What are real Highway mile ranges for the CyberTruck?

[CTOWannabe]

Can current owners share your real highway mileage you are achieving:

(1) Model you have (2motor, 3 motor, etc)
(2) Range you’re getting (maybe actual miles and/or estimated)
(3) Speed (estimated average highway speed you generally travel at)
(4) WH/M you have been experiencing?
(5) Total mileage on your CyberTruck
(6) State of truck when you travel (eg with/out aero caps, tonneau up/down, ride height, tire pressure, side mirrors on/off, etc)
(7) Average temperature where you drive and any other any other relevant conditions (eg it's hilly, elevation, flat, windy, rain, etc).

I was hoping owners would share their real highway mileage/range. I'm hoping if we put our shared experiences in one spot, we could start getting a more realistic picture of actual highway range.

I'm not worried about local/traffic mileage because when I'm local I'm going to be charging frequently and local/city mileage range just isn't as important (for me at least).

But when you have to go on a road trip, or for me, frequently visit family about 240 miles away, the range is relevant. One of the things I'm hoping is I can get about 270mile range at 85mph average (around the roads I drive here in TX, average speeds are 80-95 but I get that varies around the country), which is what I would need and I'm trying to gauge is that realistic or not.

Thanks to all the CyberTruck owners sharing experiences!

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[Gigahorse]

Can current owners share there real high way mileage they are achieving:

(1) Range (maybe actual miles and estimated)
(2) Speed (estimated average highway speed they generally travel at)
(3) WH/M they have been experiencing?
(4) Total mileage on their CyberTruck
(5) State of truck when they travel (eg with/out aero caps, tonneau up/down, side mirrors on/off, etc)
(6) Average temperature where you drive
(7) Any other relevant conditions

I was hoping owners would share there real highway mileage/range. I'm not worried about local/traffic mileage because when I'm local I'm going to be charging frequently and the mileage range just isn't as important.

But when you have to go on a road trip, or for me, frequently visit family about 240 miles away, the range is relevant. One of the things I'm hoping is I can get about 270mile range at 85mph average (around the roads I drive here in TX, average speeds are 80-95 but I get that varies around the country), which is what I would need and I'm trying to gauge is that realistic or not.

So maybe CyberTruck owners can share some of their basic experiences?

I'm hoping is I can get about 270mile range at 85mph average

Unfortunately that is not going to happen.
Several threads about range that should help.
But to get 270 miles, assuming you started at 100% charge and were ok pulling into your families place on EMPTY and being able to charge, with no room for error. You would need a wh/mile of 455.
455 is very doable in the CT, but not at 85 mph

If you are doing 85 mph you are going to get about 210 miles of range depending how full you start and how close to 0% batter you are willing to go.

For that trip you are going to need to slow down to about 70mph or charge along the way.

 

[Bkb13]

Use the search function. 100’s of threads…

 

[CTOWannabe]

Use the search function. 100’s of threads…

I did. And there is no coherent thread that just contains them all in one spot with standard metrics. A lot of them have mixed mileage and many dont share speeds traveled or other conditions. Further, that it takes 100s of threads to try to gauge what the real mileage is, through a patchwork quilt of reports, seems to me, to be a problem unto itself.

So I was hoping to have one spot where people could standardize their submissions. If there is another such thread, I apologize, I didn't see it and would appreciate a pointer.

 

[agordon117]

Unfortunately what you are asking for is not possible. You might get 270 miles at 85mph with the extender, but certainly not with a normal battery. I don't think you'll see 200 miles at 85 mph.

Someone did a test for 80mph and got 213 miles.

https://www.cybertruckownersclub.co...ency-range-test-closed-vs-open-tonneau.12586/

 

[CTOWannabe]

Thanks for all the very helpful pointers and posts!

It seems to me that reported mileages are growing. Initially I was seeing 170m ranges and that was going at around 70mph, and now they seem to have grown to around 210 at 80mph. I wonder if part of this is calibration/software updates?

I personally am not interested in the range extender for 2 reasons. 1, it eats the bed space a good bit. 2nd, I don't like putting that much weight that high up, messing with the nice low center of gravity and handling dynamics.

My guess is my personal use case seems optimistic, but maybe within realm of doable as a good 1hour of driving is going to be average maybe 55mph, and then the other 2 hours will be at 85mph. So it seems on the edge of plausible. More importantly, the increase from 170 to 210 is a big deal to me, as with 170, there would be only one useful supercharger to hit on the way, but at 210 there would be 2, and that makes a big difference in the 'comfort' of the drive at least psychologically.

That said, it does seem like ranges are evolving, and somewhat growing from the earliest reports. I hope that trend continues.

 

[CTOWannabe]

I'm hoping is I can get about 270mile range at 85mph average

Unfortunately that is not going to happen.
Several threads about range that should help.
But to get 270 miles, assuming you started at 100% charge and were ok pulling into your families place on EMPTY and being able to charge, with no room for error. You would need a wh/mile of 455.
455 is very doable in the CT, but not at 85 mph

If you are doing 85 mph you are going to get about 210 miles of range depending how full you start and how close to 0% batter you are willing to go.

For that trip you are going to need to slow down to about 70mph or charge along the way.

Thanks. The actual range I need is only about 240miles, but I was hoping to get 270 mile range so I get there without the battery being 100% depleted.

 

[agordon117]

Thanks for all the very helpful pointers and posts!

It seems to me that reported mileages are growing. Initially I was seeing 170m ranges and that was going at around 70mph, and now they seem to have grown to around 210 at 80mph. I wonder if part of this is calibration/software updates?

I personally am not interested in the range extender for 2 reasons. 1, it eats the bed space a good bit. 2nd, I don't like putting that much weight that high up, messing with the nice low center of gravity and handling dynamics.

My guess is my personal use case seems optimistic, but maybe within realm of doable as a good 1hour of driving is going to be average maybe 55mph, and then the other 2 hours will be at 85mph. So it seems on the edge of plausible. More importantly, the increase from 170 to 210 is a big deal to me, as with 170, there would be only one useful supercharger to hit on the way, but at 210 there would be 2, and that makes a big difference in the 'comfort' of the drive at least psychologically.

That said, it does seem like ranges are evolving, and somewhat growing from the earliest reports. I hope that trend continues.

It's still not plausible with what you're asking. 2 hours at 85mph is going to use 90% of your battery. You will not be able to go another 1 hour at 55mph on top of that. you might get 30 minutes. And all of this goes out the window if it's colder than 75F or there is a slight headwind. It also depends on the starting and ending elevations of your specific trip.

 

[Gigahorse]

Thanks. The actual range I need is only about 240miles, but I was hoping to get 270 mile range so I get there without the battery being 100% depleted.

Test mentioned above at 80mph getting around 582 wh/mile if your doing 85 your going to be under 200 miles for a full charge or 170 for an 80% charge, assuming with both you are arriving at 0% battery and plugging in.

You will want to look at charger options between the two locations, hopefully there is a supercharger you can swing by for 30mins and make it with just one stop.

 

[Cirrus SR22]

I'm hoping is I can get about 270mile range at 85mph average

Unfortunately that is not going to happen.
Several threads about range that should help.
But to get 270 miles, assuming you started at 100% charge and were ok pulling into your families place on EMPTY and being able to charge, with no room for error. You would need a wh/mile of 455.
455 is very doable in the CT, but not at 85 mph

If you are doing 85 mph you are going to get about 210 miles of range depending how full you start and how close to 0% batter you are willing to go.

For that trip you are going to need to slow down to about 70mph or charge along the way.

I’m getting a lot better with over 65% hwy miles but not exceeding 70 mph

 

[HaulingAss]

Can current owners share your real highway mileage you are achieving:

(1) Model you have (2motor, 3 motor, etc)
(2) Range your getting (maybe actual miles and/or estimated)
(3) Speed (estimated average highway speed you generally travel at)
(4) WH/M you have been experiencing?
(5) Total mileage on your CyberTruck
(6) State of truck when you travel (eg with/out aero caps, tonneau up/down, side mirrors on/off, etc)
(7) Average temperature where you drive and any other any other relevant conditions (eg it's hilly, flat, windy, etc).

I was hoping owners would share there real highway mileage/range. I'm hoping if we put our shared experiences in one spot, we could start getting a more realistic picture of actual highway range.

I'm not worried about local/traffic mileage because when I'm local I'm going to be charging frequently and local/city mileage range just isn't as important (for me at least).

But when you have to go on a road trip, or for me, frequently visit family about 240 miles away, the range is relevant. One of the things I'm hoping is I can get about 270mile range at 85mph average (around the roads I drive here in TX, average speeds are 80-95 but I get that varies around the country), which is what I would need and I'm trying to gauge is that realistic or not.

Thanks to all the CyberTruck owners sharing experiences!

I feel like I already know enough to have a very good idea of what kind of range I'll see at different speeds but it is a complex thing to figure out and there's no such thing as "real highway mile range" because the actual owner/driver has a lot to do with it. I tend to have much higher efficiency in our three Tesla Model 3s, relative to what I see posted online. And that's true even though my useage includes a surprising amount of very spirited driving, but it's moderated with a good amount of normal driving with the flow of traffic on non-Interstate, rural highways that tend to move at 55-60 mph.

Another big reason I beat the averages by such a large margin is because I know how to drive them without wasting energy uneccesarily by unconsciously repeatedly dipping into regen slightly when I should be more steady on the throttle.

Some factors that you didn't mention is tire pressure (many people can't seem to get it into their thick skull what cold PSI means). They see the TPMS reporting the recommended cold PSI and think it's "all good" even though their tires are not cold. Another big one is the coarseness of the pavement. Smooth blacktop or worn concrete will be much more efficient than chip seal roads with pointy rocks embeded. However, concrete roads with wheel tracks worn into the surface, the kind that form longitudinal puddles during a heavy rain, where the tires travel, will have a major impact on range when full of water and a minor hit on range when dry.

It's also good to be aware that "average speed" is not a good indicator of efficiency, depending upon how that average speed was obtained. Specifically, someone who travels a steady 65 mph will have much better efficiency than someone who achieves an average speed of 65 mph by travelling half the distance at 55 mph and the other half at 75 mph. That's because drag increases with the square of the speed.

Another big factor will be suspension height. On the highway a low suspension height will make a big difference in efficiency but many don't care and want the more cushy ride of a higher suspension. Wheel alignment is a surprisingly big contributor to efficiency/range. Wheels with excessive toe-in (for example) will still track nicely and corner with authority, but it will be greatly increasing your rolling resistance (and slightly impacting your aero).

In the end, there are too many variables to document everyone's specifics with any consistancy. What I've found is that people tend to be either pretty ignorant or pretty careless (or a conbination of the two) when it comes to efficiency of their EV. And that's understandable because for most people it simply doesn't matter much (beyond the relatively small incremental cost of electricity). The amount of noise you hear about range concerns on the Internet greatly over-represent the EV drivers that actually have range concerns.

What this means for someone who really does care about range, is that their actual range will likely be much better than the ranges they read about, because they will care enough to make good efficiency happen through all of the variables you and I have listed. Because all of these variables are cumulative, by being a knowledgeable EV motorist, you can have a much better range experience (without driving like a hypermiler) than someone who thinks each of these factors are too insignificant to worry about.

And that explains why you will see such a wide range of results. Just know that it's not very difficult to be in the top 20% of the results you read about online, and you don't have to drive like a grandma, because only hypermilers do that and not many people have the patience to be a true hypermiler (thankfully). Most of it is common sense, like cruising speed, but I've listed a number of factors that most people never think about. If range and/or efficiency matter to you, pick your replacement tires with that in mind. People who blow off every optimization, because they think it's too small to matter much, end up with a large cumulative hit to their average range.

One more thing, in cold weather, pre-heating the cabin while it's still plugged in, makes a significant difference, especially if making shorter, more local trips. That's because the heater consumption is about 5-8 times as high initially, vs. once the cabin and climate control has warmed itself up and this is perhaps even more true with a heat pump instead of only resistive heat.

 

[CTOWannabe]

I feel like I already know enough to have a very good idea of what kind of range I'll see at different speeds but it is a complex thing to figure out and there's no such thing as "real highway mile range" because the actual owner/driver has a lot to do with it. I tend to have much higher efficiency in our three Tesla Model 3s, relative to what I see posted online. And that's true even though my useage includes a surprising amount of very spirited driving, but it's moderated with a good amount of normal driving with the flow of traffic on non-Interstate, rural highways that tend to move at 55-60 mph.

Another big reason I beat the averages by such a large margin is because I know how to drive them without wasting energy uneccesarily by unconsciously repeatedly dipping into regen slightly when I should be more steady on the throttle.

Some factors that you didn't mention is tire pressure (many people can't seem to get it into their thick skull what cold PSI means). They see the TPMS reporting the recommended cold PSI and think it's "all good" even though their tires are not cold. Another big one is the coarseness of the pavement. Smooth blacktop or worn concrete will be much more efficient than chip seal roads with pointy rocks embeded. However, concrete roads with wheel tracks worn into the surface, the kind that form longitudinal puddles during a heavy rain, where the tires travel, will have a major impact on range when full of water and a minor hit on range when dry.

It's also good to be aware that "average speed" is not a good indicator of efficiency, depending upon how that average speed was obtained. Specifically, someone who travels a steady 65 mph will have much better efficiency than someone who achieves an average speed of 65 mph by travelling half the distance at 55 mph and the other half at 75 mph. That's because drag increases with the square of the speed.

Another big factor will be suspension height. On the highway a low suspension height will make a big difference in efficiency but many don't care and want the more cushy ride of a higher suspension. Wheel alignment is a surprisingly big contributor to efficiency/range. Wheels with excessive toe-in (for example) will still track nicely and corner with authority, but it will be greatly increasing your rolling resistance (and slightly impacting your aero).

In the end, there are too many variables to document everyone's specifics with any consistancy. What I've found is that people tend to be either pretty ignorant or pretty careless (or a conbination of the two) when it comes to efficiency of their EV. And that's understandable because for most people it simply doesn't matter much (beyond the relatively small incremental cost of electricity). The amount of noise you hear about range concerns on the Internet greatly over-represent the EV drivers that actually have range concerns.

What this means for someone who really does care about range, is that their actual range will likely be much better than the ranges they read about, because they will care enough to make good efficiency happen through all of the variables you and I have listed. Because all of these variables are cumulative, by being a knowledgeable EV motorist, you can have a much better range experience (without driving like a hypermiler) than someone who thinks each of these factors are too insignificant to worry about.

And that explains why you will see such a wide range of results. Just know that it's not very difficult to be in the top 20% of the results you read about online, and you don't have to drive like a grandma, because only hypermilers do that and not many people have the patience to be a true hypermiler (thankfully). Most of it is common sense, like cruising speed, but I've listed a number of factors that most people never think about. If range and/or efficiency matter to you, pick your replacement tires with that in mind. People who blow off every optimization, because they think it's too small to matter much, end up with a large cumulative hit to their average range.

One more thing, in cold weather, pre-heating the cabin while it's still plugged in, makes a significant difference, especially if making shorter, more local trips. That's because the heater consumption is about 5-8 times as high initially, vs. once the cabin and climate control has warmed itself up and this is perhaps even more true with a heat pump instead of only resistive heat.

Thanks I updated the top post adding some of your items. I totally agree, of course, that there are too many variables and average speed isn't a great measure ( you can imagine someone that hits the accelerator see sawing from 70-90 back and forth is not the same as someone that just keeps their mileage at a constant 80). My hope was to list a bunch of factors that were easy to at least roughly estimate, and are off the top of their head. Some things like road roughness might be very difficult to gauge over a lot of miles.

Anyway, I'm curious what your experience has been, range wise.

 

[Gigahorse]

I’m getting a lot better with over 65% hwy miles but not exceeding 70 mph

Yea at slower speeds it does way better, people in TX and FL who have been driving 75-85 are getting in the mid 550 wh/mile.
Keeping it below 70 will improve it significantly, but may not be an option where you live, some places around here if you go 70 you will get.rear ended.
2k miles on your CT nice! Hope you are enjoying it

 

[Gigahorse]

Thanks I updated the top post adding some of your items. I totally agree, of course, that there are too many variables and average speed isn't a great measure ( you can imagine someone that hits the accelerator see sawing from 70-90 back and forth is not the same as someone that just keeps their mileage at a constant 80). My hope was to list a bunch of factors that were easy to at least roughly estimate, and are off the top of their head. Some things like road roughness might be very difficult to gauge over a lot of miles.

Anyway, I'm curious what your experience has been, range wise.

There is a LOT of data in.
At least 4 trucks over 5k miles.
Basically if you go over 70MPH don't expect to get much over 250 miles of range, if you go over 85MPH don't expect to get over 200
EVs take a bigger hit on efficiency at top end speed than ICE vehicles, so to make that 240 mile trip without a charge you will need to slow down to sub 70mph or find a charger for 30mins along the way.

 

[HaulingAss]

Thanks I updated the top post adding some of your items. I totally agree, of course, that there are too many variables and average speed isn't a great measure ( you can imagine someone that hits the accelerator see sawing from 70-90 back and forth is not the same as someone that just keeps their mileage at a constant 80). My hope was to list a bunch of factors that were easy to at least roughly estimate, and are off the top of their head. Some things like road roughness might be very difficult to gauge over a lot of miles.

Anyway, I'm curious what your experience has been, range wise.

I'll certainly share when I get a Cybertruck under my butt! I'm especially interested in how it will do on steep climbs and descents at speeds around 15-20 mph on rough, rocky roads. I'm impressed with the Model 3 Performance in this kind of usage (although I go much slower than that over the worst sections). The Cybertruck will roll right over them without slowing down to 1-2 mph, LOL!

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