Passenger Vehicle Fleets are Ready for Electrification
About EIQ
eIQ Mobility is a data science startup building a trusted platform that drives vehicle fleets into a smart, electric, and cost-effective future.
For background information on eIQ Mobility, please see our About Us post.
Fleet Electrification Challenges
Despite drastic declines in battery costs, much lower operating costs, and a growing charger network, fleet managers, including some whose companies have signed the EV100, are facing challenges associated with making the switch to electric vehicles. Solving these challenges will enable the reduction of global transportation emissions, improve air quality, and reduce the total cost of ownership (TCO) of their fleet vehicles.
Fleet managers often express the following opinions when considering vehicle electrification:
- Most employees drive too far for an EV to handle typical daily use
- Electrification only makes sense in Zero Emission Vehicle (ZEV) states, which have invested heavily in public EV charging
- Overnight charging takes too long without installing a costly DC fast charger
To address these concerns, eIQ Mobility analyzed the driving behavior of 5,900+ internal combustion engine (ICE) passenger cars to determine whether or not they could be replaced with electric vehicles today.
Of the 5,900+ passenger cars analyzed, we found that 91% could be replaced with electric vehicles today using only Level 2 EV chargers.
Data Analyzed in this Study
eIQ has analyzed fleet data from major companies from sectors such as pharmaceutical, utility, logistics, beverage, and equipment services. To date, tens of thousands of vehicles, totaling over 300 million annual miles, have been assessed for electrification. Of these, 5,916 are passenger cars, which exist throughout the country and in all major climate zones. The majority of these passenger cars are take-home vehicles.
EVs have enough range to replace ICE passenger cars today
eIQ uses a standard metric, the EV Design Mileage, for determining whether an EV’s range can satisfy the daily operational requirements of an existing ICE vehicle. The EV Design Mileage considers the following:
- Distribution of daily mileage of the ICE vehicle (typically over the course of one year)
- ICE vehicle idling
- Lower battery performance in extremely hot or cold climates
- The use of heating and air conditioning for passenger comfort
One can think of the EV Design Mileage as the worst-case scenario daily mileage.
Let’s look at the distribution of EV Design Mileage values for the passenger cars in eIQ’s database and see how they compare to the mileage of a few popular EVs.
The vast majority of passenger cars have an EV Design Mileage between 50 and 200 miles, with the median and mean mileage at 129 and 161 miles, respectively.
How does this distribution compare to the range of popular EVs on the market? The following table shows the percentage of eIQ passenger cars that have an EV Design Mileage less than the range of each EV model.
For example, 89% of eIQ passenger cars have an EV Design Mileage less than 310 miles, the range of the Model 3 Long Range. Our analysis shows that 93% of eIQ passenger cars have an EV Design Mileage that an available EV can satisfy. This demonstrates that almost all passenger car fleet vehicles that we have studied can be electrified without changing their driving habits.
Next, we assess the impact of another fleet manager concern, overnight charging time.
Level 2 charging stations are fast and cost-effective
Fleet managers often worry if their EVs will be able to fully charge overnight. To address this concern, eIQ assessed the required charging rate of each vehicle to estimate how close each vehicle is to exceeding various charger capacities. This charging rate calculation considers the following parameters:
- Available vehicle charging (dwell) time
- Required charging energy of the vehicle based on the EV Design Mileage and the efficiency of the selected EV
- Energy losses during charging
For the 93% of passenger cars that found an EV match, 98% have a charging requirement that can be satisfied using a Level 2 charger during their overnight dwell period. eIQ defines these 5,369 vehicles as “technically feasible” for electrification.
Only 2% of passenger cars with an EV candidate could not be electrified due to charging time constraints. Hence, we conclude that, given the current availability of EVs, the key limitation is not charging time constraints.
Discussion
From eIQ’s results, we have found that 91% of passenger cars can be electrified using just a Level 2 home charger. Most importantly, of the 9% of passenger cars that could not be electrified, the key limitation was range, not charging time. The electrified vehicles reside in almost every state and province of the United States and Canada, demonstrating that electrification is feasible in practically any climate, and under a majority of driving profiles.
We have shown that an electric vehicle fleet can complete all daily trip requirements with overnight charging, removing the need to visit fueling stations.
Key Takeaways
- For the vast majority of passenger cars in commercial fleets, a Level 2 charger, such as the JuiceBox Pro 40, will cover all required EV charging without impeding vehicle use
- The majority of passenger cars can be electrified today
- By eliminating fueling station trips, switching to electric vehicles can make life easier for employees
Make the leap to an electric fleet today! https://www.eiqmobility.com/contact
