How much energy does regenerative braking recover?

Regenerative braking

So just how much energy does regenerative braking recover? Well, there’s quite a bit of information floating around about the topic out there, and most of it is highly subjective.

That said, the best answer is “up to 20%” of an electric vehicle’s (EV) range. So, as a best case scenario, an EV with 300 miles could get as far as 360 miles.

Further, the first answer always comes up as a percentage of what would normally be wasted using the brakes. The numbers there are quoted at 60 to 70% of what would have simply become heat.

Again, its a best case scenario and is very much dependent on the type of driving. One very interesting anecdote is a driver who climbed 2,000 feet and regenerated all the electricity used on the way back down. This is a definite advantage over a gas or diesel powered vehicle. Certainly, those vehicles will use less fuel on the way down, but the fuel gauge needle will never do anything but continue to move down.

Ford‘s app evidently adds up miles added on a trip, which is a nice feature. Click this link for a Reddit discussion on the subject. But again, the discussion surrounds longer trips where the count can be more easily facilitated. The consensus is that stop and go driving is more favorable for regeneration.

The bottom line is that regenerative braking is a net plus for energy and a net plus in brake wear and tear. That last bit depends on the proper use of brakes by both the driver and the manufacturer, as we discussed here.

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