What is the charging time for my electric car?
The charging speed of charging stations is improving all the time. You can now even use super-fast chargers at some motorway service stations. See how it works.
Charging speed
Just like owners of conventional vehicles regularly need to fill up at the petrol station, drivers of electric vehicles rely on EV charging stations to charge up their vehicles. And since an electric vehicle’s driving range is not as far (yet) as for fossil-fuel vehicles, you must always remember to charge your vehicle’s battery in time. Fortunately, the charging speed of charging stations is improving all the time. The charging time represents the number of kilometres of range added to the battery’s capacity per hour charged.
The charging speed depends on:
- the maximum charging power* of your electric vehicle (in kW)
- the electric vehicle’s consumption (in kWh per 100 km)
* The maximum charging power depends on the vehicle’s maximum charging power and the maximum charging power the charging station can supply.
How do I calculate charging speed?
(charging power in kW)/(consumption in kWh per 100 km)
Examples – charging speed
This is based on a straightforward calculation and an average consumption of 20 kWh per 100 km.
| Using a private or public charging station | Using a fast-charging station (usually on the motorway) |
|---|---|
| (7,4 kW)/(20 kWh/ 100 km) = 37 km/h | (50 kW)/(20 kWh/ 100 km) = 250 km/h |
| (22 kW)/(20 kWh/ 100 km) = 110 km/h | (100 kW)/(20 kWh/ 100 km) = 500 km/h |
Charging time
The charging time is the number of hours and/or minutes it takes to fully charge the electric vehicle’s battery from 0% to 100%.
The charging time depends on:
- the battery’s energy capacity (in kWh)
- the maximum charging power (in kW)
How do I calculate charging time?
(battery capacity in kWh)/(charging power in kW )
Examples – charging time
This is based on a straightforward calculation and a battery with an energy capacity of 30 kWh and 80 kWh, respectively.
| Using a private or public charging station with a charging capacity of 7.4 kW | |
|---|---|
| Small battery | (30 kWh) / (7,4 kW) = 4 hours |
| Large battery | (80 kWh) / (7,4 kW) = 10 hours 45 minutes |
New technology means new terminology
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