Question - how much time is added to your trip when travelling in your EV??

[nlions]

I have an upcoming 500 miles RT from my home to Phoenix area and back and have not taken any road trips in the year I have owned my 2023 Premium with Extended Range. I don't have the experience to tell me the answer to my question and this is the place to get it. If I assume my MME could make it to Phoenix with about 10-15% battery charge left. My question is how much time, best case with whatever charger/s that may be (I have both the Ford provided and A2Z adapters) would charging add to my trip? My other car is a 2020 Ford Fusion Titanium PHEV with the plug in charging disabled (thanks Ford for the almost 2 year recall you've ignored) and taking that car would add maybe 10 minutes to fill up. What I don't know is what is the added time to charge my MME compared to the Fusion.

Thanks in advance, Jim

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[ocdxfv]

Where are you traveling from?

 

[jmcbrew]

A lot of this depends on where the chargers are located. To save the most time, you should not charge for more than about 25 minutes at each stop. At a nice, low state of charge, this will make the most of the charge curve. This also happens to be about the amount of time it takes to use the restroom, order a sandwich and a drink, and eat/drink said meal. In this ideal scenario, it takes less time to charge an EV than it would to fill up a gas car, because the EV charges while you are doing the other things you would normally do.

What throws a monkey wrench into this plan is that you probably won’t e ready to eat a meal at each charge stop, and they may not be spaced apart conveniently to take advantage of this charging routine.

To give you a rough estimate, I would say that road tripping the Mach-E should take 5-15% longer on average…. But possibly as little as 0% longer — especially on a one-charge trip.

On longer trips, don’t forget to take advantage of level 2 charging whenever possible. Seek out hotels with L2 charging, which is often free, and will give you about double the kWh as a normal DCFC session. We take a ~750 mile (each way) trip to visit my wife’s family once or twice a year, and one of the things we did was to install a level 2 charger at their house. It’s only 24 amps, due to the 30 amp circuit that was available in their garage… but it still charges the Mach-E overnight.

Other than that, you might also want a portable EVSE and some adapters/extensions. On trips, I bring my TurboCord Dual (16 amp L1/L2) and some accessories. I have actually dropped an extension cord out of a hotel window and plugged into the 240V outlet for the AC unit in the room. It worked great when I was in a town with zero public charging infrastructure.

 

[jmcbrew]

Another thing I will say — learn to enjoy the stops. My wife was not looking forward to stopping five times to charge on the way to visit her parents… but now she admits that she enjoys it more than driving an ICE car. We get to take more breaks and there is less stress.

As I often tell people: your gas fill-up stops take longer than you think. Your EV charges while you pee, eat lunch, and have a coffee.

 

[hybrid2bev]

Use ABRP and you’ll see the difference.

In my experience our EV road trips are very comparable to gas. Usually the car is done charging before we’re done with bathroom and snacks. Even with our Explorer we’re stopping every 2.5 to 3 hours anyways.

 

[RickMachE]

ABRP

 

[Tampamike]

First thing is, you’re not gonna arrive at your destination with 15-20% battery left. You can figure in about 2.5 miles/kw at highway speeds give or take depending on hills, wind and traffic. So that 91kw battery at 100% will give you about 225 miles max range. So you’re going to need to charge on leg one.

Let’s say you pull in to the station at 25 miles of range left or about 10%, assuming there’s another option within 25 miles just in case. That will take about 35 minutes from 10% up to 80% (charging slows down drastically at that point). Then your range will be 91x0.8x2.5 = about 180. You can make your destination and then you’ll have to charge one more time heading home.

Leg 1 + leg 2 = 200 + 150 = 350 miles. You have 150 left to get home so a full charge up to 80% would be in order but you could cut it closer if you want since your next stop will be home because that charger is always available and you know it works. If you charge to 80% that will be another 35 minutes. Two charges of 35 minutes equals about 1 hour and 10 minutes. If there’s charging available at your stop you can shorten the second stop somewhat but you’ll still have to stop somewhere.

Hope that helps.

 

[dan_meh]

I just took my first EV road trips. I agree with the numbers and advice in this thread. You can “simulate” your trip in A Better Route Planner and that’s probably the most accurate way to see the time.

I will just add that the only real time killer is bad or poorly spaced chargers. We are still living in a world where you need to check your stops on PlugShare. I have one stop that I must make in Bedford, PA on one of my common routes. If that’s broken, I lose a bunch of time. Fortunately, it has been rock solid and NEVI is opening new sites. But I still take a couple of minutes to check the site before I leave.

The time spent charging was something that I thought a lot about before I did a couple of road trips. I don’t worry about it anymore. I plug in, pee, stretch, and then keep going.

 

[ipca204]

what a completely asinine question...

 

[MoonRiver]

We have made a 1200 miles trip with my Select SR battery. The driving time itself takes 17 hours per google maps. We ended up spending 4 extra hours of charging, not include an overnight stay in a hotel which I got charged the night. My wife didn't like those extra hours but I enjoyed driving it. I wish I could talk to her into doing the same trip again with Mach e. But, you know how woman is.

Can't wait for solid state battery powered EV on market.

 

[SpaceEVDriver]

My experience, after 45k miles of road trips and 60k miles total, our road trips don't take any longer. But we've been road tripping for decades with the policy that we like to get out of the car every 2.5-3 hours, that we don't like to eat in the car, and that stretching our legs after sitting for several hours is healthy.

Usually the Mustang is done charging before we get back to the vehicle. The median about of time we spend at a dcfc is 25 minutes, but that includes the Lightning, which has a bigger battery and charges a little bit slower overall than the Mustang.

One of the mistakes newbies seem to make is they drive at the same speed as they would in a gassy and then find themselves taking longer to drive the trip. Slow down a few mph and it saves you money and time. Going 80 mph can use up to 25%-40% more energy than going 70 mph, but only gets you there 10% faster, at best. That 25%-40% can mean an extra stop, which eats all your time savings, and more.

I've found the sweet spot for our road trips to be about 72-73 mph on cruise. I pass when necessary, draft behind a semi for awhile when it makes sense.

I make a regular trip between the Flagstaff area and LA five to ten times a year. It's 1200 miles round trip (used to be 1100, but someone moved recently), with about 480 miles each way on the freeway. We make one or two charging stops, usually two. It's always taken 7-8 hours depending on traffic and it doesn't matter what fuel powers the vehicle.

 

[2FlyMache]

My experience, after 45k miles of road trips and 60k miles total, our road trips don't take any longer. But we've been road tripping for decades with the policy that we like to get out of the car every 2.5-3 hours, that we don't like to eat in the car, and that stretching our legs after sitting for several hours is healthy.

Usually the Mustang is done charging before we get back to the vehicle. The median about of time we spend at a dcfc is 25 minutes, but that includes the Lightning, which has a bigger battery and charges a little bit slower overall than the Mustang.

One of the mistakes newbies seem to make is they drive at the same speed as they would in a gassy and then find themselves taking longer to drive the trip. Slow down a few mph and it saves you money and time. Going 80 mph can use up to 25%-40% more energy than going 70 mph, but only gets you there 10% faster, at best. That 25%-40% can mean an extra stop, which eats all your time savings, and more.

I've found the sweet spot for our road trips to be about 72-73 mph on cruise. I pass when necessary, draft behind a semi for awhile when it makes sense.

I make a regular trip between the Flagstaff area and LA five to ten times a year. It's 1200 miles round trip (used to be 1100, but someone moved recently), with about 480 miles each way on the freeway. We make one or two charging stops, usually two. It's always taken 7-8 hours depending on traffic and it doesn't matter what fuel powers the vehicle.

I agree, 72-73 is about perfect for efficiency on highways. I got 2.7 mi/kw in 55 degree weather on my last trip from Augusta GA to Waynesville NC. On return trip it was mid 30's but I still got 2.4. One 30 minute stop each way

 

[BudC]

We have made a 1200 miles trip with my Select SR battery. The driving time itself takes 17 hours per google maps. We ended up spending 4 extra hours of charging, not include an overnight stay in a hotel which I got charged the night.

This pretty much tracks my experience with my Select SR...I add 25% to the direct drive time per Google Maps to get an estimate of total time with charging stops. So, for example, a 6 hour drive without stops would take about 7.5 hours with stops.

 

[Tampamike]

I agree, 72-73 is about perfect for efficiency on highways. I got 2.7 mi/kw in 55 degree weather on my last trip from Augusta GA to Waynesville NC. On return trip it was mid 30's but I still got 2.4. One 30 minute stop each way

True in the efficiency. However, I just can’t go that slow when everybody is passing me. I’m not as aggressive driving as I was when younger but not yet that passive. I set the Blue Cruise speed at 9 over and let the car drive at 79. I still get passed but not by everybody.

Another thought for the OP on range. If you’re driving much on secondary roads at lower speeds of, say, 60-70 mph instead of 70-80, you’ll of course do better than 2.5 mpkw. I regularly drive to Key West. I can go all I75 to Miami or take the scenic route through the Everglades. For the faster route I need about 10 minutes more on the charger. The slower route takes me about 10 minutes longer driving.

 

[Nikos]

I have an upcoming 500 miles RT from my home to Phoenix area and back and have not taken any road trips in the year I have owned my 2023 Premium with Extended Range. I don't have the experience to tell me the answer to my question and this is the place to get it. If I assume my MME could make it to Phoenix with about 10-15% battery charge left. My question is how much time, best case with whatever charger/s that may be (I have both the Ford provided and A2Z adapters) would charging add to my trip? My other car is a 2020 Ford Fusion Titanium PHEV with the plug in charging disabled (thanks Ford for the almost 2 year recall you've ignored) and taking that car would add maybe 10 minutes to fill up. What I don't know is what is the added time to charge my MME compared to the Fusion.

Thanks in advance, Jim

I travel long distances with my MME Premium, (1200 miles round trip), to Louisiana, and it adds couple hours to my trip. I have the EX battery and at each stop I spend about 25 min to charge. Use the Tesla Superching network, primarily. On the 600 miles leg I have two stops to charge to 80% and a stop prior to my final destination so I will have enough to run around and get back to the station for my return trip home.
On intermediate trips, 125 to 150 miles on way, I find a charger close to my destination, charge to 80%, which that will take me back home without stopping. It is usually an 18 to 25 min stop and all depends on how fast the charging rate is. Plan accordingly, 20 to 25 min stops and do the math.

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