When I was researching my first EV, everyone was obsessed with range. It felt like the biggest deal how far could you go on a single charge? I remember comparing the early Nissan Leaf to the original Tesla, and range was the main selling point. But I soon realized it wasn't that straightforward. Things like how fast I drove, the weather, and even my tires could drastically change how far I could actually go. The advertised range was just a guess, really.
That's when I started paying attention to efficiency instead. It's about how much energy the car uses to travel a certain distance, just like fuel economy in a gas car. This directly impacts how much it costs to run. Think about it a giant battery might let you drive forever, but it also makes the car super heavy. All that extra weight actually makes the car less efficient. And with fast chargers popping up everywhere, I don't need to worry about driving hundreds of miles without stopping.
So now, when people only talk about range, I try to remind them that efficiency is the real key. It's what matters most in my daily driving experience.
