When people talk about charge planning, they usually mean plotting a route with charging stops. Not every motorway services or petrol station has rapid chargers, so it’s worth picking your options before you set off.
The trick is to time your stops so you arrive with a fairly low battery, making the rapid charge actually rapid. Equally, try not to rock up on 0% before you reach the charger.
Many electric cars offer automatic route planning in the built-in sat nav, adding charging stops before and during the drive. Based on your current battery level and route, it works out where to charge and for how long.
All very convenient, and some systems — Tesla’s, for instance — are impressively reliable. Others… less so: too many stops, chargers on private property, or sending you to units that are slow or out of order.
Best approach: try your car’s planner and see how trustworthy it is.
Go semi-automatic if you can’t (or don’t want to) rely on the car’s own planner.
These apps usually ask for your vehicle model first. With your start point, destination and typical consumption, they map a route with charging stops and suggest the battery level to aim for at each one.
A Better Routeplanner Pump Shell Recharge Plugsurfing Fastned IonityPrefer a little flexibility? Before you travel, pick a few optional charging stops along the way. Some apps can show every rapid charger along your route on the map. Or add likely chargers to your favourites in Google Maps or Apple Maps, so they’re easy to find on the day.
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