There are over 810,000 fully electric cars now on UK roads, and many more will come this year.
Some electric SUVs can go over 300 miles on a single charge, and now experts at Kia, who offer the Niro EV, as well as the EV9 due in 2024, have shared their tips to increase the range of an electric SUV.
Here are five ways you can get even more energy efficiency from your electric SUV:
- Pre-heat and pre-cool to preserve your battery
Pre-heating or pre-cooling the car before you start your journey is the most efficient way to keep it at a comfortable temperature. Doing this before you set off uses less battery power than heating or cooling the cabin on the move.
A great way to boost the range of an EV, especially in winter, is with a heat pump, which adjusts the temperature of your car while preserving your battery power. Heat pumps use a small amount of energy to draw heat from a variety of sources to heat up the cabin or the battery pack and are available on some electric cars or added as an optional extra.
- Travel light
The heavier your car, the more power it needs to move. While electric SUVs are designed to run efficiently at their weight, adding unnecessary weight can increase the amount of electricity you use whilst driving.
Keeping a roof rack, you’re not using on the roof or delaying unpacking the car after coming back from a holiday can add unnecessary weight to your vehicle. Always remove these when not needed to optimise your vehicle’s efficiency.
- Use regenerative braking
Regenerative braking is a clever way to save energy while driving, and this feature is found on most electric SUVs, with Kia’s full EV line-up having a comprehensive version. Regenerative braking is an energy recovery process that turns kinetic energy into electricity. This is used to optimise efficiency, and the recovered energy can be used immediately to boost your battery or can be stored until it is needed.
Regenerative braking could give you thousands of extra miles of range per year by recovering energy from the parts of your journey where you’d be slowing down anyway.
- Check your tyres
It’s important to make sure you have the right tyres for your car. SUVs are fitted with tyres that are designed for the best performance in terms of traction, grip, and reducing braking distances.
It may seem like a small detail, but how you manage your tyres can also have a significant impact on the efficiency of your car. Choosing the right SUV tyres and keeping them clean and at the correct pressure will limit any rolling resistance, meaning your battery stays charged for longer.
- Optimise charging with EV routing
If you’re planning a lengthy road trip, plan for charging points along the way to ensure you’re charging your vehicle at the optimal time and getting the most out of each charge. Kia’s EV routing software will recognise when a level of charge is insufficient to reach your set destination and automatically recommends charging stations along your route, which can be filtered to certain operators or power ratings.
Planning your route to coincide with charging stations reduces unnecessary detours and the overall distance you travel, helping cut down on energy use overall.