‘Very Difficult’: Electric Vehicle Owner Took 15 Hours To Drive 175 Miles

Authored by Jack Phillips via The Epoch Times (emphasis ours),

The owner of a popular electric car said it took him about 15 hours to drive 178 miles from one Wyoming city to another, raising concerns about the widespread viability of electric vehicles.

A charging device for the the new Nissan Leaf in a Nissan manufacturing plant in Melbourne, Australia on Jul. 11, 2019. (Michael Dodge/Getty Images)

Alan O’Hashi, who drives a Nissan Leaf, said that driving long distances in an electric vehicle takes far longer than driving in a traditional, gas-powered vehicle.

It’s only 178 miles from Cheyenne, Wyoming, to Casper, Wyoming. In a gas-fuelled vehicle, that trip, on average, takes around 3 hours.

But for O’Hashi, he told the Cowboy State Daily that it took “15 hours to get from Cheyenne to Casper,” adding, “It was very difficult.”

O’Hashi said that trip took place in May 2022, noting that a month later, it took him 11 hours to travel between the two cities.

Electric vehicles’ battery ranges are unpredictable because owners must factor in extra distances to charging stations, mountainous or hilly terrain, and winds, he explained.

“What I’ve learned from driving this thing is patience,” O’Hashi said.

During one part of his first trip, O’Hashi said that he stopped in the city of Wheatland to use a 220-volt plug-in charger at an RV park. He recalled that his Leaf was down to 1 percent battery life when he pulled into the charging station there.

“So, I could sit there for two hours and get enough charge to get to Casper, but just barely,” O’Hashi said, adding that when he travels, he favors stopping at old motels. The reason, he explained, is that he can run an extension cord out a window to charge his electric vehicle overnight.

While staying at the motel, O’Hashi said he could get enough charge for 40 miles of travel in one night.

Oftentimes, while waiting for his car to charge, O’Hashi said he spends extra money shopping or eating. That’s in addition to the charging cost.

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