Driving Your EV Like a Jerk Could Wear Out The Battery 2.5 Times Faster
Your fellow drivers will thank you too.
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A new study reveals that aggressive driving habits can significantly reduce electric vehicle battery lifespan. Researchers from Shanghai Dianji University analyzed a full year of real-world driving data from 15 electric vehicles in Guangzhou, tracking vehicle speed, battery current, charge state, voltage, and temperature. The team classified driving patterns into five categories, ranging from smooth eco-driving to highly aggressive acceleration and deceleration.
The findings were striking. After 1,000 charge-discharge cycles, batteries subjected to aggressive driving lost approximately 53 percent of their maximum capacity, compared to just 21 percent for vehicles driven with eco-friendly techniques. This represents a difference of about 2.5 times greater degradation. The researchers used machine learning to isolate the effects of driving behavior from other aging factors, including ambient temperature and battery idle time.
The primary culprit behind accelerated degradation is excessive electrical current demand on the battery. The aggressive driving group drew an average of 66 amps compared to 20.56 amps for eco-drivers, despite maintaining similar average speeds. Modelling suggests that switching from aggressive to eco-driving could reduce short-term battery stress by over 91 percent. Since EV batteries represent roughly one-quarter of a vehicle’s retail cost, adopting gentler driving habits could yield significant long-term savings and extend battery life.
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Originally reported by Sciencealert →
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