Lightfoot customers have boosted the real-life efficiency of their electric company cars by 35% in the past year, supported by the firm’s driver coaching and telematics system.

EV drivers using Lightfoot tech have boosted the real-life efficiency of their company cars by 35% in the past year

Its analysis of hundreds of cars in its system, which use Lightfoot tech to measure consumption and mileage in real time, shows average efficiency climbed from 2.75 miles per kWh in July 2022 to 3.72 miles per kWh in June 2023.

For a car with a 60kWh battery, that’s an effective increase from 165 miles to 223 miles in real life – nearly 60 miles more for every full charge.

The firm, which revealed the data in the first of its Spotlight fleet data reports, said the figures show the incredible strides in both electric vehicle technology and efficiency, and how fleets and drivers are optimising those vehicles.

Managing director Paul Hollick elaborated: “What our data clearly shows is that businesses and their drivers are combining our system with the new electric vehicle technology available and hugely improving efficiency and range.”

The analysis is based on drivers with the Lightfoot management system installed, which provides them with feedback about their driving style in order to improve efficiency, and therefore range.

The technology has been proven for many years to reduce fuel consumption in petrol and diesel vehicles, but this data shows its “transformational effect” on electric vehicles too.

And Hollick said it’s part of a “virtuous circle”.

“Drivers are getting better at driving EVs, especially when using Lightfoot, while EVs are getting inherently more efficient too. Better energy management technology, more efficient batteries and less power-hungry ancillary systems are combining to make electric cars more viable for more people, and more fleets.”

The huge increase in efficiency seen by Lightfoot drivers is also cutting fleet costs. Assuming that a 60kWh battery car was charged at 30p per kWh in 2022, it would cost 11p per mile to run, while in 2023 it would cost 8p per mile. Over 20,000 miles a year, the 2023 car costs £580 less in electricity (£2,180 in 2022 against £1,600 in 2023) when fitted with Lightfoot technology. The savings would be even greater still when using more expensive public charging.

“Even with electricity prices high over the recent past, electric cars have always tended to be cheaper to run than petrol or diesel, unless they were charged at the most expensive public chargers. But our data now shows that with this marked improvement in efficiency, the case for changing to electric is becoming even more compelling,” Hollick said.

Lightfoot data reveals air con impacts EV range more than heating

Lightfoot telematics data also revealed the impact of external factors too – with surprising findings about the adverse effects of air con compared to heating.

Its analysis of 2022 and 2032 data shows the only real slowdown of steady improvement in EV efficiency occurred in high summer 2022 when a record-breaking heatwave hit.

Over the end of July and early August last year, efficiency dropped from 3.0 miles per kWh to 2.4 – a 20% drop – as the effect of heavy air-con use far outweighed the advantages of warm weather on battery efficiency.

In comparison, over winter 2022, average fleet efficiency for electric cars only dropped to an overall figure of 2.8 miles per kWh – although it was a mild winter.

“The noticeable hit to efficiency during last year’s heatwave shows that in fact air conditioning has a bigger impact on EV range than colder weather during the winter months,” said Hollick.

He added: “This data goes to show that fleets need to be aware of these external factors in their efficiency and cost predictions, and that as we learn more about how EVs operate in the real world, it’s not always the most obvious assumptions that prove to have the most effect.

“But this data shows for certain: Lightfoot’s driver coaching and telematics makes EVs cheaper to run and go further.”