ON a few-hour drive from New York to Washington DC, my eyes bounced between the distance of my destination and the battery range of my EV.
I took Nissan’s Ariya EV SUV on long-distance trips—my range anxiety took center stage during the 200-mile journey.
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After several successful shorter trips with other EVs – namely the Tesla Model Y, the Ford Mustang Mach-E and the Hyundai IONIQ 5 – I decided to test the Ariya in November 2023.
From what I saw before I rented the SUV, it was beautifully decorated with a sleek exterior, including the illuminated front fascia.
I turned on my Apple CarPlay and was off to the races.
That was a mistake.
Moments after starting the trip, I noticed that the battery range was running out on New Jersey highways faster than anticipated.
I resorted to desperate measures.
The cabin of the car kept getting hot, but I refused to turn on the air conditioning. AC may decrease battery range.
I yelled into Apple voice commands that I needed to find a Level 3 charger—my phone sent me to a station that hadn’t yet been built.
Eventually, I managed to find a fast charging station on my route.
A 20-minute charge allowed me to stop to use the bathroom, grab food, quell heart palpitations, and wipe my sweaty palms.
At that moment, I realized how far EVs had to go before they truly offered a comfortable driving experience for all drivers.
But in March 2024, I revisited the Ariya on the comfortable carpeted floor of the New York International Auto Show – this time in the comfortable confines of the air-conditioned convention hall – and found driver technology that is a much better solution than my seat- immediate loading solutions.
Within the Ariya’s infotainment systems, drivers can ask the car to calculate the destination.
Nissan will find destinations along the route map and suggest charging stations along the way.
The update will save drivers time and stress. It will also pre-condition the battery, allowing the car to charge faster at stations.
The infotainment-based upgrade has become ubiquitous in the EV world.
Rivian trucks feature a similar system that allows drivers to choose how many miles of range they want at the end of their journey. Tesla’s infotainment has historically hinted at the brand’s Supercharger network on the navigation screen.
NISSAN ARIYA REVIEW
Here are my thoughts on the Nissan Ariya
The line between luxury and sustainability is elegantly blurred at Ariya.
The car has some of the most comfortable seats wrapped in a stylish and well-designed exterior.
The SUV glides over bumps in the road. Road noise is canceled inside the cabin. The stereo system is incredible.
For all its beauty, the Ariya also encompasses some of the biggest problems facing EVs.
The interior features capacitive buttons – a controversial technology that frees physical levers from digital-feeling controls.
Ariyas have a base price below $40,000. But base models have just over 200 miles of range.
Higher-end models will set customers back somewhere between $40,000 and $50,000.
Still, if drivers are looking for a comfortable EV for driving around town, this is the car for you.
Other Hyundai, Kia, Ford, Chevy and Toyota EVs have similar technology.
As EV brands continue to utilize navigation directions, public charging options will also become less of an issue for EV drivers.
The federal government set aside $5 billion in the Inflation Reduction Act, or IRA, for states to implement Level 3 fast chargers along public roads.
The billions were supposed to build the “backbone” of electric vehicle infrastructure, the White House said in a statement.
While public projects continue to be innovative, Tesla has opened its Supercharger network to non-Tesla drivers for the first time.
Previously, the network was only compatible with Tesla vehicles, but now the company has started contracting with other car manufacturers to provide power.
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This story originally appeared on The-sun.com read the full story
