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How much does "spirited driving" affect ideal range?

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benji4

Roadster 2.5 #0476
Nov 7, 2010
438
2
Tokyo, Japan
I just got my car 2 days ago, and I have driven it about 100km so far all over Tokyo in those two days. When I picked it up it had just been charged in range mode and had around 320km ideal km left... Anyway, although I never drove the car faster than 120km/h or so, I did accelerate pretty fast a lot of the time. After 100km, I was down to 90 ideal km! Basically 230 ideal km was subtracted from the range after just 100km of driving. Does "spirited driving" really drain the battery that much?
 
Watch the amp meter as you try various things: cruise slowly, cruise faster, sit still with accessories turned on, accelerate sedately, accelerate quickly. Nothing draws power like accelerating quickly!

I still find that almost every day, driving around town, I can accelerate quickly all the time and still ignore the battery--it's way more than I need. I only drive sedately on that occassional road trip.
 
I changed the tire-pressure from comfort to range - it saved around 10-15%. Highway with 90km = 135Wh/km with 120km/h = 200Wh/km, 160km/h = 300Wh/km, country-road 130-160Wh/km city 150-200Wh/km. It depends also on having tailwind or being on wet roads. The car is registering any change in driving conditions very well. climbing up for 1000m = 4kWh use.
 
I changed the tire-pressure from comfort to range - it saved around 10-15%.

Eberhard, Just to confirm this, you mean I'll really extend my range by 10-15% by just changing the default tire pressure (I assume comfort must be the default...)? Have other people expercienced that? Yes, am very glad I did not get a LEAF as I'd have been stranded over the weekend I think! I just can't stop myself from exploding off the line at every stop... it's just too addictive!
 
It's a character flaw Benji...one I'm not looking to correct anytime soon...:biggrin::biggrin::wink:


Eberhard, Just to confirm this, you mean I'll really extend my range by 10-15% by just changing the default tire pressure (I assume comfort must be the default...)? Have other people expercienced that? Yes, am very glad I did not get a LEAF as I'd have been stranded over the weekend I think! I just can't stop myself from exploding off the line at every stop... it's just too addictive!
 
I, too, find it necessary to verify 0-{30,35,40,65} mph times at every opportunity - but I find that I can still get pretty good Wh/mi figures if I avoid touching the friction brakes. Doing that just throws energy away. Oh, and keeping the speed on the highway under 65. I keep the VDS on the nanny graph (set at 5mi) and it's pretty good at training you how to be an asymmetric hypermiler like me.
 
I normally drive less than 3000 miles per year anyway, so unless I'm on a long trip, I'm going to be throwing care and mileage to the wind while enjoying my Roadster. #1204 arrives in my driveway in about a week. It's in Chicago getting the aftermarket audio/nav system installed, then they tow it up to Minneapolis, where our snowbanks are easily 5 feet tall in places right now. 4 above-freezing days between now and the delivery may solve that, but... probably not. 8^D