EV Myth: You Can't Road Trip in an EV

Myth: You can't road trip in an EV.

Myth BUSTED: Yes, of course, you can! Road trips in an elec­tric vehi­cle are def­i­nite­ly doable.

Road trips in an elec­tric vehi­cle are real­ly quite sim­i­lar to those in a gas-pow­ered car. There are a few con­sid­er­a­tions to take into account before you start your road trip, but know­ing that you're dri­ving with­out any tailpipe emis­sions is a huge benefit.

Range: It's impor­tant to know how far your car can go on a sin­gle charge. How far will you be dri­ving and how often do you want to stop? These are cru­cial fac­tors in plan­ning your trip.

Route Plan­ning: Depend­ing on your car's range and your trip length, you will need to plan out your charg­ing stops ahead of time. The nice thing about charg­ing is that many sta­tions are con­ve­nient­ly locat­ed in areas that have shop­ping cen­ters, restau­rants, and/or bath­rooms, mak­ing it easy to take a dri­ving break or to stop for lunch while your car is charg­ing. You can choose to stop at a Lev­el 2 charg­er if you'll be tak­ing a longer break, or can top off quick­ly at a DC Fast Charg­er. Many EVs come with built-in nav­i­ga­tion that can find charg­ing loca­tions along your route, but there are oth­er options like Google Maps, PlugShare, and A Bet­ter Route Plan­ner that EV dri­vers also use.

Time: It might take a lit­tle longer than you're used to on your road trip due to charg­ing times. How­ev­er, some EV dri­vers find their trav­el time quite com­pa­ra­ble espe­cial­ly if you stop at scenic loca­tions or quaint down­towns worth tak­ing the time to explore. Know that even if it does end up tak­ing a lit­tle longer, you're keep­ing our air clean and sav­ing lots of mon­ey at the same time.

Still hes­i­tant about road-trip­ping in an EV? It may not be the go-to choice for every­one, and that's okay. Think about how fre­quent­ly you'd expect to go on road trips with your car. While we still sup­port the switch to an EV, it may make sense for you to opt for a plug-in hybrid instead or to sim­ply rent out a dif­fer­ent car for the trip. This way, you'll have more flex­i­bil­i­ty with your elec­tric range and will still be sav­ing mon­ey in the long run by dri­ving electric.

Read these blog posts and arti­cles for road trip tips from EV drivers:

Mus­tang Mach‑E Road Trip: Den­ver to San­ta Fe

What Fuels You: An Elec­tric Road Trip and Mit­subishi Out­lander PHEV Review

Dri­ving an Elec­tric Car on Colorado's Scenic Byways