We are way too obsessed with range

[Donald Stanfield]

Makes sense. I find a smaller car to be more fun to drive and probably better performance as well, not to mention easier to maneuver, park.

Yeah it’s also a balance of comfort and utility for sure too. I would be driving a C8 corvette if I went peak coolness and performance but I also need room for my gear and groceries and family stuff as well.

I guess the smaller car can but fun but I would run into those other issues.

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[Tonicart]

I plug in once every 4-5 days. It's not that I have to. I have a charger in my garage. I just don't need to. It's more than enough to run errands and get to and from work and not worry about anything.

I'm in the same boat, but I have anxiety about needing the range in case of a sudden emergency. It's not like gas where you can just stop by a station for 5 mins and bug out. I've also been starting to log my charging data to track efficiencies... it seems like charging daily to 70% is most efficient.

 

[Mark_AZR1T]

Range is helpful when you're in Baja'...........................

 

[srnyoung]

Well said, brother! My first BMW i3 had 88 miles of advertised range which was a lot less than that in the winter.

As a daily commuter, it still answered the mail since my commute was about 30 miles roundtrip. My i3s now has an advertised range of 154 miles and that feels almost excessive. I literally only plug in once a week.

Everyone's situation is going to be different. Bigger battery packs have now made EV's more than just a commuter car and are pushing them into the zone of all around vehicle. We are overly obsessed with range, however, to the OP's point.

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The difference is, that you can plug an EV at home! Or pretty much anywhere that has an electrical outlet. You can't refine petroleum in your garage, last I checked.

Because EV's give you the freedom to fuel at home, we really don't need the same amount of range that most gas cars have these days.

As a road-tripping vehicle, being able to start a charging session, and then walk away and go do what you need to do means that you can be very efficient with your stops.

Yes, a gas vehicle can be filled up in 4-8 minutes depending on the size of the tank, but those are minutes that you have to ADD to your rest-stop because you have to supervise the process.

With an EV, the 20-30 minutes you spend fast charging can be INCORPORATED into your rest stop.

Personally, I believe that anything over 300 miles of range is excessive, even for a road-tripping vehicle. Having a larger battery pack means you are also carrying a lot more weight that is unnecessary for the majority of your use cases and is lowering your efficiency.

The exception is towing. Towing crushes range (and gas mileage!) and if you will be regularly towing, then a bigger battery pack is a must - but realistically - how much towing do most people who tow really do? I would say unless you are towing a few times a month, it still doesn't make sense.

I think a lot of range discussion is actually a factor of many people wanting to do ALL THE THINGS with just one vehicle.
- Super-efficient daily driver?
- Can-do adventure vehicle for day-trips with big-boy toys?
- Large-capacity hauler for long summer road trips?
- Beefcake towing vehicle for when "glamping" takes over for backpacking?

Most people would not expect one - or even 2 or 3 - ICE vehicles to do all these things, yet we want our NEW R1T to do it all!

Even after we get our truck (...) I'll continue to drive the eGolf most days for my short daily commute - that's when I'm not biking it. It is just a better vehicle for that job.

Towing our trailer on a long trip? That may still require borrowing an ICETV until charging infra gets better.

Will it be nice to be able to use the defroster in the R1T during the winter (not possible in the eGolf if I had anywhere else to go) - you bet. But after driving the small battery car around town for years, I don't expect to be worried often about running out.

I think there is also a range of WHY people are getting an R1T - some crusty granola munchers like me think this may be the last round of personal vehicles before climate change torches them all. Others might like the fastest production vehicle on the road. Depending on where you are coming from, you may have different expectations about how much like an ICE car this one is.

* Bonus thought - only roughly half of drivers live in a single-family home. Charging is MUCH more complicated for those folks who can't plug into their own garage, which will lead to anxiety on occasion.

 

[SASSquatch]

I think a lot of range discussion is actually a factor of many people wanting to do ALL THE THINGS with just one vehicle.
- Super-efficient daily driver?
- Can-do adventure vehicle for day-trips with big-boy toys?
- Large-capacity hauler for long summer road trips?
- Beefcake towing vehicle for when "glamping" takes over for backpacking?

Most people would not expect one - or even 2 or 3 - ICE vehicles to do all these things, yet we want our NEW R1T to do it all!

Even after we get our truck (...) I'll continue to drive the eGolf most days for my short daily commute - that's when I'm not biking it. It is just a better vehicle for that job.

Towing our trailer on a long trip? That may still require borrowing an ICETV until charging infra gets better.

Will it be nice to be able to use the defroster in the R1T during the winter (not possible in the eGolf if I had anywhere else to go) - you bet. But after driving the small battery car around town for years, I don't expect to be worried often about running out.

I think there is also a range of WHY people are getting an R1T - some crusty granola munchers like me think this may be the last round of personal vehicles before climate change torches them all. Others might like the fastest production vehicle on the road. Depending on where you are coming from, you may have different expectations about how much like an ICE car this one is.

* Bonus thought - only roughly half of drivers live in a single-family home. Charging is MUCH more complicated for those folks who can't plug into their own garage, which will lead to anxiety on occasion.

You hit the nail on the head. Many folks don't have access to daily charging (count me) so issues like vampire drain like Alex from Alex on Autos has detailed in this great thread with video are especially important for us to take note of:

https://www.rivianforums.com/forum/threads/r1t-vampire-drain-video.7636/#post-193990

srnyoung - I think I might be holding on to my bmw i3s as a daily commuter even after the R1T comes because it is so efficient as a daily driver so I am in your camp of thinking with your eGolf.

 

[svet-am]

My wife's XC40 Recharge has a rated range of 210 but she routinely hits 220 with it. This is more than enough for her to go to/from work and run errands around town when we need. When we road trip (mostly to LA and SoCal) we know the state of the charging infrastructure and plan our charging stops accordingly. Still, once I have it the R1S will become the road trip workhorse just to reduce the need for some of our stops.

We don't have range "anxiety" - we have range "awareness" and plan accordingly. I imagine the anxiety is for EV newbies and transitions to awareness once there is some experience.

 

[Budman]

I just hit a new personal best. Our regular route from cabin to home. Mix of intestate and state Highway. 151 mile run at 3.02 miles/kwh. 378 miles range with 21” tires in conserve mode. 80 deg in Minnesota.

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