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Comment by jonathanberger | Hacker News Reader

One of the most surprising things about getting an EV four months ago has been how little range matters.

Since you always leave home with a full tank and it’s rare to drive more than 150 miles in a typical day any range over that is money I’d rather save buying a smaller battery.

The main place more range helps is with road trips. But even there I run into the human comfort limit before the range limit. My family needs food and restrooms more frequently than the battery needs charging.

If I were to purchase an EV again I’d ignore range and focus more on other aspects.

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In western rural areas of the US, which use trucks heavily, there is no such thing as a reliable 150 mile typical day. And at the common 80-90 miles per hour, 150 miles is not a particularly onerous commute so that kind of routine travel is pretty common. Unfortunately, you have to allow for road closures that incur 100 mile detours in your plans — accidents, weather, etc. That has happened to me many times in places where there is no charging station for a very long distance.

Sure, for a city commute EV works great. If you routinely travel around the mountain west or similar, you’ll want an ICE if you value your safety. The variance in distance, travel time, and road conditions is quite high.

I have no frame of reference for miles and how far they are, however it sounds like you're saying that for most people - who live in suburbia and other high density areas - it's suitable. I'd agree.

The daily commute is a solved use case. That said, extra range still helps reduce the amount of planning needed.

If you end up spending a weekend at a friend's you can easily run out of charge and have to squeeze in a 30 minute errand or two.

For city driving this is true. Though I'm hesitating on some trips to eastern Oregon or Montana we've thought about, it would be easier if Tesla opened up its charging network to CSS EVs :).

804km/charge is mostly a pissing contest at that point unless you have some other needs for the batteries. Even assuming it's a realistic number.

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