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#eExperience

15:25
13.06.2022
On the road with our eHybrid van!

Hi there!
As an absolute #mobilityenthusiast I have always had the ambition in testing and driving an alternative drive technology apart from conventional combustion engine. Actually, this was one more reason for me to apply for drive your life because I was eager to put two generally known concerns of e-vehicles into test: The EV charging infrastructure and the EV reach.

I haven't had any EV experience before, but as with all things: I have a very strong 'just do it' attitude which most of the times helps me to just not overthink things and additionally, I have great curiosity for things I haven't done or tried before.

Now being on the road with not a full EV but a hybrid vehicle gives me really the FULL flexibility because I have to admit, there were routes we did not always had the immediate option to charge the vehicle at an e-station, so I was glad we still had the option of gas fueling. #ehybrid A couple times we even did not encounter a single gas station along the route which definitely was nerve-racking at some point, especially one day driving towards Bucharest when we had only 10km of gas left while the gas station we were desperately hoping and searching for was 7 more km to go - well, precision landing. (And yes, we had considered fueling already 80 km before, but both gas stations en route were either closed or under construction to our real bad luck).

Coming back to the experiences regarding charging and infrastructure: Especially in Slovenia and Greece there was no real challenges we encountered - most parking spots and garages were equipped with charging stations and throughout the city a lot of options were available and listed on diverse apps. Moreover, almost every gas station offered both, fueling and charging.

As I mentioned anticipated, in Romania and especially Bulgaria where we drove trough, things were tougher. Not with EV but even normal fueling stations had far distances one between another, which required good planning for upcoming stops.

Concerning the charging processing, it was also very easy at every station - comfortable, convenient and really quick (to my real surprise). Plug in the cable, download and open the app, scan QR code, enter payment data, enjoy coffee or do errands, continue driving. Of course the apps needed to charge were not always the same but did not differ a lot from each other - the basic principle was always the same.

Elisabeth Bouikidou