[NoClosedDoors]

Originally Posted by eelnoraa

It does. The best range is expressway with 50MPH traffic, minimal stop and go. Surface street with slow traffic and stop/go degrade mile/kWh just like how ICE car behave, just not as much. At higher speed, say above 70MPH, mile/kWH taper off worst than ICE tho.

I think the mile/kWh is only meaningful for round trip drive, where elevation change is equalize. Because I can always do a downhill drive and get 3+mile/kWh. In my recent attend to maximized EV range, it was a 30 miles round trip drive with mixed of local and free way. I limit freeway speed to 70MPH. this trip, I got 2.3mile/kWh with very gentle foot.

The electric motor is most efficient at lower speeds but I’ve found the best trade off is 56/90, 62/100, or 68/110 for freeway driving. Will be doing further testing at the lower speeds soon and reporting back.

[nZtiZia]

Originally Posted by ST3

Did you switch wheels due to ride quality or efficiency?

neither. i switched to 20" for increased tire selection and availability, lower costs per tire (variable), and more beneficial tire rotation

added benefits are better ride quality and efficiency (though not significantly more) and less risk of curbing wheels

[cellarrat]

Originally Posted by nZtiZia

i agree! it's been one of the best purchases in my adult life. i once went 7 months between fill-ups; currently 5 months since last fill-up and still 50% full (I do instill fuel stabilizer, debatable)

Wow. I don't do a ton of long-range driving, am very conservative around town on all-electric, and have gotten nowhere near that kind of mileage out of a tank. Basically 2 months. Car went into service on 5/20; refilled on 7/18, not at about half a tank left.

But agree with everything else here. Just love the car. Great fun to drive. Holding my breath for the reliability shoe to drop, but so far so good

[Guy Fleegman]

Originally Posted by carsar12

So after a day of playing on a full charge discharging to 6 miles, driving it back up to 12 miles with regenerative braking, then a full overnight charge , I wake up with 44 miles of range. How is that when we are only supposed to see about 30 miles of EV range?

This afternoon when I started the car, the charge range indicated 42 miles. After I had traveled less than a mile on neighborhood streets, it dropped to 37. That's typical behavior. I no longer pay much attention to range estimates, only the charge level. Too many variables.

[Brigitte]

Originally Posted by eelnoraa

It does. The best range is expressway with 50MPH traffic, minimal stop and go. Surface street with slow traffic and stop/go degrade mile/kWh just like how ICE car behave, just not as much. At higher speed, say above 70MPH, mile/kWH taper off worst than ICE tho.

I think the mile/kWh is only meaningful for round trip drive, where elevation change is equalize. Because I can always do a downhill drive and get 3+mile/kWh. In my recent attend to maximized EV range, it was a 30 miles round trip drive with mixed of local and free way. I limit freeway speed to 70MPH. this trip, I got 2.3mile/kWh with very gentle foot.

Most of my driving will be on surface streets...it will mostly be during light traffic...speed limits vary from 35 to 40 mph. Most of my errands will be under 30 miles round trip. I'm thinking with a fully charged battery ...I can do a 30-mile round trip on pure electric!

[jad03060]

Drag goes up at speed and it is not linear. Doubling your speed makes the drag go up by almost 4x. Stop and go is hard on any efficiency, but in the PHEV, regeneration will recover SOME of that 'lost' energy, but it's not a perpetual motion machine...there are always losses in the conversion. Level 2 charging is more efficient than level 1, but that's somewhat of a hidden loss and doesn't affect actual driven efficiency, only the losses to getting the battery full. Wider tires have more drag, regardless of the diameter, so yes, that can make a difference, too.

[nZtiZia]

Originally Posted by cellarrat

Wow. I don't do a ton of long-range driving, am very conservative around town on all-electric, and have gotten nowhere near that kind of mileage out of a tank. Basically 2 months. Car went into service on 5/20; refilled on 7/18, not at about half a tank left.

But agree with everything else here. Just love the car. Great fun to drive. Holding my breath for the reliability shoe to drop, but so far so good

i think you misunderstood. i'm able to go several months between fill-ups because i simply don't use the ICE often. during my work week, i utilize 98% electric where the other 2% is the occasional Hybrid after using up all the electric while running errands after work or running weekend errands in Sport mode believe me, i'm NOT fuel-efficient when running the ICE!

[mobsync]

I'm wish manufacturers would post some kind of performance bulletins like outboard companies do.

https://yamahaoutboards.com/en-us/ho...xf425usb2__occ

[jad03060]

The longest I've gone in between fill-ups was about 9-months. I'm retired, and most of my driving is within the EV range in the small city where I live. Most shopping, friends, doctors are easily within electric range, and I may go weeks in between the ICE turning on. On a 2000-mile trip without much opportunity to recharge, I averaged a bit over 28-mpg, with the vast majority of that on the US interstate system.

[eelnoraa]

Originally Posted by Brigitte

Most of my driving will be on surface streets...it will mostly be during light traffic...speed limits vary from 35 to 40 mph. Most of my errands will be under 30 miles round trip. I'm thinking with a fully charged battery ...I can do a 30-mile round trip on pure electric!

I think the 31 miles EPA rating is a little on the conservative side. Average population should be able to get there. I can definitely go more on round trip kind of route if I am smooth, but then if I push it hard, I am sure I can get much less just like any EV.

[ST3]

Originally Posted by nZtiZia

neither. i switched to 20" for increased tire selection and availability, lower costs per tire (variable), and more beneficial tire rotation

added benefits are better ride quality and efficiency (though not significantly more) and less risk of curbing wheels

Thanks for clarifying. I'm fortunate that the roads are not as challenging as in some areas for wheel damage. I've not had issues with the largest stock wheel options. What has been an issue is run flats and larger wheels in ride quality/noise.

Seems like the 45e suspension has made this nearly a "non issue". Agree based on your experience?

[nZtiZia]

Originally Posted by ST3

Seems like the 45e suspension has made this nearly a "non issue". Agree based on your experience?

the air suspension can attenuate to a degree

[cellarrat]

Originally Posted by nZtiZia

i think you misunderstood. i'm able to go several months between fill-ups because i simply don't use the ICE often. during my work week, i utilize 98% electric where the other 2% is the occasional Hybrid after using up all the electric while running errands after work or running weekend errands in Sport mode believe me, i'm NOT fuel-efficient when running the ICE!

yeah but that describes me too. In daily driving I am in 100% EV mode. Only slip into hybrid when I get on the highway.


I'm not distressed though. Last time I checked I was getting a combined mpg of about 80. And I love driving in EV. Extremely responsive

[cellarrat]

Originally Posted by Brigitte

Most of my driving will be on surface streets...it will mostly be during light traffic...speed limits vary from 35 to 40 mph. Most of my errands will be under 30 miles round trip. I'm thinking with a fully charged battery ...I can do a 30-mile round trip on pure electric!

That seems about right. The estimate the car creates is inaccurate (as mentioned here) and fluctuates quite a bit, but experience suggests that you can get 30 miles pretty reliably per charge. At least in the summer.



And if you need to, using that 6 cyl is no penalty!

[taek]

Originally Posted by jad03060

The longest I've gone in between fill-ups was about 9-months. I'm retired, and most of my driving is within the EV range in the small city where I live. Most shopping, friends, doctors are easily within electric range, and I may go weeks in between the ICE turning on. On a 2000-mile trip without much opportunity to recharge, I averaged a bit over 28-mpg, with the vast majority of that on the US interstate system.

Same here, this is my commute car and my commute is a fixed 30 miles. So I haven't filled up the tank since Feb (although it's empty now).

It's too bad PHEV tech is shunned by both ice enthusiasts and EV enthusiasts. It really is a great solution.

[cellarrat]

These data are really surprising to me. My car went into service in late May. In the ~3 months since, I've driven 2148 miles, of which 73% (1565 miles) have been EV and 584.5 have been ICE. I have filled the tank once, 2 months in, and am now halfway through tank #2.

Taek, 7 months on 1 tank? You must never use hybrid at all! And nZtiZia going several months without filling up!

My mileage all-in is 81.1 mpg , and I am thrilled with that.

[Guy Fleegman]

Originally Posted by cellarrat

These data are really surprising to me. My car went into service in late May. In the ~3 months since, I've driven 2148 miles, of which 73% (1565 miles) have been EV and 584.5 have been ICE. I have filled the tank once, 2 months in, and am now halfway through tank #2.

Taek, 7 months on 1 tank? You must never use hybrid at all! And nZtiZia going several months without filling up!

My mileage all-in is 81.1 mpg , and I am thrilled with that.

If I never took highway trips, I think I could go a full year on one tank, driving in Hybrid 100% of the time around town, recharging every night.

[taek]

Originally Posted by cellarrat

Taek, 7 months on 1 tank? You must never use hybrid at all! And nZtiZia going several months without filling up!

I drive in hybrid mode, if that's what you're asking. The ice engine kicks in to accelerate, especially on the highway onramps and passing on the highway. But any kind of cruising speed is on electric.

I commute to Chicago which has heavy traffic, so it's rare to go above 60 mph. Chicago highways are a lot of people crawling in stop & go. So it's almost entirely electric.

For out of town trips we take a 3 row SUV for the family and that's gas powered. The the 45e is just my daily.

[NoClosedDoors]

Just did a test with some moderate headwinds (8-10kt) at 62mi/100km

[jad03060]

Any vehicle at a steady state tends to be fairly efficient, and the 45e is no exception. IMHO, BMW did a good job of calibrating the EV and ICE motors to balance operations for overall comfort, performance, and efficiency, and continual updates via software can continue to improve that. I've found it to be a good balance and probably the best vehicle I've owned. It won't satisfy everyone, but it certainly works for me!

Some of the people commenting have never driven one. Preconceived notions are not always aligned with reality.

[eelnoraa]

Originally Posted by cellarrat

These data are really surprising to me. My car went into service in late May. In the ~3 months since, I've driven 2148 miles, of which 73% (1565 miles) have been EV and 584.5 have been ICE. I have filled the tank once, 2 months in, and am now halfway through tank #2.

Taek, 7 months on 1 tank? You must never use hybrid at all! And nZtiZia going several months without filling up!

My mileage all-in is 81.1 mpg , and I am thrilled with that.

I do agree here. Now it is my personal opinion of course. If I only use 1 tank of gas in a year in 45e, then BEV is the right car. With PHEV, I just log around the ICE portion for no reason. To have the gas option so that I will go into a road trip to a remote area where EVSE doesn’t exist, once very two years, I will just rent for the rare ocassion.

[jad03060]

In some places, you can find a CCS charging station that is open, convenient, and working without going out of your way, but those places aren't all that common. Once that is available, a BEV makes a lot of sense. In the interim, I think the PHEV is a good choice as you don't really have to plan ahead for that what if and not run out of battery capacity without a ready, quick way to restore it. When you can find a CCS station as easily as a gas station, I'm all for it. Battery tech is going to continue to improve for both density, longevity, and the ability to recharge quickly.

A prototype Sulphur aluminum battery was shown to be able to be fully recharged in about a minute, but it probably wouldn't be useful in a vehicle, but there are other things being worked on. Battery tech is not dead or a static item. FCV may end up being a much bigger thing, too. Green hydrogen would qualify for a non-fossil fuel vehicle, too. Quick refueling that is likely faster than filling a gas tank.

Human nature is to often not embrace change. Some thrive on it, and innovation and incentive are the mother of invention.