Does a larger capacity battery pack give enough boost to the Nexon.ev’s range capability in the real world? We try to find out exactly that
Story: Gaurav Davare
Photography: Kalidas M
While the Tata Nexon.ev has been a formula that has consistently achieved success in the country’s electric vehicle (EV) space, Tata Motors can’t rest on their laurels and that is why they have been consistently updating the electric sport utility vehicle (SUV), be it by way of new variants or new features. The last proper update came not too long ago wherein the Long Range 40.5-kWh battery option was replaced with a larger 45-kWh battery pack with more features. Is this upgrade enough to make a significant difference in the real-world range of the Nexon.ev? Well, we put the Nexon.ev Long Range (40.5-kWh variant) to a proper test in March 2024 and now we finally got to spend some time with the 45-kWh set-up.
Before we get to the proper range test, let us take a look at the feature updates that include a panoramic sunroof and a frunk. It also gains a bolder looking Red Dark edition, limited to the top-spec Empowered+ variant. For an extra Rs 20,000, you get a Carbon Black body shade. Further complementing it are the darked-out badges, roof-rails, and black wheels to make it stand out with a stealthy personality.
What really makes the Red Dark theme attractive can be found inside, where there is an all-black theme, but with red contrast stitching just below the a-c vents. The vibrant red seats add a great bit of contrast, with a dark theme on the digital screens rounding off the cosmetic changes. The overall cabin experience remains pretty much the same as before with the electric SUV already boasting of niceties such as a 12.3-inch touchscreen infotainment system, wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, a 10.25-inch digital driver’s display, a nine-speaker JBL sound system, wireless phone charger, ventilated front seats, and cruise control.
Now, let us turn to the real upgrade in the Nexon.ev, which is the 45-kWh battery pack. The new pack contains prismatic cells instead of the cylindrical ones in the 40.5-kWh set-up. It is paired with the same 106.4-kW (145-hp) electric motor, so performance remains identical. On paper, this has resulted in an ARAI-claimed range increase from 465 kilometres (40.5) to 489 km (45) and if you take Tata Motors’ C75 claimed range (based on estimated real-world use such as ambient temperature, load, speed, and a-c) into account, it goes up from 290-310 km (40.5) to 350-375 km (45). Does this translate into the real world? Let’s find out.
We began our road test with 290 km of range left on the odometer after a full charge and, to keep things consistent, I ran it in Eco mode with braking regeneration level set to the maximum, that is level 3 for city driving and level 1 for the highway. In this setting I managed over a week’s worth of office commutes and a short trip outside Pune and back, totalling around 140 km.
The target was to get the state of charge down to 10 per cent and I managed to cover 280 km with another 34 km still left on the odometer. So, if you consider that during the 40.5-kWh road test, when I mentioned doing over 260 km of running on a single charge is a realistic target, the gain in the 45-kWh road test is relatively minor, depending on a number of factors such as drive mode, climate control, driving style, and braking regen mode. Thus, achieving 300 km on a single charge is a possibility but it would be right on the limit.
With the price of the Tata Nexon.ev (with the larger 45-kWh battery pack) ranging from Rs 13.99 lakh to Rs 17.19 lakh (ex-showroom), the gain over the 40.5-kWh battery pack in terms of range is rather incremental. Nevertheless, those extra 20 or more kilometres can come in handy to ease range anxiety just that much.
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