Energy consumption of an electric and an internal combustion passenger car. A comparative case study from real world data on the Erfurt circuit in Germany

Electric vehicles promise to contribute to the achievement of a more sustainable transport system, e.g. through reducing energy consumption and CO2 emissions. For the assessment of electric vehicles' environmental impact and for decisions on their operational deployment, information about their factors of energy consumption compared to conventional vehicles is needed. This paper investigates the differences between one battery electric and one internal combustion passenger car in terms of their energy consumption in various driving situations. The vehicles were equipped with multiple devices for measuring and recording energy data during operation. On a 42-km test route within and around the city of Erfurt, in Germany, test drives were conducted by a group of drivers in December 2016. Each driver drove both vehicles consecutively as to obtain comparable data. Through specific driving scenarios, the effects of driving style and peak hour traffic on energy consumption are examined as well. Different road types in particular show varying effects on the BEV and the ICV. Our results affirm that the energy consumption of electric vehicles is less sensitive to speed dynamics in urban areas than are conventional vehicles. While the relative efficiency advantage of electric vehicles is at 68 percent in the baseline scenario, it is at 77 percent for urban driving. We could not find significant differences in the BEV's relative consumption advantages during the peak hours or for aggressive or calm driving.