Electric vehicles have become synonymous with “range anxiety” – a term used express the fear of not being able to get from A to B in an electric vehicle before running out of charge.
Range anxiety is currently one of the most significant barriers to the widespread adoption of electric vehicles, but is it a valid concern? Continue reading to find out why you shouldn’t worry about range anxiety and discover our top tips on how to increase the range of your EV.
One of the main reasons why people have range anxiety is that they believe EVs do not have enough range to make long journeys. However, the range of most electric vehicles exceeds most drivers’ needs. Electric cars have an average range of 211 miles, providing more than enough range for daily journeys without having to stop for charge.
Another reason for range anxiety is the perceived lack of charging infrastructure. People may want to use their EVs for long road trips, but they might be worried that they won’t be able to charge their car en route. Although this is a valid concern, new charge points are being added daily, and the UK’s charging point infrastructure is continually improving.
Currently, there are 51,516 EV charging points across the UK – a 45% increase since 2022, showing the speed at which EV charging infrastructure in the UK is expanding. In fact, there are more public charging points than petrol stations.
Smartphone apps have been also developed to help reduce your chances of being stranded without any power in your EV. For example, Zap-Map is a great app that allows you to locate the nearest EV charger to you. The app also has a great route planner that helps EV drivers plan longer journeys to ensure there is a suitable charging stop on the way.
There are also many tips and tricks that can help you maximise your battery range while driving. Keep reading to see how to get the most miles out of your EV.
Reducing the weight of your electric vehicle is one of the easiest ways to maximise battery range. The lighter the car, the less energy will be needed to move it. As such, try removing unnecessary items from your vehicle before going on long journeys.
Braking harshly and unnecessarily will significantly decrease the range of your EV. Instead, decelerating using regenerative braking will allow you to avoid braking hard and will minimise your energy consumption.
Using air conditioning and heating while driving will noticeably decrease your battery charge and reduce your range. As such, avoid using the AC and heating to conserve your energy consumption.
However, we don’t want you freezing on your morning commute to work on a winter’s day. A handy tip to overcome this is to precondition your car by putting the heating on whilst the vehicle is still charging. Therefore, you can get into a toasty car without having to drain your battery.
It might be tempting to use the instant torque of your EV and accelerate fast, but this will drain your battery. Instead, maintaining a steady speed is a great way to extend the range of your EV.
If your electric vehicle has cruise control, then this should be used to conserve the most energy.
Under-inflated tyres have been proven to decrease the range of an electric vehicle. Therefore, it is recommended that you are aware of the recommended psi for your car’s tyres and check regularly. However, do not over inflate your tires, as this can make your vehicle harder to control and could result in an accident.
Getting a home EV charging station installed is the perfect way to eliminate range anxiety. A home EV charger provides ultimate convenience and ensures your car will have a fully charged battery for when you need it.
If you’re looking to make the switch to a dedicated smart home EV charger, browse our exciting range here. Or, if you still don’t know where to start, contact us on 03333 44 96 99 or fill in the contact form below. Our expert customer service team are always happy to help.
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This type of electric charger has it's own cable to charge your car.
This type of electric charger requires a seperate cable to charge your car.
Spread over a 60 month period.
Tenants and homeowners are eligible for finance.
You decide the amount of months.
Minimum of £1000.
We will contact you to process the credit application. Approval is subject to application, financial circumstances and borrowing history. 13.9% APR representative. T&Cs apply.
Your order is not confirmed until your application has been approved.
We lay SWA cable laid at 600mm deep, with a protective cable warning tape laid 150mm above the cable. These are laid on a sand or sifted sand soil bed then backfilled.
We position overhead cables at a minimum height of 3.5m and are run along a catenary wire. The cable run should not be accessible to vehicles.
Standard Installation
Our instant price is fixed if it falls within our standard installation package plus any additions that you have selected (extra cabling for example). This package covers the majority of homes in the UK. Before we undertake your installation we will carry out a digital survey to check that nothing has been missed. After reviewing the survey results some additional work may be required in order to complete your installation safely and to the required standards. If this is the case, we will contact you well before the installation date and advise the cost of any required work. You can then continue with your installation, or alternatively we will refund you in full if you do not want to proceed.
Included in our standard installation is :
• Fitting of a single phase charge point to a brick or plaster wall or other suitable permanent structure
• Up to 10 metres of cable, run and neatly clipped to the wall between the electricity supply meter / distribution board and the charge point.
• Routing of the cable through a drilled hole in a wall up to 500mm (20 inches) thick if this is needed.
• The fitting and testing of electrical connections and protections required for the charge point.
• An additional three way consumer unit, if required
• Installation of a Type A RCBO in an RCBO enclosure
• Up to 3 metres of plastic trunking to conceal interior wiring.
• An O-pen earth protection device if the charge point requires it. (This is NOT an earth rod)
• Up to 4 hours of labour from your installer to complete the work.
• Electrical testing of the whole installation.
• Handover and setup of the charge point and any app that may be needed.
Not included in our standard installation (additional work) :
• Where the installation requires additional cabling over and above the amount you have told us about.
• Upgrade/replacement of the main incoming supply fuse where the local DNO (eg Northern Powergrid) would need to attend site.
• If the charge point is to be mounted on a post/pedestal rather than an existing wall and where you have not selected a post as an extra cost option in your order.
• Installation of a charge point to a three phase supply.
• Where gas and water mains bonding (earthing) is not in place at your property. If this is not in place, additional work would be required before installation of the charge point.
• Any groundwork that has not been selected during the order process.
A Surge Protection Device is not included in our standard installation.
What else you need to know :
• On the day of installation, please ensure that the area around your consumer unit (fuse box), incoming electricity supply meter and proposed charge point location (including where the cable is expected to be run) is clear and free of obstructions.
• We will need your WiFi password as part of the installation process in order to connect your charge point to the internet. Please have this available for the installer. Details will not be kept.
• The charge point must be on your own designated off road parking.
• The charger will be fixed in line with current guidelines at a height where it cannot be hit by a vehicle.
• Our installers are not able to enter loft spaces; lift floorboards or flooring; take apart any furniture of work above a height of 2m. If you anticipate that any of this may be required, then please contact us and we can discuss in more detail and provide you with a quotation.
• Should there be extreme weather conditions our installers may not be able to continue with you installation if it is not safe to do so (for example flooding). They will always do their best to complete the work where they can.
If you have any questions then please contact our customer service team who will be happy to help. Please also read our terms and conditions.
