When your electric car battery starts running low on charge, it can seem like a frightening prospect. But electric vehicles are equipped with various safety and convenience features that make sure you don’t get stranded in the middle of anywhere. Let’s look at what happens if your battery starts to fade; it’s not the disaster you may think it is.
Electric Car Running Out of Charge: How to Dodge a Bullet
Electric cars have become an increasingly popular alternative to petrol or diesel cars due to their efficiency and environmental friendliness. Planning your journeys around regular charging stops is essential to get the most out of your EV. This is because the range of electric vehicles can vary significantly depending on the weather, driving conditions, and how heavily you use the car’s features. A well-maintained electric vehicle should provide sufficient charge for most trips, but it’s important to ensure you don’t run out of power mid-journey. Before embarking on a long journey, check the battery level of your EV and top up if necessary. Charging stations are becoming more widely available across cities and highways, so it’s easy to find one for a quick recharge. Make sure you know where your nearest charging station is located in case of emergency to avoid being stranded without power during your travels.
Electric Car: How Likely Is It to Run Out of Charge?
Electric cars are becoming increasingly popular, and one of the main concerns is how likely they are to run out of charge. Thankfully, modern electric vehicles (EVs) come with a range that far surpasses that of their predecessors, plus they provide drivers with an adequate warning when their battery gets low. Moreover, locating a charging station is much easier than ever before; in fact, across the UK alone an estimated 42,500 chargers are sitting at 15,500 different locations – more than double the number of existing fuel stations! This means running out of charge while using an EV is far less likely than having no fuel when driving a combustion-engined car.
Onboard and In-Car Help to Keep You Going
If you start to run down on charge, don’t panic. Modern EVs give you plenty of notice when their batteries are approaching empty; in fact, more notice than a combustion-engined vehicle would give you about low fuel. Let’s take a standard Renault Zoe with a 40kWh battery for example.
When your electric car’s battery is near depletion, the warning system will alert you of the amount of charge remaining in your vehicle. This reading will usually appear somewhere around 5% battery, at which point your car’s navigation system will provide directions to a nearby charging station and estimate the distance you can travel on the current charge.
When the battery reaches 0%, it can still be relied upon to provide a limited range of approximately five miles in a reduced speed mode; this is known as turtle power mode, where only basic features are available and the top speed limit is restricted to around 20mph. After half a mile in this capacity, the car will eventually stop running and safety components like hazard warning lights will continue to be powered by your vehicle’s secondary 12-volt battery source.
So as you can see, you can rely on your car’s onboard infotainment system for help. In more advanced EVs, there’s even more help available with the addition of backup power and recovery features.
Using ZapMap with Apple CarPlay or Android Auto
Using Apple CarPlay or Android Auto in your electric car can give you access to useful features for finding a charging station quickly and easily. ZapMap is the UK’s leading plug-in point mapping system and it’s fully integrated into these two platforms, so you can locate compatible charging points immediately. Not only that, but you can also use Open Charge Map if you’re travelling abroad or even just Google Maps if you need to find a charger in a pinch. Instead of manually searching for directions on your phone, viewing all the relevant information on the in-car infotainment display is much more convenient and efficient.
Electric Car Roadside Assistance
Electric Car Roadside Assistance is a valuable service that saves EV owners from running out of battery power. Depending on the recovery company you sign up with and their services, roadside assistance can come in handy when your electric vehicle runs out of charge. If all else fails, an expert technician can be dispatched to your location and provide a small amount of energy to get you to the nearest station for a full recharge. This will depend on the capacity of your car’s battery – larger batteries take longer, but most electric vehicles can be fully charged in just a few hours.
Using a mobile electric car charger
Similar to buying portable charging packs for your phone, mobile EV chargers are available, although they aren’t cheap to buy. Some often cost more than the vehcile’s battery itself. If you come across portable chargers, it’s most likely they’ll be used by your breakdown recovery service.
Breakdown companies like www.evboost.me now kit their vans with portable chargers. That’ll deliver enough power to get a stranded EV driver safely to the nearest charging station. It’s also more suitable for the driver than having their vehicle taken away by a flatbed truck.
Can you tow an electric vehicle?
Don’t get your EV towed unless you have no alternative. Many EVs come with regenerative braking, which uses traction motors. Those could be damaged if your vehicle is towed on its wheels. Most breakdown operators will send a flatbed truck to pick up your EV instead.
Not all models come with this problem. The Nissan Leaf, for instance, can be towed as long as its front two wheels are lifted because that’s where the traction motors are. But, again, check with your EV’s manufacturer to see their clear advice. But in general, towing is more dangerous when you go electric.
Electric Car: Can You Jumpstart One?
Electric cars are becoming increasingly popular due to their environmental and cost benefits. But one of the biggest concerns for owners is how to jumpstart one if it runs out of charge. Fortunately, electric vehicles (EVs) come with two batteries: a large lithium-ion battery that powers the car’s electric motor and a smaller 12-volt battery that runs components such as wipers, heated seats, and radios. This second battery also helps keep the larger battery charged up.
If an EV runs out of charge, it can be successfully jumpstarted with a petrol or diesel vehicle by connecting the car batteries together. However, owners must take extra care when doing this – consult your car manual to locate both batteries and determine which connection points to use. It is important not to attempt to jumpstart an EV using another EV or use an EV to jumpstart a petrol/diesel engine as this could potentially damage the 12-volt battery due to its lower power output.
