Drivers with electric vehicles shouldn’t have range anxiety over making a trip to Europe, according to Fleet Evolution founder Andrew Leech, following a marathon 1,900-mile round trip to the French Alps.
His trip in an Audi e-tron for a family skiing holiday not only went without a charging hitch, but also delivered huge cost savings compared to taking an ICE car.
Leech, along with his wife and three children, set off for the French ski resort of Val d’Allos over the Easter break at the same time as a friend’s family travelling in a Ford S-Max diesel.
During the long trip, both families made regular comfort break stops at around 2.5 hours, during which Leech charged up the e-tron on available charging networks, which for 70% of the time was Ionity.
Over the whole 1,900-mile round trip, the cost of charging was just £217 compared to £496 for diesel for the S-Max, while the journey time for the Audi was 36 hours 45 minutes while the Ford took 36 hours exactly.
Leech said the trip showed just how easy it is to make long journeys in an EV on the Continent where there are extensive charging networks.
“The main takeout for me was how convenient it was to charge the EV, with a wealth of charging stops on the entire route, much of which comprised 80mph (130km/hr) toll roads. In fact, even though it was Easter, we only had to wait for a charger in one case and then the wait was only seven minutes.
“In every other instance, a fast charger was available. There was even a charger, albeit not a fast one, in our remote ski resort,” he continued.
The 56% saving in fuel costs was a massive benefit too, helped by Leech having a monthly Ionity subscription of around £8 which gives a preferential charge rate of around 31p per kilowatt, available to anyone signing up to the scheme.
The ski trip also underlines a number of key points around operating costs of an EV, especially one provided via a salary sacrifice car scheme, according to the business.
“An EV provided under a salary sacrifice car scheme remains far more cost and tax-efficient than an equivalent ICE model, especially when the cost of fuel is factored in.
“With petrol and diesel prices at their current high levels, it only serves to make ICE models more expensive to run and EVs more cost efficient as our trip clearly demonstrated, as well as showing how easy and convenient it was to operate an EV over long distances and at minimal costs,” Leech summed up.
Fleet Evolution will be exhibiting at next Tuesday’s Great British Fleet Event. Full event details and a link to register for a free ticket are here.
