How far can modern electric cars travel on a single charge?

Question

I recently read a book called "The Detroit Electric Scheme" by D. E. Johnson. The hero character in the book was the son of the man that owned Anderson Electric Car Company, which built Detroit Electrics in the early to mid 20th century. In the book, a Detroit Electric traveled just over 211 miles on a single charge, setting a record which was later broken by a Baker Electric (built in Cleveland, Oh. around the same time period) which went over 240 miles on a charge, both running on Edison batteries and powered only by electricity-no gas engine at all. While the book itself was fiction, the records are real. Granted, the cars only had a top speed of around 25 m.p.h. but that was acceptable at the time.

With the advancements in battery and electric motor technology, weight saving materials and aerodynamics, I would think that a modern electric car should be able to go at least that far and have a higher top speed. Can any of the electrics produced today do this? I've never seen it advertised. Before answering, don't forget that this was with no gas engine in the car to generate electricity to charge the batteries while driving, and, I am only interested in production vehicles that are available to the general public, not engineering projects by universities or manufacturers.

apeweek · Accepted Answer

Your story demonstrates that driving range isn't the real problem with electric cars - it has always been possible to pile enough batteries - of any type - into an electric car to get whatever range you wish.  Instead, the issue is battery weight and cost.  A practical car can't be too heavy or too expensive. 
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But you are right, battery technology has advanced a lot since that time.  The electric car with the longest driving range today is the Tesla Model S.  The car can be purchased with different sized battery packs.  The biggest battery pack gives the Model S a 300-mile driving range.  And yes, it's very expensive.
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Tesla has also installed free solar-powered fast-chargers along the west coast, with plans to eventually install more nationwide.  This will make it possible, someday, to drive a trip of any distance essentially for free.

Miguel · Answer

Well the most common, fully electric car is the Nissan Leaf, which will go a little over 100 miles on a full charge. The Chevrolet Volt and the Prius are hybrids so they have both a gas engine and an electric motor. The gas engine kicks in after you reach a speed of about 15 mph with the electric motor. The mileage on a modern car doesn't sound like much but you have to understand that today's cars run A LOT more electronics than the cars in the early 1900's. They are also a lot heavier due to all the things most of us take for granted like airbags, comfortable seats, a complex suspension, better brakes and tires, etc. If we were to put a modern electric motor and battery on a car from the 1900's, it would definitely go farther than 240 miles.

Tee · Answer

I drive a Nissan LEAF. On a full charge, you have over 100 miles (between 103-106) in a single round trip. A variety of factors do affect this range: weather (in particular the cold), the terrain (hilly backroads allow for extended range while interstates tend to be a harder drain on the battery), and whether or not you run the Climate Contol system.

It all depends on the battery and make and model of the car. Mitsubishi's MiEV has a range of 30 on a full battery, while the high-end Tesla models can reach a range of 300 miles on a single charge. Often, with cars like the Tesla and Coda, you can upgrade the battery to reach this maximum range. With my own experience, the LEAF offers only the standard battery with 100 mile range. The farthest I have driven the LEAF has been to Charles Town, WV, roughly 65 miles away. When there, I charged the car up and made it home with just over 20+ miles to spare.

What will improve the range of the LEAF and other EVs will be an improvement to the infrastructure. We need charging stations in more strategic places (Old Town areas where people can shop, restaurants, etc.) which will allow for longer trips.

Breath on the Wind · Answer

Driving distance will depend a great deal upon who is behind the wheel.  Hypermiling is name for the package of techniques used to get some fairly remarkable mileage out of fairly normal cars.

While the EPA lists the range of a Leaf at around 73 miles, the Mitsubishi i at 62 miles and the Tesla roadster at around 260 miles one couple in Australia drove their roadster to about 363 miles.   However a solendra electric was taken about 373 miles on one charge, using nickel metal hydride batteries, back in 1995.

The record for an electric on one charge is now about 800 miles. (around a track by a university team in Japan.)

C7S · Answer

I believe both the Chevy Volt and Nissan leaf travel about 40 miles on a single charge, which is said to be drivable for most people because most people drive less than 40 miles per day.

Curtis 1911 · Answer

Chevy volt goes 50 miles on a charge.

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How far can modern electric cars travel on a single charge?

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