The Jaguar I-Pace is driven from London’s South Bank to Brussels on a single charge – a journey of 229 miles – including driving through the Channel Tunnel.
The big downside for electric cars until now, and perhaps even still, is the relatively modest range on a charge, and the time it takes to replenish the electrickery when it runs low.
But EVs are staring to deliver the sort of range which does mean you can, most of the time, use an EV like an ICE car, and with the rise of 150kW and 350kW chargers the future should see EV drivers using their cars exactly like an ICE car.
But motorists still need convincing, and with the new Jaguar I-Pace out in the wild (although still in very small numbers) Jaguar are busy playing ‘Look how many miles the I-Pace can do on a single charge’ to convince us all it’s time to change to an electric car.
We’ve already seen Top Gear go from London to Cornwall in the I-Pace – 298 miles – on the equivalent of a single charge in an I-Pace (with caveats), and now Jaguar has taken the I-Pace on a 229 mile jaunt from London to Brussels on a single charge, including actually driving through the Channel Tunnel (well, a service tunnel) en-route. Which adds a bit of interest and sounds like a longer trip than London to Liverpool (about the same distance).
To be clear, Jaguar did pre-condition the I-Pace’s battery before they set off, stuck it in Eco mode to limit its performance and squeeze extra life from the battery, and the Climate was put in to ‘Green’ mode too. But the I-Pace made it.
Despite negotiating busy rush hour traffic, summer heat and motorways, the I-Pace made it from London to Brussels on a single charge with power to spare. Although owners should probably rely on Top Gear’s estimate of a real world maximum of 200 miles.
Still, it does go to show EVs are now getting close to being as convenient to run as ICE cars.
Mark A. Geller says
If they have already gone 298, why bother with the P.R. of a 220?