Tesla dominates EV efficiency at high speed, shows extensive test against Kona EV and Audi e-tron

Electric vehicles all have an incredible efficiency advantage of fossil fuel vehicles, but now that more all-electric vehicles are hitting the road, we are also starting to see great efficiency differences between EV models.

Tesla is showing its dominance on that front in a new extensive test at high speed against the Hyundai Kona EV and Audi e-tron.

German electric car rental company next move has been conducting those kinds of tests on a few occasions now.

Earlier this year, we reported when they pinned the Tesla Model X against the Audi e-tron and Jaguar I-Pace.

Now they have stepped it up with a similar test but with several more vehicles:

• two Audi e-tron (21-inch summer tires)
• two Tesla Model X 100D (19-inch winter tires and 20-inch summer tires)
• two Hyundai Kona (64 kWh, 17-inch winter tires and 17-inch summer tires)
• one Tesla Model S 100D (19-inch winter tires)
• one Tesla Model 3 (Dual Drive/Long Range, 19-inch summer tires)

They drove the vehicles at a constant speed on a light traffic 85 km route around Leipzig in Germany.

For the first test, all eight electric vehicles drove “at maximum 130 km/h (81 mph) with an average speed of 115 km/h (71 mph).”

Here are the results of the first test:

Unsurprisingly, the Model 3 got the highest efficiency of all the vehicles tested and the Model S got the highest range due to its bigger battery pack.

On the way back, nextmove did another test at a maximum speed of 150 km/h (93 mph) and an average of 130 km/h (81mph).

Here are the results of the second test:

The results are very similar with a slightly higher level consumption across the board.

nextmove’s conclusion after the tests:

“Tesla, which is no big surprise, is currently the benchmark in terms of efficiency and range. The greater experience of Tesla compared to Audi and the greater battery size compared to Hyundai clearly prevail.”

Tesla has the dual advantage of having a great energy efficiency and having more energy density in its battery packs.

Electrek’s Take

I really like nextmove. It looks like they know what they are doing because the actual driving performance can affect efficiency greatly, and they are aware of that.

They note that they used experienced EV drivers who knew how to get the most efficiency out of their vehicles possible at the set speed.

I like efficient electric vehicles, but I think it’s more important to point out that all those electric vehicles are more efficient than gasoline and diesel vehicles.

Therefore, even if electric vehicles, like the Audi e-tron, are not as efficient as others, they are still crucial to the electric transition.

At around 200 miles of range, it’s still enough for most people, and if you prefer the features it offers, you still get a very efficient vehicle compared to gas-powered cars.

But if you are looking for the most efficient long-range EV, you have to go with Tesla.