Taking an Electric Car Through the Desert Without Running Short

Electric cars handle the Southern California basin beautifully. The desert is a different test: long legs between chargers, big climbs, and summer temperatures that keep the air conditioning working flat out for hours. None of that is a reason not to go. It is a reason to plan the trip around the worst leg rather than the average one.

Where the range goes in the heat

Fueleconomy.gov, the federal fuel economy site, identifies air conditioning as the main reason efficiency drops in hot weather, and says its effect on hybrids, plug-in hybrids and EVs can be larger on a percentage basis than on conventional cars. Its practical suggestions translate directly to a desert trip:

• Pre-cool the cabin while plugged in. The site says this can extend a plug-in's or EV's range, because the energy comes from the charger rather than the battery.
• Use a slightly warmer AC setting. It uses less battery power.
• Windows down at low speed, AC at highway speed. Open windows add drag that grows with speed.
• Park in shade or use a sunshade so you are not cooling an oven every time you set off.

Climbs are the other drain. The long pulls up the Cajon Pass and the grades beyond Barstow use energy that regenerative braking only partly recovers on the way down.

Planning the legs

Plan every leg so you arrive with a comfortable reserve, and treat the hottest, longest, uphill leg as the one that sets your margins. Check that the chargers you are counting on are working before you rely on them, and know the next option if the first one is occupied or out of service. Charging while you eat or rest costs time you were going to spend anyway; charging because you have to costs time you were not.

Running flat: towing an EV is different

If an EV runs out of charge, there is no can of fuel to bring. The fix is usually a tow to a charger, and your owner's manual will say how the car may be towed — many EVs should not be towed with the drive wheels on the ground, which commonly means a flatbed. That matters for coverage, because towing and roadside cover is optional and written with distance or amount limits that vary by insurance company. Ask whether yours treats running out of charge like running out of fuel, how far it will tow, and whether it pays for a flatbed.

The coverage questions specific to a desert run

• Underbody damage. Debris on a desert freeway can strike the battery pack. That is usually a collision question, subject to your deductible, and repairs on EV battery packs are not small.
• Glass. Wind-blown sand and gravel are hard on windshields, and on many newer cars the windshield carries sensors that need recalibrating after replacement. Check how glass claims work on your policy.
• Mileage. Regular long trips add up. Annual mileage is one of the three factors California requires insurers to weigh first under Insurance Code section 1861.02, so if your road trips have become routine, update the figure.

Hybrids and plug-ins too

A plug-in hybrid will not strand you the way a flat EV can, but the same heat penalty applies to its electric range and to its fuel economy once the engine takes over. Plan fuel stops with the same margin.

If you have switched to an EV and kept your old coverage, ask us to check the towing and glass terms against the car you actually drive now.