Car and Driver évalue l'état de la technologie des VE grâce à l'EV 1000

Il existe une demande croissante d'informations réelles sur la nature des déplacements effectués avec des véhicules électriques 100% sur des trajets routiers de longue distance.

Cette demande de connaissances est réelle car presque tous ceux qui sont familiarisés avec la propulsion standard que l'on trouve dans les stations-service ont besoin de savoir à quel point nos options et nos choix sont variés.

The assumptive bar is set high because gasoline delivers an experience through its ease of access and repetitive use as the primary “energy is freedom” power delivery option with a comfort level that is hard to match in an on-demand | just in time society.

** Study the nation’s charging infrastructure by road-tripping EVs beyond the range of a single charge.

** Le parcours consistera en un tour de 1000 miles à travers quatre états, interdisant les habituelles facéties : pas d'espace entre les panneaux recouverts de ruban adhésif, pas d'intérieur dépouillé pour réduire le poids, pas de U-Hauls loués pour briser le vent.

** Basically what one would do by hopping into a gasoline-powered car and drive a 1000-mile lap through four states – but with off-the-shelf electric-powered vehicles.

** Nous avons donné un nom au défi pour montrer que ce que nous allions faire était deux fois plus difficile que l'Indy 500 : l'EV 1000.

** Car and Driver had the 11 vehicles, piloted with a team of two drivers for each, from it’s 2021 EV of the Year test. Vehicles used were the Audi e-tron. Tesla Models 3, Y, & S Long Range Plus, Nissan Leaf, Kia Niro EV, Volkswagen ID.4, Ford Mustang Mach-E, Polestar 2, Volvo XC40 Recharge, and finally the Porsche Taycan 4S.

** Starting Line : Ann Arbor, Michigan. Les conducteurs étaient libres de choisir leur propre itinéraire à condition de passer par les points de passage obligatoires dans l'ordre suivant : Cincinnati ; Athens, Ohio ; Morgantown, Virginie occidentale ; Erie, Pennsylvanie ; et Ann Arbor : Cincinnati, Athens, Ohio, Morgantown, Virginie occidentale, Erie, Pennsylvanie et Ann Arbor.

** Les équipes devaient s'arrêter de minuit à 8 heures du matin afin d'avoir une activité comparable à celle des conducteurs moyens et que toutes les équipes soient sur la même longueur d'onde.

** La plupart des équipes ont repéré les lieux de recharge à l'avance grâce à A Better Routeplanner (ABRP), un site web et une application de navigation spécifiques aux VE. Les utilisateurs fournissent des informations sur leur véhicule et leur vitesse prévue afin qu'ABRP puisse estimer la consommation d'énergie et proposer un itinéraire avec des arrêts recommandés, y compris le temps de charge nécessaire à chacun d'entre eux, pour un trajet le plus rapide possible.

This excerpted and edited from Car & Driver magazine –

L'EV 1000 : 11 VE s'affrontent dans une course de longue haleine 
A 1000-mile race through Middle America reveals what it’s like to drive an EV long distances in 2021.
Spoiler: It’s possible but not always fun.
BY ERIC TINGWALL – JUL 7, 2021

VanderWerp, in the Model S, wanted to post a big number on the first leg to make a statement. Possibly that statement was “No owner would ever do this.” To maximize the energy available for moving the car, he ran a radar detector off a portable battery and played music through a Bluetooth speaker. With climate control off, the cabin temperature reached 86 degrees despite a 65-degree ambient temperature. At least all the sweating meant that neither VanderWerp nor his partner needed the TravelJohn disposable urinals they’d brought. They plugged into their first Supercharger after 326 miles and were back on the road 26 minutes later.
[Reference Here]

When racing, the location and type of charging station is paramount. One of the contentious focuses the teams had in common was using fast charging stations which were, in many locations on the race, few and far between. Teams would arrive only to be stuck in a line with many of their racing competitors – just not a good look. Some teams found it far better to cruise at speed limits, or slower in order to gain range. Fastest isn’t necessarily first in these kind of alternative power endeavors.

Another major hurdle was the constant attention to math on squaring up the range miles, route, and charging stations – many teams found this to be the largest hurdle to conquer. One snarky observation came from a Car and Driver editor itself by pointing out another possible reason why Americans have been slow to adopt electric vehicles: “As a people, we hate math” – this is cold given all of the ease of use and understanding found in petroleum based energy sources.

The inconsistent nature found in the charging stations and their location can become very confusing – this isn’t anywhere near as simple to understand as “Do I fill up at Chevron or go price and hold out for a COSTCO or an AM/PM?” … no, not anywhere near as simple as that – compatibility given the car being driven, is the station located at a permit-only or paid-entry parking lot to access the plug or do I need to go to a hotel parking lot, or etc., were the additional issues, of many, encountered.

To quote the C&D article – “Charging units that weren’t supposed to work did, and those that were supposed to didn’t, adding an element of chance to an equation that didn’t need any more variables.”

Given the maturity of the market in place … complete with a charging network (that no other manufacturer’s EV can use) that is consistent and defined – Tesla, Tesla, and Tesla occupied all three places on the podium.

La Model S est passée devant quatre stations Supercharger avant de s'arrêter. Elle est arrivée au bureau après 16 heures et 14 minutes de conduite et de recharge. Google Maps indique que ce trajet est plus court de 50 minutes sans un seul arrêt.

The Model Y pulled into their last charging stop after the Model 3 had hooked-up, but the the team refused to accept a third place. When the other team wasn’t paying attention, they unplugged the Model Y and took off at a furious pace, beating the 3 back to the office to claim second place on the podium.

La synthèse finale, également tirée de la article à lire absolument a continué ainsi : “Our drivers are split when asked whether the EV 1000 was harder or easier than expected, but most say that if they were to do the trip again, they would do one thing differently: drive a gas car. And that includes the Tesla drivers. We’ll know that the charging networks and EV technology are fully baked when we’re no longer saying that.”

Comments at the end of the article are most informative and are, on their own, worthy of a deep dive. Plug in the coffee pot and enjoy before heading out for the holidays on a family gathering destination drive in the trusty, energy supply transporting, gas-powered vehicle – no matter the current price of fuel at the pump found along the universal access grid that has been building, and in-place, over these last 100 plus years.

... notes de The EDJE