Peugeot’s absolutely electrical e-Associate van has an official vary of 258km.
That’s, after all, until you sling some weight within the again. And this being a piece van, that’s precisely what house owners will do.
Extra mass is an EV’s enemy. Throw within the poor aerodynamics of a brick-like van and it’s little surprise this Peugeot’s vary is much from crash scorching.
Which has us asking the query. Simply how detrimental to EV vary is it when the e-Associate’s used as supposed? As in truly carrying stuff?
We don our best tradie apparel and put it to the check.
Empty vs 377kg on board
The lengthy wheelbase e-Associate (the one model out there in Australia) has a most payload of 753kg.
A few of you drawn to emissions-free vanning might by no means lug something like that – I’m no skilled however I can’t think about a florist’s load ever will get too heavy. In distinction, removalists or tradies with heavy instruments and tools might flirt with that payload most.
For the aim of our check, let’s meet half approach. Splitting 753kg in half provides 377kg, in order that’s what we’ll load within the again.
To be trustworthy, I’d have appreciated to do the check with the complete 753kg, however after lifting in 377kg (every merchandise was first individually pre-weighed) of guide bins, heavy home items and spare tyres, my again stated half was sufficient. Particularly as I’d be lifting it out once more afterwards.
For equity, I’d drive the identical 30km street course: a mixture of city stop-start, hills, a little bit of 80km/h twin carriageway and thru residential areas. Typical van life, you’d assume.
I’d drive the e-Associate with 377kg loaded first, then once more with it empty. The 2 30km route experiments have been performed instantly after the opposite, so exterior temperature (averaging 22C) and visitors have been principally the identical.
I put headlights on full, had the sound system going the entire time and set cabin air-con to 21C.
Dressed for duties
I assumed it finest to placed on the uniform. Work boots, tradie blue singlet and pretend roll-up within the mouth.
I grabbed my Yeti bottle of heat milky tea, slung a Bic behind my ear, then rocked up two hours later than I’d promised. Retaining issues genuine.
On my check, it was clear vitality use was most severely affected by driving up hills. A steep one kilometre part noticed my kWh/100km rise sharply, each with and with out payload onboard.
The Peugeot e-Associate’s official economic system determine is 21.8kWh/100km on the WLTP cycle.
Proving maybe I’m lower out for a lifetime of environment friendly supply van driving, with the 377kg payload I returned 20.1kWh/100km vitality use. That was after 30km and at a median velocity of 47km/h.
After unloading, I repeated the check with the van empty and the outcome was 17.7kWh/100km after my 30km loop.
This far bettered the e-Associate’s WLTP determine. Critically, are these testers lead foots or what?
Conclusion
Whereas this was only a easy check, it does spotlight the vary sacrifice potential consumers of electrical vans likes the Peugeot e-Associate will endure.
For those who financial institution on having the van’s 258km electrical vary, do not forget that quantity’s going to drop by probably a good proportion relying on how a lot load you lug.
As a proportion, with 377kg on board, our vitality use was 14 per cent greater than with no load.
If we use the WLTP determine, shedding 14 per cent from the 258km vary drops it to 222km. You’ll be able to effectively think about with the e-Associate’s full payload of 753km, that vary would plunge beneath 200km.
Positively, we have been extra environment friendly than WLTP testers, and from full cost, the vary indicated on the e-Associate’s dashboard was round 280km when full.
You’ll be able to learn our full overview of the Peugeot e-Associate right here, however my temporary life as a supply driver had me appreciating how very interesting EV van life is. For those who sometimes don’t cowl nice distances every day, that’s.
A Peugeot supply van’s diesel rattle was a well-recognized sound of my metropolis childhood, and it’s a pleasure to be mooching round on this silent e-Associate model. Even so, how a few manufactured sound generator of a 1993 Peugeot Boxer van, only for nostalgia?
The drive’s fairly car-like on the town as a result of its measurement, and I used to be shocked how comparatively effectively it dealt with in turns, and gripped on its Michelin tyres within the moist. Brake really feel could be very abnormal, nonetheless.
Turning circle’s first rate, and despite the fact that there aren’t any rear home windows, the reversing digital camera’s a superb one to assist with tight manoeuvres.
Efficiency is sluggish to say the least from the 100kW/260Nm electrical motor, however for city life it’s ample.
Whereas public DC charging proved effective – 101kW cost velocity is suitable and it’ll go from 0-80% in half-hour – I’m disenchanted the e-Associate doesn’t embody a Mode 2 cost cable so it may be plugged in to a home socket.
With its chunky drive away value of over $63,000, asking an extra $1325 for this cable is stingy.
It has an AC cable for plugging right into a public AC charger or a house wallbox, however you’d think about there will probably be cases in a van driver’s life the place the comfort of topping up from a home energy level could be wanted. Public chargers aren’t all the time inside attain, and plenty of are out of service simply whenever you want them most.
I’d wish to begin every work day with full cost, so with the ability to plug in at house in a single day could be a non-negotiable.
With not nice vary, particularly for those who’re carrying a little bit of weight every day, as our check proved, holding the 50kWh battery absolutely charged is crucial.
Peugeot e-Associate
Value: $59,990 plus on-road prices
Fundamentals: EV, 2 seats, 6 doorways, compact supply van, FWD
Vary: 258km (WLTP)
Battery capability: 50kWh
Battery guarantee: 8 years/160,000km
Power consumption: 21.8kWh/100km (WLTP)
Motors: One on entrance axle, most output 100kW/260Nm
AC charging: 7.4kW, Sort 2 plug
DC charging: 101kW, CCS Combo plug
0-100km/h: 11.2 seconds (claimed)