Carwow lined up six popular compact electric vehicles offered in Europe to see just how far they would go until they ran out of juice. This isn't the first time carwow organized a competitive electric vehicle range test, though.
Earlier this year, the UK-based car buying comparison site got a Tesla Model 3, a Jaguar I-Pace, an Audi e-tron, a Kia Niro EV, a Mercedes EQC, and a Nissan LEAF to see how far those larger, more expensive electric vehicles would go.
Drive 'em till they die
The Honda e was the first to give up, after traveling only 113 miles. The official range rating for the vehicle in the trim they tested is 125 miles, so the little managed to drive 90% of its range rating.
The MINI Cooper SE checked out next and managed to go 154 miles, which is actually 6% further than its 145-mile WLTP range rating
The Peugeot 208 e was perhaps the most disappointing vehicle of the day. It drove 161 miles before running out of charge and that is only 74% of its official range rating of 217 miles per charge.
| Vehicle | WLTP Range Rating | Test Results | % of Range Rating | Observed Efficiency |
| Honda e | 125 Miles | 113 Miles | 90% | 3.7 mi/kWh |
| MINI Cooper SE | 145 Miles | 154 Miles | 106% | 3.8 mi/kWh |
| Peugeot 208 e | 217 Miles | 161 Miles | 74% | 4.2 mi/kWh |
| Volkswagen Up! | 159 Miles | 162 Miles | 102% | 3.7 mi/kWh |
| Vauxhall Corsa e | 209 Miles | 174 Miles | 83% | 4.1 mi/kWh |
| Renault Zoe | 233 Miles | 229 Miles | 96% | 5.2 mi/kWh |
Like the MINI, the Volkswagen Up! also beat its WLTP range rating, but by a slight 2%. It finished up with 162 miles driven, three miles more than its 159-mile range rating.
Even though it came in second place, the Vauxhall Corsa e's results were a little disappointing. That's because it only returned 83% of its stated range. It was able to cover 174 miles, while its range rating is 209 miles per charge.
More range test news
The clear winner of the day was the Renault Zoe. The Zoe went 229 miles, beating the runner up Corsa e by a healthy 24 miles. It also more than doubled the driving range of the Honda e. It also had by far the best efficiency rating of the day and averaged a fantastic 5.2 mi/kWh (11.92 kWh/100km).
No EVs for you, America!
The only car in this test that's available in North America is the MINI Cooper SE. Manufacturers are reluctant to send small, compact hatchbacks to the North American market because they traditionally don't sell very well here. That's unfortunate because there are some really good EVs in this test.
So check out the video and let us know what you think. We'd also like to hear from our North American readers about whether they would be interested in any of these EVs if they were available across the pond.
Source: carwow