Planning Your First All-Electric Road Trip

How to Drive Cross-Country with Confidence in a VW Electric Car

So, let’s say you finally have a VW electric car and you’re planning your first big road trip. You’ve got more than enough cargo storage for your luggage and the very best in infotainment features to keep everyone in your crew entertained. Additionally, since the VW ID.4 comes with enhanced navigation, you’ve got the quickest route to your destination all mapped out.

There’s only one problem: how do you keep your VW ID.4 charged as you’re driving cross-country?

Getting to Know Your VW Electric Car and its Capabilities

The Volkswagen ID.4 uses an 82 kWh 400 V lithium-ion rechargeable battery that offers up to 260 miles on a single charge. 260 miles is usually more than enough to get you through all your weekly commuting in addition to those random trips to the grocery store, Target, and coffee runs. When you are driving around locally it’s easy to conserve your battery. It’s also easy to find opportunities to charge it. Most major grocery store chains, gyms, and malls have charging stations for EV vehicles.

With a 9.6kW charger, you’ll be able to get about 10 – 15 miles after a 30-minute charge. The more powerful 25kW charger will provide 30 – 50 miles after a 30-minute charge. Finally, with a DC Fast Charger, you’ll get about 180 miles after a 30-minute charge.

The challenge with cross-country road trips in an EV is finding those 25kW and DC Fast Chargers along your route and keeping your wait time to an absolute minimum. A road trip isn’t a road trip if you’re parked for most of it, right? So, let’s dig into the details of how to get the most out of your VW electric car’s battery and some other best practices.

Plot Your Route and Find Your Charging Stations

Driving a VW electric car means you need to be a little bit more strategic than normal. You not only need to know your route, but you also need to know which charging stations you can hit along the way.

For instance, the approximate distance between Houston and Las Vegas is 1,457 miles. Your ID.4 can get up to 260 miles on a full charge. That means you’re going to need to stop to charge up six times, at minimum.

Fortunately, there’s an easy way to do this. The PlugInAmerica.org site will show you every public charging station in the United States. It will even show you which ones are regular stations and which ones are DC Fast Charging stations. When you start to get low on battery, all you need to do is access the Plug In America website and find the station that’s most convenient for you. Major cities, of course, have a wider selection of charging stations. However, there are always several charging stations located just off the interstate at rest stops and gas stations.

A Couple Other Key Tips for Cross-Country Travel in Your VW Electric Car

Remember when we said that the Volkswagen ID.4 gets up to 260 miles on a single charge? The words “up to” are very important in that statement. A full battery doesn’t guarantee 260 miles unless you’re driving in the most optimal conditions. If you’re driving cross country, it’s likely you have extra passengers along with plenty of luggage that you’re hauling. This adds weight to the car, which means that your vehicle must work harder to do the same job. If you’re carrying an extra 500 pounds in weight, you should plan on stopping prematurely to the 260-mile benchmark.

Another thing you want to consider with cross-country travel is the ability to multitask. When using a DC Fast Charger, you’ll need at least 45 minutes of charging to get the majority of your mileage back. This gives you and your family some time to kill. So, rather than just sitting around and waiting in your vehicle, try to plan out your charging route so that you can get a meal, do some sightseeing, or catch some sleep at a hotel while you wait.

Ready to Step Into an EV? Come to VW Cypress for Your VW Electric Car!

Now that you know how to travel like a pro in a VW electric car, the next step is to get one of your very own. Simply visit the VW ID.4 section of our website to check out the Volkswagen electric car for sale. Click on the “Build & Reserve Your ID.4” button and you will be taken through some prompts to select your trim level and any optional features you may want. This process reserves the car so that you can test drive it once it arrives from overseas.

The Widest Selection of New and Used Vehicles at VW Cypress

Not yet ready to go electric? No problem! We have plenty of new and used VW vehicles right here on our lot at VW Cypress. We carry late model sedans, compacts, and SUVs made to fit any family dynamic. We’re also one of the leading used car dealerships near you in the Houston area. Not only do we carry used vehicles, we also carry a wide selection of certified pre-owned vehicles that have undergone a 100+ point inspection.

Don’t forget to check out our specials section. for more great deals on VW products and services. Additionally, if you are a current VW owner in need of routine maintenance or service, you can always visit our VW service center located right at our dealership.

Important notification to our customers: Volkswagen Cypress SALES operations will move into its new location at 11411 Farm to Market 1960 West in Houston, TX, after the holidays! SERVICE operations will also move to a new location after the holidays. Its new stand-alone building can be found at 10828 Steepletop Drive in Houston, TX, located just one minute away from the SALES..

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