For users transitioning from traditional fuel vehicles to new energy vehicles, the biggest concerns are often range and charging. Questions like, "Is the advertised range accurate?" or "If I drive from City A to City B, mostly on the highway, will I need to charge midway?" or "Does frequent fast charging really not harm the battery?" are common. Today, we'll take a closer look at the popular Li Auto ONE, a vehicle priced around 300.000 RMB, to address these concerns.
Range
Regarding the range, the Li Auto ONE has a NEDC-tested pure electric range of 188 km when the range extender is not in use. However, this data is for reference only. Under most real-world driving conditions, the actual pure electric range is shorter. For example, in winter when outdoor temperatures are below 10°C, the Li Auto ONE achieves a pure electric range of about 120 km, which is quite good. In everyday conditions during spring, summer, and fall, feedback from Li Auto ONE owners indicates that the vehicle can achieve around 140 km in city driving conditions.
Clearly, the more valuable reference points are the latter two figures. If your driving is mainly within the city, you can compare these numbers to your typical travel distances to see if the Li Auto ONE’s pure electric range can meet your needs.
Of course, as a range-extended electric vehicle, the Li Auto ONE is also equipped with a 55L fuel tank. According to owners, in city driving conditions when the range extender kicks in, the average fuel consumption is around 7.4L/100km. On the highway, this figure increases by 1-2L/100km, and if the battery is low, the overall fuel consumption will rise even further.
Charging
The Li Auto ONE supports both DC fast charging and AC slow charging and offers the option to install a home charging station, which is used for AC slow charging. If you have a home charging station, the Li Auto ONE can be fully charged in about 6 hours, conveniently overnight while you’re resting. By the time you’re ready to leave in the morning, the Li Auto ONE will be fully charged and ready to go.
Fast charging is mainly used with public charging stations, either when you need a quick charge during a trip or don’t have access to a home charger. As for the charging speed, the Li Auto ONE’s 40.5kWh battery can be fast-charged to 80% in just 30 minutes. If you find a functioning charging station in a public area, this charging efficiency is quite acceptable.
Does Fast Charging Damage the Battery?
Regarding battery health, any time you charge a battery, there is some wear and tear, but this doesn’t necessarily mean the battery is being damaged. Modern battery packs are equipped with advanced Battery Management Systems (BMS) that maintain each cell to prevent overcharging and deep discharging. So, if you need to fast charge based on your driving needs, it's not a problem. Additionally, when the battery is charged to 80% via fast charging, the current is limited, which helps protect the battery.
Conclusion
Let’s briefly summarize the key points. First, is the Li Auto ONE’s range performance reliable? Compared to other range-extended electric vehicles, the Li Auto ONE’s real-world range is quite competitive. In range-extender mode with sufficient battery power, its overall fuel consumption is lower than comparable traditional fuel vehicles. Most importantly, the Li Auto ONE’s combination of electric power for city driving and fuel for long-distance travel effectively meets the needs of those who want the driving feel and low operating costs of an electric vehicle but only have one car in the household.
Second, concerns about whether fast or slow charging damages the battery are generally overblown. As long as the battery pack isn’t subjected to physical damage like impacts or compression, both fast and slow charging will result in normal usage wear, similar to how engines and transmissions in traditional fuel vehicles experience wear over time. Therefore, the concept of “damaging the battery” isn’t really applicable.
