to use D2-D3 frequently to slow down for a traffic. Have you tried that before?

Being retired, I strive to avoid rush hour work commute traffic at any cost. The risk of accidents skyrockets during commuter hours. So, that, I am sure helps my miles per kWh. I just prefer to use "D" mode, and if I need to brake, I down shift to D1, then D2. If that avoids using the tail lights, so much the better. I don't ride anyone else's ass when driving, and I don't like being tailgated myself. I leave plenty of space and time between myself, and the car in front of me, as well as plenty of reaction time to slow down. That's just me, YMMV.
 
JoulesThief said:
Being retired, I strive to avoid rush hour work commute traffic at any cost. The risk of accidents skyrockets during commuter hours. So, that, I am sure helps my miles per kWh. I just prefer to use "D" mode, and if I need to brake, I down shift to D1, then D2. If that avoids using the tail lights, so much the better. I don't ride anyone else's ass when driving, and I don't like being tailgated myself. I leave plenty of space and time between myself, and the car in front of me, as well as plenty of reaction time to slow down. That's just me, YMMV.

I think using brake is the same as using any D a B more, as far as you are in green recuperation zone. Or I'm wrong ?
 
About 5000 miles/8000 km on my 2018 e-Golf. I am rarely challenging the range these days so I have little incentive to skimp on crew comfort or go extra slow.

I am doing 100-120 km/h (62-75 mph)on the four lane highway, about 95 km/h (60 mph) on the rural highway. I also drive in the city, stop-and-go to relatively speedy through traffic.

A/C is on, normal mode. I am getting somewhere around 14-15 kWh/100 km (4.1-4.4 miles/kWh). Good enough for me!
 
YeGolf said:
JoulesThief said:
Being retired, I strive to avoid rush hour work commute traffic at any cost. The risk of accidents skyrockets during commuter hours. So, that, I am sure helps my miles per kWh. I just prefer to use "D" mode, and if I need to brake, I down shift to D1, then D2. If that avoids using the tail lights, so much the better. I don't ride anyone else's ass when driving, and I don't like being tailgated myself. I leave plenty of space and time between myself, and the car in front of me, as well as plenty of reaction time to slow down. That's just me, YMMV.

I think using brake is the same as using any D a B more, as far as you are in green recuperation zone. Or I'm wrong ?

Pretty much, although stepping on the brake pedal does activate the brake lights, some slight current draw there.
 
YeGolf said:
I think using brake is the same as using any D a B more, as far as you are in green recuperation zone. Or I'm wrong ?

This is true unless you are near a full charge. On my 2017, until I have used 2-3kWh (from a 100% charge) it will only go into the green regen 2-3 marks. So pushing on the breaks will much more quickly apply the pads without maxing out regen.
 
Hello all,

Ive had my 2016 E-golf for the last month an I've been enjoying it. I have a question about what is a good miles/kWh? While driving,

the infotainment center will show me that im averaging 7.3-7.8kWh? a few weeks ago it was between 6-6.8kWh.. Im wondering what this means since I'm new to EV, I haven't been able to figure it out..

I also recall that after I charged it was at 4.3? but the whole way home it just rose up to about 7.8kWh. Im usually driving on the freeway.

Any help would be appreciated!
 
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