Autocar India sets new Guinness World Records title: longest distance in an EV on a single charge

Autocar India and Mercedes-Benz India have set a new Guinness World Records title for the longest journey by an electric car on a single charge, covering 949.0km in a Mercedes EQS 580 from Bengaluru to Navi Mumbai without plugging in. This beats the previous world record of 916.74km by 32.6km, which was set in the UK in a Ford Mustang Mach E.

1. Total distance of 949.0km was achieved on a single charge
2. Route travelled was from Bengaluru to Navi Mumbai
3. Beats the previous record by 32.6km

Why we chose the Mercedes EQS?

We picked the made-in-India Mercedes EQS 580 sedan for two obvious reasons: it has the highest claimed range of any EV in our market and is the most aerodynamically efficient car in India with a drag coefficient of just 0.20. The EQS has an ARAI-claimed range of 857km on a single charge from its 107.8kWh battery, but the distance of 949.0km exceeds the certified range by as much as 10 percent.

Averaging speeds of 50-60kph on the highway, the EQS managed an efficiency of 8.80km/kWh. We also heavily relied on the EQS’ three-levels of regenerative braking, limiting the use of the friction brakes only for emergency situations. This helped us eke out every last kilometre from the battery.  

Conditions during the record run

What made this drive particularly challenging were the arduous conditions in which it was undertaken. Flagging off from the Mercedes-Benz showroom in the early hours from the heart of Bengaluru, we experienced torrential rainfall on several stretches on our way to Navi Mumbai. This made what was a high-pressure situation to break the existing record, even more tricky. The unusually heavy monsoons also meant that road conditions were far from ideal. Thanks to ongoing repair work in several patches, we had to take several diversions and detours, which further upped the challenge.

The journey was split up in two days, and we took a pit stop at Belagavi having covered a distance of 515.2km in the first day. With the state-of-charge (SOC) at 44 percent, we resumed our journey on day 2, but things were still not on our side. In the closing stages, we even experienced a puncture, but we quickly and efficiency swapped it with the space saver, and continued with the run. Pretty much every curveball that Indian roads could throw, were thrown at us during this record attempt.

“A lot of factors made it all the more challenging like heavy rainfall, traffic, broken roads and worst of all, getting a flat tyre. With a target to achieve, it was equal levels of hypertension as it was hypermiling, as the entire time I made calculations of the remaining range of the EQS with each percentage drop in the battery,” remarks Autocar India’s road-tester Rahul Kakar who was piloting the EQS on this record-run.

Things really intensified as we approached Navi Mumbai. Having crossed Lonavala, we had covered a distance of 884km, but the SOC was just 3 percent at this point. However, coming down the ghat section, we could take advantage of regenerative braking. This helped maximise the range in the closing stages as the SOC kept fluctuating – coming down from 3 percent to 1 percent at times, and going back up. Approximately 30km was covered like that, with the final few metres being driven with 0 percent SOC, but it was enough to get us the record, and that too by a healthy margin.

“I’ve hypermiled in a lot of vehicles before, both internal combustion and EVs, but this was my first time hypermiling a luxury EV. It’s by far the most challenging test I have undertaken, as in the past I never chased to break an existing record,” said Kakar on his record-breaking achievement.

Incidentally, this Guinness World Records title also comes on the occasion of the Autocar India magazine completing 25 years. Speaking on the occasion, editor Hormazd Sorabjee said, “We are delighted to celebrate our 25th anniversary with a Guinness World Records title. This record of 949.0km on a single charge in adverse conditions is easily the most challenging drive we have ever undertaken. You can never be prepared enough for what Indian roads throw at you, but some incredibly disciplined driving in a car like the EQS that has the best range and an efficient aerodynamic shape, helped us overcome all obstacles to achieve this amazing distance without plugging in.”

Santosh Iyer, managing director and CEO, Mercedes-Benz India, shared his excitement saying, “Congratulations to Autocar India team for accomplishing the Guinness World Records title, driving a Made-in-India EQS sedan, under real and arduous driving conditions from Bengaluru to Navi Mumbai during the monsoon.”

Also See:

1780km in 24 hours: Autocar India, Vida by Hero Motocorp set a new Guinness World Record