For the car or truck owner who isn’t particularly interested in the technical details and just wants to get to and from work more efficiently, deciding whether an electric vehicle is the right choice can be more of a problem than trying to understand the math behind paper towel advertisements.
But don’t worry, as is the case in the modern world – there is now an app for that.
BMW drivers can simulate the electric car experience
That’s right. BMW has updated its My BMW and MINI app to include an electric vehicle analysis to help current customers decide whether to trade in their fossil-fuel BMW or Mini for an electric version.
The feature works like this: the driver can select an electric BMW model that interests them through the app. The app then simulates the performance and characteristics of that car compared to the owner’s current car. The combustion engine car must make at least 200 trips, covering a distance of about 2,000 kilometers. The app then uses this data and shows how many trips the selected electric vehicle would have been able to make on a single battery charge. This simulation is directly aimed at combating the pervasive range anxiety that is widespread among new electric vehicle owners.
The app uses real-world data from the My Trips feature to analyze owners’ driving behavior in a personalized way. BMW also intends to expand the EV analytics with future updates that will include idle time and long-distance driving analysis. More information on charging station locations and consideration of the EV’s charging time will provide undecided owners with comprehensive and unique feedback.
To use electric vehicle analytics, customers must own a BMW with an internal combustion engine that uses BMW Operating System 7 or higher and consent to the use of their driving data for analysis.
Dirk Wiedmann, Senior Vice President Sales Management and Strategy, Digitalization, adds in the BMW press release:
For many customers, electric vehicles can already be perfectly integrated into everyday life – but most have not tried it yet. The electric vehicle analysis in our app helps our customers make an informed decision when choosing their drive.”
Many people struggle with the decision to switch from an internal combustion engine to an electric vehicle because they worry about range, charging infrastructure, cold weather, or a host of other issues that have arisen along the way to the (EV) solution. But BMW, ever the forward-thinking company, is now giving its internal combustion engine customers a glimpse of the possibility of owning an electric vehicle without all the real-time trial and error.
