Test-Drive a Range-Extended EV Twice: Once on Battery, Once on the Generator
A shopper takes a range-extended pickup around the block, loves how quiet and quick it feels, and signs. Three weeks later, on a long highway climb with the battery low, the gasoline generator roars to life for the first time. The test drive never showed it: a ten-mile loop barely dents a battery rated for 145 electric miles.
Step One: Plan a Drive That Reaches the Generator
An Extended-Range Electric Vehicle (E-REV) is really two cars to evaluate. Electric motors do all of the pushing. The gasoline engine under the hood exists only to make electricity, with no mechanical link to the axles, and it wakes up when the battery runs low. That design is what makes these trucks and SUVs appealing: the pack handles daily driving, and the generator stands behind it as a backup when a trip outlasts the charge. But a backup you never test is a promise, not a feature.
Ram's range-extended 1500, renamed REV in September 2025, carries a 92 kWh pack rated for about 145 miles on electricity alone, with a V6 serving as its generator. A typical test loop covers maybe ten of those miles, so the generator never enters the conversation. Before you go, ask whether the vehicle offers a mode that holds the battery charge or starts the generator on command. If it does, use it for half the drive. If it does not, request a unit whose battery is already low, or book a longer drive. The same logic applies on the used market, where the BMW i3 with its optional range extender, sold in the U.S. from 2014 through 2021, is the E-REV most shoppers can actually find today.
Step Two: Listen Closely and Put a Load on It
Once the generator is running, pay attention in three places. Sit at a red light and notice whether it keeps humming while the truck stands still. Merge onto a highway and feel whether the power you enjoyed on battery is still there. Then find a long grade, because climbing on a low battery asks the most of the generator. Cars.com lists Ram's estimate at 20 mpg combined when the generator is carrying the load, a sensible figure to keep in mind if your weekly driving regularly runs beyond the battery's reach.
The other powertrains deserve the same honesty about what matters behind the wheel. In a BEV (Battery Electric Vehicle), spend ten minutes in stop-and-go traffic trying every regenerative braking level, including one-pedal driving, since that setting shapes every commute you will make. An HEV (Hybrid Electric Vehicle) earns a different test: launch from a light a few times and notice how smoothly the engine joins in, because a handoff that bugs you on day one will bug you for years.
Step Three: Test the Plug and the Screens, Then Take Notes
A test drive should include charging, not just driving. Recurrent suggests using the built-in navigation to find a nearby fast charger, checking whether it shows live availability and pricing, and then actually pulling in to plug in. Confirm which connector the vehicle uses and whether an adapter comes with it, since the industry is moving to the Tesla-style NACS plug. On an E-REV, open the fuel door too, and ask how often the generator needs its own oil changes and service.
Next, plan a long trip in the car's navigation and see whether it builds charging stops into the route automatically, with an honest arrival time. Open the phone app and make sure it shows charge level, charging schedule, and remote climate without a fight. For a Plug-in Hybrid Electric Vehicle (PHEV), ask to see the portable cord and confirm it runs on an ordinary household outlet, because many owners never install anything faster. If you are shopping a used i3 with the range extender, Recurrent flags a weak 12-volt battery as a source of alarming warning lights and suggests extra scrutiny for any car that has sat with old fuel in its small tank.
Take notes before you leave the lot, while details are fresh. Record the battery percentage at the start and end, how many miles you drove, how the generator sounded, and whether the charging screens made sense. Compare those notes against a second vehicle before deciding. A rushed ten-minute loop tells you how a vehicle feels when everything is ideal, and nobody owns a vehicle only on ideal days.
Before you commit, put one question to someone who already owns the exact model: what do you wish you had tested before buying? Owner forums and model-specific social groups are full of drivers happy to answer, and they will name the generator habit, the app quirk, or the charging hiccup that no brochure mentions. Ask two or three of them, compare their answers against your own notes, and you will walk into the purchase knowing how the vehicle behaves on its worst day, not just its best.
Sources
- Cars.com, 2026 Ram 1500 Ramcharger Will Have 145 Miles of Electric Range and Get 20 MPG - cars.com
- Electrek, Ram's Electric Pickup Truck Is Officially Dead; Range-Extended Ramcharger Renamed REV - electrek.co
- Recurrent, EV Test Drives: What Buyers and Sellers Should Check - recurrentauto.com
- Recurrent, Used EV Guide: BMW i3 - recurrentauto.com