[SpinnerDaj]

Hello from Texas. I am currently considering purchasing a 2018 500e with about 28k miles on it. This will be my first EV as I wait to convert my F150 Lightning reservation into an order (probably take about 2 more years.) My commute is about 27 miles one way, mostly country roads with some twists, and about 6 miles of interstate. My pickup truck took about $240 worth of gas last month, and I just had solar panels installed at my home, so this would drop my fuel costs to $0. I would not be able to charge at work and may occasionally have a few extra miles added to the trip. It would be between 50 and 60 miles for a round trip. From what I’ve read here, the 500e doesn’t have much battery degradation, and my commute seems to be within its range. However, all of the video reviews that I’ve seen call it a great city car, which implies shorter commutes. I would like to hear from any owners that have put those kind of miles on their 500e on a daily basis. Would I be ok to have the 500e as a daily driver with the commute I have without abusing the battery? Also, should I install a level 2 charger at my home or will the level 1 suffice?

 

[Electric Tire Shredder]

It depends on your schedule, how fast you drive, how cold it gets, how the hills are, & I know you said you can't charge at work, but even just a standard wall outlet within extension cord range would make a huge difference.

The OEM cord recharges about 5%/hour from a standard wall outlet, or 10%/hr from the same 240V outlet that you'd want for an L2 unit.

 

[Iceman]

He said he can’t charge at work, you tend to spin off immediately when asked a direct question.
I think you’re fine to drive 60mi at any speed. I wouldn’t have issue with it on my car at least. My range will say 64 miles or so in cold weather but in reality it will drive 15 or 20 miles and drop the range only about 5. So id say you’re good. I just did 40mi very aggressively 75 mph and big hills and car still has 42% left.

 

[Electric Tire Shredder]

I had a co-worker who thought he couldn't charge at work because the manual says an extension cord can't be used. Then he got a 100-foot 10-gauge cable & charged there nearly every day.

 

[Commuter]

Hello from Texas. I am currently considering purchasing a 2018 500e with about 28k miles on it. This will be my first EV as I wait to convert my F150 Lightning reservation into an order (probably take about 2 more years.) My commute is about 27 miles one way, mostly country roads with some twists, and about 6 miles of interstate. My pickup truck took about $240 worth of gas last month, and I just had solar panels installed at my home, so this would drop my fuel costs to $0. I would not be able to charge at work and may occasionally have a few extra miles added to the trip. It would be between 50 and 60 miles for a round trip. From what I’ve read here, the 500e doesn’t have much battery degradation, and my commute seems to be within its range. However, all of the video reviews that I’ve seen call it a great city car, which implies shorter commutes. I would like to hear from any owners that have put those kind of miles on their 500e on a daily basis. Would I be ok to have the 500e as a daily driver with the commute I have without abusing the battery? Also, should I install a level 2 charger at my home or will the level 1 suffice?

Bought my 2014 500e two weeks ago and I'm loving it. Only putting around 40 miles on it every day, but I'd be comfortable doing 60-70. I'm using an L2 charger across the road right now, which tops my battery up from 40% to full in 1.5-2 hrs.

 

[SaltyPeanuts]

between 50 and 60 miles for a round trip.

No don't do it. Charging at destination half-way is fine, but not going round-trip like that.

The most I ever pushed this car- I drove 66 miles from Columbia, SC to Union, SC which is "country roads". Very hilly with a decent speed limit the whole way, 45-55 mph and I got there with only 2% battery in the middle of summer. I knew I needed to plug in once I got there but didn't think it would drain that low. Well it was hilly and going up in elevation made a big difference. Range anxiety kicked in around 30% once the gauge started turning red and only got worse and it went below 10% with me still seeing tall hills in front. I didn't get into the city proper until 5% and it was at 2% turning off into the road leading to the park with the public charger. At that point the car was beeping at me and had the "turtle icon". Not good feels. I had to stay plugged in for about 4 hours at L2 to get back up to 95%.

If you know anything about batteries, they reduce in capacity by as much as 40% in cold weather. The trip I described barely making is not happening in cold weather. On top of this using the heater to defrost the windshield or heat the cabin kills the battery. You need extra capacity for things like that.

You also need extra capacity to handle unseen emergencies or getting stuck in traffic. The trip you describe offers no safety buffer, you're just pushing the battery to critical every commute.

Even the safety buffer I had wasn't enough for one family emergency: I had completed my commute and bought groceries- the car battery was drained down to 30%. My brother calls me, he got into a car wreck on the other side of Columbia, about 20 miles away from me, asking for a pickup. I had to turn him down b/c I just drove home from work and had a drained battery. Doesn't that sound stupid? It sounded stupid explaining it to him on the phone. You will explain the same thing to your family and friends one day if you buy this car.

Deeply discharging a car battery is not good for it. Just because an electric car is rated for 70, 80 miles does not mean you drive it 60 miles every day and it's fine. That's putting the battery critically low every day. People that lease cars don't care about that, they drive it to zero and charge it all the way back up to 100%. "No problem". It's something you care about when you actually buy the car and hope any prior owner(s) didn't abuse it like that.

You're in Texas... they're selling the Model Y with the new battery soon. Get that instead. The Lightning sounds good too, I just wonder how long you're going to have to wait to get it. Get something else other than the 500e though. Good luck!

 

[Commuter]

Like every vehicle you purchase, you certainly need to consider its suitability for the task. Much of what SP says is true. Battery life varies dependent on usage. If your daily commute is up and down 60 miles of hills at night-time, in freezing temps, and heavy traffic, then maybe you're asking a bit much from 500e. I've also done 60 miles at night in the pouring rain with the heat on, and it drained my battery from 90% to 5%. It's not a journey I'd like to make every winter night.

But it sounds, like me, you keep a truck as well. I spent $10k on a used 500e to save the fuel I was burning through 40 miles a day in a vehicle more suited to hauling. Now I use the FIAT for the commuting, and leave the truck parked ready for the heavy work. For me it was do-able, and it made reasonable economic and environmental sense.

Spending $50k+ on a brand new Tesla did not Especially when, like you, I'm hanging in there hoping to migrate to a new electric truck as well!

Horses for courses as they say...

 

[Electric Tire Shredder]

I agree that much of what SP wrote is true.

However the 500e has buffers at each end of its charging range, to protect the battery from going critically low OR to 100%. Nearly every user of an off-lease 500e reports that they can't even detect any range loss. Those who say they feel some loss may only need to do this: Regain Lost Range for Free!

...Well it was hilly and going up in elevation made a big difference. Range anxiety kicked in...

Yes, one-way hills make a BIG difference*. & cold weather when you can't be plugged in right before driving**. & other conditions, which is why I asked for more details above.

For example my own commute in mild coastal Southern California is about 32-42 miles round-trip, & uses about 32-42%, respectively. It's 14 miles of 50-60mph, 10 miles of which are TWO-WAY hills (up AND down), & the rest is only a few mild hills but city-speed stop & go, which is NOT as good as "advertised", since the 500e has NO regen below about 7mph.



* Compared to flats, it uses WAY more power to go uphill, but IF you can make it to the top, & then on the way back down if you can keep it above 7mph for regen, you gain back nearly all of the extra power. In other words, my 10 miles going up & down high bridges takes about the same amount of battery power as 10 miles of flats at the same speed.


** Mornings are usually coldest. With home charging, in the morning you can have it charging right up until you leave, which keeps the battery warm for full capacity. You can also pre-warm the cabin while it's still on grid power instead of wasting battery range.

 

[lamrith]

One thing to keep in mind. Don't buy an ev to "save $". The math almost never works. The $ you spend per month on that extra car payment will exceed the "fuel" savings by a significant amount in most cases. I have super low elect rates, my daily commute is well within the 500e range. Even with $4/gal fuel I am only saving $120-140/month. It will take a long time to pay off that $10k purchase price with 130/month..... I am selling a vehicle to offset the $.

Now if you are looking to buy a new vehicle anyways (or trade in/replace one), that is when it makes sense to get a EV.

Sent from my Pixel 3a using Tapatalk

 

[Commuter]

One thing to keep in mind. Don't buy an ev to "save $". The math almost never works. The $ you spend per month on that extra car payment will exceed the "fuel" savings by a significant amount in most cases. I have super low elect rates, my daily commute is well within the 500e range. Even with $4/gal fuel I am only saving $120-140/month. It will take a long time to pay off that $10k purchase price with 130/month..... I am selling a vehicle to offset the $.

Now if you are looking to buy a new vehicle anyways (or trade in/replace one), that is when it makes sense to get a EV.

That's why buying used makes more sense from an economic perspective. You're never going to keep a new EV long enough for the fuel savings to counter the cost. Let's face it though, whenever you buy new you're throwing thousands of dollars away the minute you drive off the lot. If you're buying new, you're not doing it for reasons of economy.

But if the batteries on my $10k EV purchase keep on giving me at least 50 miles a day for the next 10 years, I'll break fairly even judging by the way gas prices are going.

 

[Kiesling]

Hello from Texas. I am currently considering purchasing a 2018 500e with about 28k miles on it. This will be my first EV as I wait to convert my F150 Lightning reservation into an order (probably take about 2 more years.) My commute is about 27 miles one way, mostly country roads with some twists, and about 6 miles of interstate. My pickup truck took about $240 worth of gas last month, and I just had solar panels installed at my home, so this would drop my fuel costs to $0. I would not be able to charge at work and may occasionally have a few extra miles added to the trip. It would be between 50 and 60 miles for a round trip. From what I’ve read here, the 500e doesn’t have much battery degradation, and my commute seems to be within its range. However, all of the video reviews that I’ve seen call it a great city car, which implies shorter commutes. I would like to hear from any owners that have put those kind of miles on their 500e on a daily basis. Would I be ok to have the 500e as a daily driver with the commute I have without abusing the battery? Also, should I install a level 2 charger at my home or will the level 1 suffice?

On a 2018 with 28k miles and temperatures above 50F, I wouldn't think twice about the commute you are describing. For low temperatures you would have to figure out what works. For super cold temps like -20F, people report ranges of 30 to 40 miles even with preheating if I recall. For temps around freezing, I think you still may be okay if you pre heat the car with a level 2 charger before you leave. Try and use the seat heater instead of the cabin heater.

Regarding cost savings, in my case, I spent $10k for my car, I have excess solar that covers charging, and I live in CA where gas is around $4.50 per gallon. Driving the 500e for around 66k miles will cover the purchase price vs driving a 30 mpg car. Compared to a 15 mpg pickup, it would only take half that distance. If you commute 60 miles a day, you will have paid for the car in under 3 years. I'm sure gas is cheaper in Texas, so it will take longer, but it should still be possible to have the car pay for itself in gas savings.

 

[lamrith]

Quite a bit outside of terrain and climate will come down to driving habits. I do not baby mine to get max range. Heater is on, I accelerate strongly, etc.

If your wife is a mellow driver and not running 50mph+ on freeway and racing the kids light to light, it may be just fine.

Sent from my Pixel 3a using Tapatalk

 

[MondoMojo]

I live in Indiana where it get's hot in the summer and cold AF in the winter. That round trip in the summer without AC would be no problem at all. Blast the AC the whole time and it's not much different than blasting the heat, it will suck range. That said, I've gone 100 miles in warm weather with the windows down and top speeds around 50. Crank up the air or go 70mph and the range is going to drop. Like it was said in an earlier post, it all depends on the conditions of your expected commute. Cold weather is a range killer, hills too, especially when combined with high speeds. I love my car but you have to know how it fits in with your needs. My other car is an AWD Honda Element. Perfect for snowy roads and road trips.

 

[Hmbfiat]

Drive from San Mateo coast to downtown San Mateo over a pretty steep hilll. It’s about 45 miles round trip. Been doing it for 6 years have 89k on car and percentage remaining at the end of the day has been same entire time.

Charging now on 110 only I think the 220 charge every night might lead to premature
Failure of the onboard charge system.

I only use 220 now if I need to add 10-20 miles of range away from home.

 

[lamrith]

Drive from San Mateo coast to downtown San Mateo over a pretty steep hilll. It’s about 45 miles round trip. Been doing it for 6 years have 89k on car and percentage remaining at the end of the day has been same entire time.

Charging now on 110 only I think the 220 charge every night might lead to premature
Failure of the onboard charge system.

I only use 220 now if I need to add 10-20 miles of range away from home.

What sort of % are you ending the day with and are you charging intown or just roundtrip no additional charging?

 

[Hmbfiat]

End the day between 52-62%.
Depending if she drive out for lunch or errands.
I find Every start knocks 1-2% off the battery.

 

[Hmbfiat]

Only charge at home overnight hood open on 110.

 

[lamrith]

Wow, yours does well. I am mid 50's with only a 25-30mi drive. However I run heater in morning, often doing 70 on freeway in morning, plus here in PNW hills both ways, and I drive hard since I know I have double the range I need. I mean it is the size of a gakart, why not drive it like one!!!

OP. Long and short is that there are a ton of variables. The car should be able to do it, if driven reasonably (not like me) and you are not having to crank HVAC or deal with any real hold. Even better would be if your wife has access to a 110v outlet or an actual charger during work.

Sent from my Pixel 3a using Tapatalk

 

[Hmbfiat]

It’s almost straight up about 500-1000 feet then down the other side Highway the whole way. So battery on one side charging on the way down.

Don’t use heater. Or a/c. If it’s cold turn on heated seats

 

[Commuter]

Hello from Texas. I am currently considering purchasing a 2018 500e with about 28k miles on it.

One thing to bear in mind, I've learned, is that the range meter (guess-o-meter) will probably be inaccurately pessimistic when you first drive the car. The software judges future range based on recent past performance. A car for sale tends to get driven hard and/or erratically on many test drives before you get to have a go. This confuses the GOM and drives the predicted range down.

The first couple of drives in mine were quite frightening. Range looked terrible. After a couple of weeks of regular driving and charging though, things have settled down nicely. My daily 30-40 mile commute reads exactly that on my GOM.