How to improve the Guess-O-Meter

[Gimme_my_MME]

Anyone who has been on this forum for more than a week has encountered the question of "what happened to my range?!" and "why am I not getting xx miles?" and "I think I have the wrong battery".

For some people on this forum the Mach-E was their first BEV and others are hardened veterans. However by now many have had their cars for a few months with some celebrating a year. So clearly everyone is an expert and can answer the following:

How would you redesign the Guess-O-Meter? What would you change so that people aren't constantly asking these questions?

• Should it just display the EPA range at 100% no matter what? This obviously would lead to "what happened to my battery? It said I could go more miles!"
• Do all EV customers need to be given a math lesson before getting the car?
• Should there be no range displayed and only battery percentage?

What is your proposal to fix the problem?

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[RickMachE]

Black electrical tape.

 

[HuntingPudel]

Ignore it and go by Mi/kWH. ??

 

[Gimme_my_MME]

Black electrical tape.

So just go based on gut feeling when you are getting low and need to charge? Interesting idea

 

[Gimme_my_MME]

Ignore it and go by Mi/kWH. ??

So just display average Mi/kWH on the cluster?

 

[Murse-In-Airy]

I think the GOM is fine. But there should be a lesson at purchase showing people how it is conservative and a separate lesson on how the EPA arrives at their numbers. The EPA lesson should have a one question quiz at the end:

If I drive over 60MPH, don’t spend 50% of my time in stop and go traffic, or drive in temperatures under 70 degrees; I can expect to achieve EPA range. True or False?

If they get the quiz wrong, their EV should be sent to my house.

 

[Gimme_my_MME]

I think the GOM is fine. But there should be a lesson at purchase showing people how it is conservative and a separate lesson on how the EPA arrives at their numbers. The EPA lesson should have a one question quiz at the end:

If I drive over 60MPH, don’t spend 50% of my time in stop and go traffic, or drive in temperatures under 70 degrees; I can expect to achieve EPA range. True or False?

If they get the quiz wrong, their EV should be sent to my house.

I thought you were already having trouble keeping track of 3?

 

[JamieGeek]

Black electrical tape.

Was going to post the same thing.

How about this: Add a sticker (suggested elsewhere so I can't take credit for it, however):

 

[Murse-In-Airy]

I thought you were already having trouble keeping track of 3?

I’m back down to two. Sold the black Premium. That was one of the contingencies to getting the GT-PE.

 

[Murse-In-Airy]

Was going to post the same thing.

How about this: Add a sticker (suggested elsewhere so I can't take credit for it, however):

Maybe if it said “Displayed range may be as low as 50% of EPA range due to exterior temperatures, AND displayed range may have nothing at all to do with how far you can go. May the Force be with you”

 

[Gimme_my_MME]

I’m back down to two. Sold the black Premium. That was one of the contingencies to getting the GT-PE.

Yes but if you were having trouble at 3 how are going to keep track at hundreds??

 

[Gimme_my_MME]

Was going to post the same thing.

How about this: Add a sticker (suggested elsewhere so I can't take credit for it, however):

Then we'll need a sticker that says do not remove sticker under penalty of law unless this is your mattress. I mean car

 

[Chiboyal]

At the end of the day, how far you can go in your EV based on a given battery charge level, has a lot to do with how you drive the car, along with temperature, and other driving conditions.

 

[capnhowdy21]

I think it should just show battery percentage and average kWh. I mean most ice cars don’t tell you how far you can make it. People just intuit it. I know charging is different then fueling up. I hope eventually though we end at a point where it won’t be as big of consideration and we just see battery percentage.

 

[generaltso]

I think it would be more useful if it updated its guess in real-time. In winter, it assumes I’m going to use the heat. But sometimes I don’t. If I have the heat off, show me the range with the heat off. When I turn the heat on, drop the range to reflect that. A lot of EV and PHEV GOMs work that way.

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