The other word of warning is that some slow chargers in remote parts of France also add a fee for every minute parked, in addition to the tariff for electricity.
“I was caught out with a long stay in a remote village that cost €115,” said King. “Otherwise, EV motoring in France is there to be enjoyed. A little pre-planning also means you can follow routes and enjoy charging away from the motorway [autoroute] networks,” said King.
EV drivers could also make use of their vehicle’s range predictor, which displays an accurate “real-time” expected range, calculated on driving characteristics and battery usage during the journey.
The quickest way to France with a car this summer is still LeShuttle – the crossing formerly known as Eurotunnel. The 25-mile tunnel celebrated its 30th anniversary in May, carrying more than 100 million vehicles between Folkestone and Calais during that time.
The UK terminal now has a bank of eight Tesla Superchargers, complemented by five new public chargers – although only one was in service when I recently made the journey in a Polestar 2. Topping up while waiting to board is the best use of time, too, with return crossings from £196 for a car and passengers.
If you hope to drive to Paris in an EV to see Dina Asher-Smith, Keely Hodgkinson and others bring home a gold for Great Britain, here’s our list of battery-powered podium prospects.
Note, all mileages are official Worldwide Harmonised Light Vehicle Test Procedure (WLTP) figures, and not real-world range. We usually recommend that buyers expect to achieve between 70 and 80 per cent of the advertised WLTP range, depending on the weather conditions – with cooler weather having a greater impact on the range than warm conditions.
