So, to start I thought I’d go over the biggest difference between ICE and BEV – Regenerative braking.
We mostly know the details, energy is returned to the battery through the wheels turning the motor and also loses speed at the same time.
So, the basics: Regenerative braking is always available at different levels, whether that’s just on/off or 4 different levels including 1 pedal driving like KIA/Hyundai. The most aggressive is most suitable when stopping/starting often, city driving or traffic queuing, roadworks, etc. Similarly, the reverse works, if you’re cruising at a steady speed, the lowest settings means you’ll get the best efficiency.
Driving with regen is somewhat different to driving an ICE, where the accelerator is effectively push harder to accelerate, hold steady to maintain speed and lift a little to slow a bit and lifting entirely just uses a little of the engines mechanics to create a little resistance. Drop the clutch and you’ll be able to roll down hill without slowing (depending upon the hill). With the EV it’s more like pressing speeds up, holding keeps pace lifting slows down. The heavier the regen the more delicate you need to be with the accelerator. You can still press hard and fly forward, much more so than most engines muster, but lifting completely can take you to almost an emergency stop (on a few cars). Lifting slightly will feel more aggressive than the ICE you’re used to but, like changing to a bigger engined car, you’ll get used to how much pressure both accelerates and decelerates the car at a comfortable rate. As ever, if you allow more space so you can slow at an easier pace, you’ll drive more efficiently.
One pedal driving means the car will come to a complete stop. Some will do so as you would in normal traffic, some are gentler and require more space to completely stop. Again, time with the car gets you used to how quickly you stop. Also, anti collision monitoring will increase the rate of slowing to some extent. It is possible for all cars fitted with that level of regenerative brakes to drive around town, up and down hill, without touching the brake pedal at all. That’s fantastic if, like me, your knees or lower legs object painfully to constantly pushing different pedals. I will say the some Nissans have a 1 pedal button that, for some obscure reason, won’t bring the car to a complete halt. Also some ACC will use a combination of brake and regen to stop the car if the cars in front stop.
If you’re on a test drive and the regen feels hard, aggressive or uncomfortable, you probably need to adjust how much you lift your foot to slow down. I’ve not yet tried a car that too harsh yet but even in the Model S, you can balance it right although I find I need to drop through several levels of efficiency before controlling the acceleration down to not breaking necks.
More to follow….
(hopefully not all from me😁)
I'm Autistic, if I say something you find offensive, please let me know, I can guarantee it was unintentional.
I'll try to give my honest opinion but am always open to learning.
Mark