Electric Vehicle Range

Electric Vehicle Range Comparison

The electric vehicle range can go from 60 to 379 miles, but it has increased a lot over the years. It's also not necessarily a case of the bigger, the better. In fact, according to data from NibleFins, luxury EVs tend to have the most range, as they have bigger capacity batteries. The average real-world range for an EV in the UK is around 212 miles. You can see how different types of EV compare in the graph below.

The range you decide should match what you want from your new car. So before you buy it’s probably worth asking yourself what you need from your car.

Is it just for trips to the supermarket and visiting friends? Or for holidays and extensive trips? What is your budget?

If you want a smaller, relatively cheap vehicle for cruising around the city then you might want to invest in the Renault Twizy (62-mile range) at £12,000 or Smart’s Fortwo (91-mile range) or Forfour (87-mile range), which both sell for just over £20,000.

You wouldn’t be able to drive from London to Bristol with any of these models on a full battery but if you don’t need to go far, then they're perfectly suitable.

If you’re looking for a larger electric vehicle range, there are plenty of cars to choose from.

In fact there is a list of eligible vehicles that qualify for the government’s plug-in grant, which dealerships and manufacturers will use to knock around £3,000 off a car’s price. The list contains 30 models which have an average range of 198 miles.

There are a variety of fantastic offerings. From Volkswagen to Vauxhall, Tesla to Skoda, the big brands have entered the electric market with cars guaranteed to make you reach record distances.

We could even start seeing EV-charging roads in the future, thanks to the rapid innovation of the industry, which will only help a electric vehicle range further.

This will be possible with wireless charging points being placed underground, which will continuously charge the cars battery as they drive over them.

Which Electric Vehicle Range Is The Longest?

That would be the Tesla Model S which has the longest electric vehicle range, which comes in at a whopping 379 miles.

That’s just over the Ford Mustang Mach-E, which secures second place with its 370-mile range.

However, Tesla is the only brand that has not only one but four models which can go up to 314 miles or more.

But the question is whether you can or should pay for a Tesla.

The Model S costs £73,990 although Tesla CEO Elon Musk announced on Twitter that the price would drop down to £53,450.

There are six other car models on this list, including cars such as the Ford Mustang Mach-E (£40,270) and the Volkswagen ID.3 (£32,300) which cost a little bit less.

Which Electric Vehicle Range Is The Shortest?

That would be the Renault Twizy with an electric vehicle range of just 62 miles.

If you’re doing a comparison on prices and think the price is quite low, it could have been even lower.

Due to the range being less than 70 miles, The Twizy fails to meet the Government plug-in grant guidelines which could have knocked off a further £3000 off the price.

But if you just need a car for short distances and want to go electric without breaking the bank, then the Twizy is an extremely cost-effective option, even without the plug-in grant.

Here is a list of all the ranges from all the most popular electric vehicles on the market right now.

Models

Tesla Model S (379)

Ford Mustang Mach-E (370)

Tesla Model 3 Long Range (348)

Rimac C_Two (342)

Volkswagen (340)

Tesla Model X LR (314)

Tesla Model Y LR (314)

Hyundai KONA Electric (300)

Jaguar I-Pace (298)

Volvo Polestar 2 (292)

Kia e-Niro (282)

Kia Soul EV (280)

Mercedes-Benz eVito Tourer (261)

Volkswagen ID.3 1st Edition (260)

Renault ZOE (245)

BYD e6 (230)

Peugeot e-208 (217)

MG MG5 EV (214)

Vauxhall Corsa-e (209)

Peugeot e-2008 (206)

DS 3 Crossback E-Tense (200)

Hyundai IONIQ Electric (194)

Nissan e-NV200 (5-seater and 7-seater) (187)

BMW i3 and i3s (185)

Škoda Citigo-e iV (170)

Nissan LEAF (168)

MG ZS EV (163)

Volkswagen e-up! (161)

SEAT Mii electric (158)

Citroen e-SpaceTourer (148)

Volkswagen e-Golf (144)

MINI Electric (143)

Vauxhall Vivaro-e Life (143)

Honda e (136)

Mercedes-Benz B-Class Electric Drive (124)

Smart EQ fortwo (91)

Smart EQ forfour (87)

Renault Twizy (62)

The Cost of Electric Cars

As well as the electric vehicle range, it's good to know the costs. The average cost of running a fully electric car is 4p per mile but there are even modern vehicles such as the Nissan Leaf e+ that runs at 3.7p per mile.

Petrol cars could cost anywhere from 9.9 to 17.2p per mile all depending on the size of the engine. Obviously the smaller the engine, the cheaper it will be to run. Sources say that the average engine size of cars sold in the UK is 1,610cc which will use 11.8p worth of petrol per mile. That’s three times as much as an electric car.

This will scale up differently depending on car models but comparatively, electric cars are the cheaper option.

The Cost of Charging an Electric Car at Home

The most convenient and affordable option will be to charge at home. This will enable you to leave your car charging overnight so that it’s ready for when you leave the next day.

Home Charging Station

If you’re able to purchase a home charging station, you should be able to profit from the Government’s Electric Vehicle Homecharge Scheme. This could save you up to £350 on the station’s initial cost.

Buying and installing a charger will cost around £1,000 so your final cost will be £650.

Plus, since 15th June 2022, electric vehicle charging points are installed in new residential buildings. All new building developments with associated parking are to have access to electric car charging points. There are an estimated 145,000 EV chargers being installed as a result of the new regulations. The new law is part of the Government’s wider plan to cut carbon emissions, with £1.3billion being contributed to the development of electric vehicle charging stations.

With record prices of petrol and diesel unlikely to drop anytime soon, this seems like a worthwhile investment.

The cars on the government’s eligible list will only cost £8 to fully charge at home, on average, whereas charging a vehicle at a public charging station can end up costing twice as much.

We advise investing in a home charger as it can save you loads of money plus it’s more convenient.

Summary

This guide should hopefully give you a good insight into the differences electric vehicle range. If you want something cheap that allows you to travel from A to B at a short distance then it's perhaps worth looking into electric vehicles such as the Renault Twizy (62-mile range) at £12,000 or Smart’s Fortwo (91-mile range) or Forfour (87-mile range), which both sell for just over £20,000.

If you’re looking for a larger electric vehicle range, there are plenty of cars to choose from. There is a list of eligible vehicles that qualify for the government’s plug-in grant, which dealerships and manufacturers will use to knock around £3,000 off a car’s price. The list contains 30 models which have an average range of 198 miles.

Plus we've given a brief rundown on costs but if you'd like to know more you can visit our full rundown on electric vehicle costs.

There should be something out there that covers all your needs at an affordable price. If you're interested to know more about electric vehicles, one of our professionals can be in touch to go over the process, all you need to do is enter a few details and we'll take care of the rest.