EV Trucks Off-Road, what range do you think we'll see

[14 tuxblack raptor]

With EV trucks getting closer to being released and Extreme E racing starting next week what type of range does everything think we'll see from EVs off-road?

I haven't been able to find any sort of info out there about Wh/mile when off-road. In my opinion I don't think we'll see any of the EV trucks being released making it off-road in the real world, maybe if they're taken to the desert on a trailer.

It would be cool to hear some opinions on what type of efficiency every thinks we'll see from the EV trucks hitting the market that are being advertised as off-road capable. I think people will take them to fire roads behind their house and that's it. I also think that off-roading with such high Wh/mile consumption that it will actually cost more in 'fuel' to run an EV off-road than it would an ICE. Say living in LA, currently 21cents/kWH, the time to get to the desert with recharging, then with how many times and how quickly you'd have to recharge once off-roading, not even considering where the nearest charge station would be in the desert, it wouldn't be practical or even possible to off-road an EV truck.

We will see Extreme E racing soon and what their range to recharging looks like. They are racing on 10 mile loops. I found one article so far where a driver was saying they can kill the 56kWh battery in 10 minutes(uphill+sand). Otherwise I haven't been able to find any other info.

Here's some of the EV trucks and their battery size. Also with the extra gear, supplies, weight, terrain, and temperatures for going off-road will further decrease the efficiency of the range they're saying these EV will get.

Hummer EV: 200kWh (350 mile range)
Cyber Truck: 200kWh (500 mile range)
Rivian EV: 180kWh (400 mile range)
Bollinger EV: 175kWh (200 mile range)

I'm assuming the companies are claiming range based off projected Wh/mile consumption

Current EV economy figures
Excellent- 190/225 Wh/mile
Good- 226/260 Wh/mile
So so- 261/295 Wh/mile
Poor- 296+ Wh/mile

296+ Wh/mile is going to be 0-2.9 kWh/mile. I think that off-road the consumption will be much higher than 300 Wh/mile. These trucks are also going to be extremely heavy. The Extreme E SUV is 3600 lbs, which these trucks will be close to double that and even more.

 

[GordoJay]

Some things I wondered about in your post.

Battery capacity for the four trucks is similar, but range varies by more than two to one. Why? Something is out of whack.

Ev economy figures seem incomplete. Shouldn't they be expressed as Wh/km/kg or Wh/mi/lb? You wouldn't expect an eHummer and an ebike to get the same Wh/mi efficiency ...

 

[14 tuxblack raptor]

@GordoJay Go look at the info on the trucks for yourself, that's what I've been able to find so far. EVs economy figures are being done in Kwh/mile and MPGe(which isnt out yet for these trucks)

ebikes get 20-60Wh/mile?

 

[BenBB]

Got my eye on Rivian, from what I've seen so far they are headed in the right direction (i.e. offroad). But the technology and infrastructure is (at least relatively) young and ya gotta start somewhere. Like it or don't, it's just a matter of time. Eventually solar, at least as a supplement, could reach usable efficiency, but I think the first Baja 1000 EV contender, much less winner, is a loooong ways off. Interesting tech though...

 

[GordoJay]

Temperature plays a big role. Death Valley in the summer or Fairbanks in the winter is going to kill your range in a big way. Neither is a place I want to be stranded that time of year ...

 

[melvimbe]

Some things I wondered about in your post.

Battery capacity for the four trucks is similar, but range varies by more than two to one. Why? Something is out of whack.

Ev economy figures seem incomplete. Shouldn't they be expressed as Wh/km/kg or Wh/mi/lb? You wouldn't expect an eHummer and an ebike to get the same Wh/mi efficiency ...

Why would the weight of the vehicle be factored in? Weight is never considered with ICE engines...we look at MPG, not MPGPP (miles per gallon per pound).

That said, I do get that one of the issues with batteries is that power stored per weight of the battery, creating significant diminishing returns with larger batteries, and this larger range on these things. Not the only issue, but one of them.

 

[Cthulhu]

Hydrogen fuel cells will be the future, not plug in EV.

 

[GordoJay]

Why would the weight of the vehicle be factored in? Weight is never considered with ICE engines...we look at MPG, not MPGPP (miles per gallon per pound).

You're right, Wh/mi is the number we care about. The weight affects that. The heavier the vehicle, the more energy it takes to move it around, but that's moot. The OP didn't actually calculate that, so lets do it now.

Hummer EV: 200kWh (350 mile range) 200kWh/350 = 571Wh/mi
Cyber Truck: 200kWh (500 mile range) 200kWh/500 = 400Wh/mi
Rivian EV: 180kWh (400 mile range) 180kWh/400 = 450Wh/mi
Bollinger EV: 175kWh (200 mile range) 175kWh/200 = 875Wh/mi

If we take the categories in the OP at face value, all of these rate far worse than poor. Maybe they need a god-awful category. And once we have that defined, we make it illegal. I wish I was kidding.

Now add in the effects of temperature. The rule of thumb I've seen is that extreme temps drop your range by half. And we're off road, not however the makers calculated those numbers above. We might estimate the loss by lowering it by the same percentage that ICE loses. How much is that? It does depend on the driving conditions, but half is not out of the question. So we divide by two again. The big winner above, the Tesla might only go 125 miles off road in the desert in the summer. The big loser, only 50. And you have to get to the road. The last time I looked, there was only one charging station in all of southeastern Utah, in Blanding. Now you see why I briefly looked into electric vehicles when Rivian announced and then dismissed the entire category. They aren't likely to be useful in my lifetime.

 

[GordoJay]

Hydrogen fuel cells will be the future, not plug in EV.

I'm holding out for Mr. Fusion ...

 

[Jakenbake]

I'm holding out for Mr. Fusion ...

The writers for that movie must have been fans of off-road.

“Roads? Where we are going we don’t need any roads.”