Range Anxiety - finding the sweet spot in South Africa

Range Anxiety - finding the sweet spot in South Africa

Having driven a BEV and a plug in hybrid for 6 years I would like to share my thoughts of range anxiety in South Africa.

What is a long trip ? Let us make examples of say  JHB to DBN or CT to Plett , these journeys would be in the range of 600km.

A weekend getaway would unlikely be more than 450km.

I would suggest a BEV with a range of 300 miles or 450 -480 km real world range is a sweet spot in SA. Most DC charges are at +/- 100 km apart on the national highways and are charging at 60Kw. This would give the option of at least 4 charges en route. This would mean a top up of 150km at one of these charges. Most studies and indeed modern cars give a warning to "take a break" after 3 hrs of travel. Mathematically one would need about 26Kw or 25 min of charge at 60Kw. This is again according to most EV motor journalists the sweet spot for a coffee/restroom break, I can certainly endorse that.

The reason why this range is necessary in SA is due to the fickle nature of the handshake to the charger and of course load shedding. One has to factor in at least one of these chargers not working. My advice is to use the Grid Cars live map and use the first available charger.

PV Amped 

(Source: Drive Electric)

 

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