moteurs.com · Printed for your electric-car holiday
A print-ready memo with concrete numbers and the technical nuances that actually matter. Slip it in the glove box or stick it on the fridge before you leave.
On a 1,500 km EV holiday trip, the gap between casual and optimised driving can reach 30 to 40 % of the total cost — roughly one tank of petrol. These 10 tips cover home, vehicle, road and charging, each with a realistic order of magnitude, what to do concretely, the common pitfall, and the technical reason it works.
What to do : On the motorway, set cruise control to 115 km/h (120 km/h max) instead of 130. The lost time is usually offset by one less charging stop.
Caveat : On very long trips, total travel time can even be shorter thanks to faster, more efficient charging stops.
Why it works : Air resistance grows with the square of speed — going from 130 to 115 km/h cuts aero drag by about 22 %.
What to do : Set navigation to the charger 20-30 min before arrival so the car warms the battery automatically (Tesla, Hyundai/Kia E-GMP, BMW, MG, etc.).
Caveat : Pointless at 30 °C, critical after a long slow drive, essential in winter — otherwise a 350 kW charger will drop to 50-80 kW.
Why it works : Lithium-ion cells deliver full rated power only between ~25 and 45 °C; too cold and the BMS throttles charging to protect the anode.
What to do : Arrive at 10-15 % battery and leave as soon as the charger passes 80 %. On very long trips, even aim for 60-70 % per session.
Caveat : The charging curve collapses after 80 %. The 80→100 % step can take as long as 10→80 %.
Why it works : Fast-charging power stays constant between ~10 and 50 % SOC, then tapers off to protect the cells at the top end.
What to do : Start the AC or heater from the app 5-10 min before leaving, while the car is still plugged in — running off the grid, not the battery.
Caveat : Very effective on Tesla, Hyundai, Kia, BMW, MG. On other brands, check whether a 'preconditioning' option is available.
Why it works : Cooling a cabin from 35 to 22 °C off-battery uses 1-3 kWh — that's 5 to 15 km of range gone right at the start.
What to do : Leave the motorway for 2-5 min to find a retail park, shopping centre or supermarket: Lidl, Carrefour, Leclerc, Auchan, Aldi.
Caveat : In July-August, some sites are saturated — check availability on PlugShare or Chargemap before leaving the motorway.
Why it works : Ionity, Fastned or Total HPC chargers on the motorway charge €0.59-0.85/kWh without a subscription, against €0.30-0.45/kWh at retail charging hubs.
What to do : Test Chargeprice, A Better Route Planner (ABRP), Chargemap and PlugShare before leaving. Pick the app or card best priced for your target operators.
Caveat : Ionity Motion, Electra Plus or Fastned Gold subscriptions pay off above ~200 kWh/month — weigh against your expected summer mileage.
Why it works : The same Ionity charger costs €0.69/kWh without a subscription, €0.39 with Motion, and around €0.35 via some multi-operator cards.
What to do : Remove roof bars and roof box whenever they are not strictly needed. Prefer a rear tow-ball bike rack over a roof rack.
Caveat : The impact grows exponentially with speed: negligible at 80 km/h, huge at 130. If you must keep them, all the more reason to slow down.
Why it works : Aerodynamic losses (frontal area × Cd) dominate consumption above 100 km/h.
What to do : Inflate to the manufacturer's 'heavily loaded' value (often +0.2-0.3 bar vs daily use). Check cold, before leaving.
Caveat : The '+0.3 bar warm' rule depends on the model and how long you have been driving — ideally always measure cold at the station.
Why it works : Rolling resistance accounts for 20-25 % of motorway consumption; being 0.5 bar low is enough to cost you 5 % of range.
What to do : At 35 °C outside, aim for 27-29 °C inside, not 20 °C. Use ventilation and sun-shades first before turning the AC up.
Caveat : In high humidity, switch to 'dehumidify' mode rather than aggressive cooling — more effective and cheaper.
Why it works : The AC compressor draws power roughly in proportion to the temperature gap — halving the gap nearly halves AC consumption.
What to do : Unplug the internet router, set-top boxes, TVs, chargers, coffee machines, and switch the electric water heater to off or 'holiday' mode.
Caveat : Keep on: alarm, critical home automation, fridge/freezer, cameras. A well-filled freezer uses less than an empty one.
Why it works : An average home loses 50 to 100 W to permanent standby loads, and a poorly insulated hot-water tank loses 1-3 kWh/day in thermal losses.
Between €80 and €150 depending on car and departure: €30-50 by avoiding motorway fast chargers, €20-40 by cruising at 115 instead of 130 km/h (one fewer charging stop), €10-30 by removing the roof box, and €30-90 at home from killing standby loads over two weeks.
No. Tesla, Hyundai/Kia E-GMP (Ioniq 5/6, EV6, EV9), BMW, MG and Porsche offer it automatically via the navigation. On Renault, Peugeot, Citroën and Fiat it is rolling out — check the 'battery preconditioning' setting in the charging menu.
Charging to 100 % at home the night before (off-peak rates) is almost always cheaper than a public charger. On the road, however, stay in the 10-80 % window: that is where the charger delivers full power, and where total time + energy cost is lowest.
Yes to both. A router draws 10-20 W continuously (around 3-7 kWh over 15 days). A 200-litre electric water heater loses 1-3 kWh/day in thermal losses when nobody uses it: 15-45 kWh saved over two weeks, with no comfort loss on return (it reheats in 4-6 h).
Yes, almost always. A rear tow-ball bike rack adds 3-8 % consumption (depending on the number of bikes), against 15-30 % for a roof rack or roof box. The difference shows on the first tank.
The orders of magnitude shown are averages observed on recent vehicles (Tesla Model 3/Y, Hyundai Ioniq 5/6, Kia EV6, Renault Megane E-Tech, Peugeot e-3008, BMW iX1). Actual savings depend on model, weather, load and road profile. Sources: ADEME, Consumer Reports, T&E, Moteurs.com user feedback.