Electric vehicles with the best – and worst – ranges

As research reveals that driving an inefficient EV could set you back almost £850 per 10,000 miles, we look at how far electric vehicles can really travel on a full charge.

When it comes to electric vehicles (EVs), the advertised performance often falls short of the driving experience in the real world.

In fact, an investigation by What Car? has revealed the battery life of some EVs is nowhere near the figures advertised by manufacturers.

This significantly impacts the distance they can travel on a single charge, which is known as the car’s range.

Even more shockingly, the research found motorists with an inefficient model could be wasting up to £838 per 10,000 miles on energy costs.

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How the test was conducted

During the testing, the researchers put 12 of the best-known models through their paces to see how they fared under the conditions encountered by many drivers.

As What Car? jokingly put it, the aim is to “drive ‘em until they die”.

The test route followed approximately 19 miles, including 2.7 miles of simulated stop-start urban driving, 5.5 miles at constant 50mph and 11 miles at a steady 70mph.

Using these results, the researchers determined the accuracy of the manufacturer’s advertised range and calculated an efficiency figure based on miles per kWh.

Best and worst performers

So, how did the different models compare?

Managing 333 miles, the Polestar 2 Long Range Single Motor had the longest actual range of the models tested.

Interestingly, however, this is considerably below its official range of 406 miles, which represents an 18% shortfall.

Coming in bottom of the tables, the Mini Cooper SE Exclusive (Level 2) conked out after 211 miles, which is a 13% shortfall from the official 242-mile range.

As the oldest model in the testing, the Tesla Model S lasted for 213 miles, which places it third from bottom in the league table.

Meanwhile, Audi Q6 e-tron Launch Edition, the most expensive model tested at £86,440, placed sixth.

Here's how the 12 different models stacked up compared to their advertised ranges.

Source: What Car?

*Approximate second-hand value

Note, What Car? runs efficiency testing during both the winter and summer months, with the research above taking place in August 2024.

You can read the results for the most recent winter testing in our article from earlier this year.

What about charging costs?

With energy prices set to rise again in October, What Car? rightly points out that charging costs are a crucial consideration when choosing an EV.

In order to calculate the energy efficiency of these 12 models, the researchers also looked at their home charging costs per mile, according to the current Energy Price Cap.

Additionally, they worked out the cost at a standard public charger.

Source: What Car?

*Based on current energy price cap of 22.4p per kWh 
**Based on Gridserve DC public charging cost of 79p per kWh

Cost per 10,000 miles

Based on the data above, What Car? extrapolated charging costs per 10,000 miles.

As the most efficient of the 12 models, the Tesla Model 3 RWD has a home charging cost of roughly £508 over this distance.

If you charge the model on a public charger, however, this increases to £1,795.

In contrast, the Audi Q6 e-tron has costs of £745 and £2,633 per 10,000 miles respectively.

This is a whopping £838 difference between the two models when using public chargers.

Have your say

Does it surprise you to hear that many of the most popular EV models are underperforming in range? And what do you make of this huge discrepancy in charge costs?

We’d love to hear your thoughts in the comments below.

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