My eDrive: App and internet platform to support decision-making when buying electric vehicles

For a long time, many people were only familiar with electric cars from discussions in the media, but at the start of the ‘My eDrive’ project, they were increasingly represented on the market. The vehicle concepts and models became more diverse and presented potential customers with a number of challenges when making a purchase decision:

• Is there an electric car that suits my needs?
• Is a purchase worthwhile for me financially?
• And how environmentally friendly is an electric car really?

There were uncertainties mainly due to the limited electric range of the vehicles - the fear of being left stranded with an empty battery was great (and still is for many potential buyers today). However, the standardised consumption figures and ranges quoted by manufacturers, without taking air conditioning etc. into account, have also been criticised time and again, as practical experience can differ considerably.

To answer the above questions, the My eDrive project provided potential buyers of electric vehicles with a decision-making aid. An integrated service consisting of an internet portal and a smartphone app helped potential users of electric vehicles to select suitable electric vehicles depending on their personal usage profile and on the basis of realistic vehicle characteristics. Both the operating costs and the environmental footprint were taken into account. The usage profiles could be entered in detail and further personalised by recording the user's own routes using a smartphone. The technical characteristics of the various electric vehicles were modelled in a practical way in order to be able to make the most realistic statements possible about suitable electric vehicles.

The My-eDrive software was analysed for practical suitability in an extensive beta test and iteratively improved. The beta test was completed in February 2018 and the app was then freely available for installation on Android smartphones from the Google PlayStore. We will discontinue operation of the My-eDrive system on 1 September 2025.

We would like to thank all users for their valuable feedback during the development and operation phase of My eDrive.