AUTONOMOUS & CONNECTED VEHICLES
Want a new perspective on battery management? Buy a plug-in EV One facet of EV ownership: Thinking of your daily commute power consumption as equivalent to the sunlight hitting 20 ft 2 of your lawn. RUDYE MCGLOTHLIN SILICON LABS
Earlier this year I took my first step into the EV future by buying a plug-in hybrid electric vehicle (PHEV) – a Chevrolet Volt. A unique car in the hybrid space, the Volt has a relatively large battery, rated for 18.4 kWh. Competing PHEVs available in my region and at a similar price have batteries half the size or smaller. This battery capacity allows the Volt to run as a pure EV for more than 60 miles with the internal combustion engine never starting up. This battery performance turns out to be perfect for my commute. My commute is about 18 miles each way. I am able to charge at my office, drive home, return the next morning, and still have a good bit of charge on the battery for driving to lunch or for any errands I need to make on the way.
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Silicon Labs — A&CV HB 08-19.indd 36
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8/9/19 1:10 PM
