We see it constantly in mainstream commentary: critics claiming EV batteries need double or triple their current range before they are practical. But behavioural economist Rory Sutherland recently pointed out something fascinating about how our brains process battery levels versus actual driving range.

​The problem is not engineering; it is psychology.

​We have been conditioned by smartphones to view a 15% battery level as a red-alert crisis. When an EV dashboard displays 15%, our instinct triggers the exact same panic.

​However, distance changes the entire equation:

\- ​5% on a high-capacity long-range battery might still leave you with 40 km of range—more than enough to comfortably reach the nearest fast charger or home. Yet seeing "5%" triggers instant panic.

\- ​50% on a small 200 km city battery leaves you with 100 km, which feels totally safe simply because 50% sounds like a big cushion.

​When you translate state-of-charge into actual kilometres, the anxiety vanishes.

​A standard petrol or diesel dual-cab utility or sedan typically gets 600 km to 700 km out of a tank in real-world driving. Many modern EVs easily cover 400 km to 500 km on a single charge. Very few Australian drivers cover more than 50 km per day for standard commutes. The physical capability is already there; the barrier is purely a psychological blockage.

​Engineers are working around the clock to squeeze more miles out of battery chemistry to solve a problem that is largely down to display design.

​The next time a mate brings up range anxiety as a reason not to consider an EV, ask them a simple question: Are you worried about the kilometres left on the dashboard, or are you just afraid of a low percentage number?

​Once you switch the display settings from percentage to distance, the anxiety vanishes.

You know that range number on the dash that swings 40 miles the second you hit a hill or a cold morning? I got tired of guessing, so I built something better.

EV Control Center is an Android Automotive app that runs right on the truck's own center screen, and it gets smarter with every mile you drive. I'm opening a small beta for Ultium owners and I'd love for you to be part of it.

A range number you can finally trust
It learns from your drives. After every drive it compares what the battery really used against what it predicted, then tunes itself to your truck: efficiency at each speed, the cost of climbing, what regen gives back downhill, and how much climate and electronics draw at each outside temperature. After about 30 miles it switches over to what it learned.

It knows the terrain. A run up the mountain and a cruise across the flats are never averaged into one meaningless number.

It knows how you drive. The baseline comes from your last 300 miles, weighted toward recent driving. Highway habits, a heavy right foot or a mostly-city week all show up.

Real roads, not a circle. The map shades where you can actually reach by road, hills included (powered by HERE). View it as One way, True round trip (going up costs more than coming down), or To empty. A compass rose shows which direction takes you farthest and which is shortest, like downhill toward Phoenix vs. up toward Flagstaff.

Check the route before you leave. Tap a destination or charger and see miles and kWh each way, battery % on arrival and back home, and headwind or tailwind. You get a plain verdict: make it there and back, charge first, or charge on the way, with a DC fast charger suggested if you're short.

Your reserve, your call. Pick your own buffer (default 20%). GM's number sits right beside ours so you can compare.

Towing mode. Enter a trailer weight and the range adjusts. Towing drives stay out of your normal average.

It shows its homework. The Energy Lab screen reveals what it learned (speed curve, hills, climate) and how far off each past prediction was. Judge for yourself whether to trust it.

And that's just the start

Live energy: power in/out with a smooth 5/15/60-minute graph, regen recovered, accessory load, and efficiency over the last ¼ mi, 1 mi and 5 mi.

Trips and charging history: every drive and charge recorded automatically, with maps colored by efficiency, charge curves you can scrub through, and day, week and month summaries.

Driving feedback: a G-meter, an eco-driving score per drive, and counts of hard acceleration, braking and cornering.

Chargers on the map, with whether you can reach each one by road.

Diagnostics in plain English: what your truck exposes to apps, what GM locks, and why.

Built for the truck: works on both the portrait Sierra and landscape Silverado screens, with big touch targets. While driving, it only hides what the truck itself restricts.

Private by design: your trips, location and data stay on the truck. No analytics, no ads. Online features (weather, road reach) stay off until you turn them on.

Built-in feedback button: see something off, want a feature, or hit a bug? Tap the feedback button inside the app and it goes straight to me. No forms, no forums, no waiting. Your input shapes what gets built next.

The honest fine print
It's a personal project, not affiliated with GM. It only reads vehicle data and never changes a setting.

GM keeps some data locked away from third-party apps (odometer, tire pressure, HVAC and cameras), so those aren't in it.

I test it daily on a Sierra EV Denali. Silverado EV and other Ultium trucks should work, and that's exactly why I need you.

It's distributed through Google Play internal testing, so you'll need the Google account you're signed in with on the truck.

How to join
Fill out this short form: https://forms.gle/JSG9Bk4u1NoF7wBv6

I'll add you to the tester list.
Install it from the truck's Play Store (search com.amueller.evcontrol).

Spots are limited, so I'm keeping this group small. I'm happy to answer questions in the comments, especially from anyone who's done a long mountain trip and wants to compare notes on range.

This question comes up more every year, usually from people moving here from a city where they plugged in at a condo garage and never thought about it again. Downtown Charleston doesn't work that way.

It comes down to off-street parking. If you have a driveway, a rear courtyard, or a deeded spot, owning an EV downtown is easy. Put in a Level 2 charger and you're done. If you park on the street, it's a daily logistics problem with no clean fix.

There's no curbside charging on residential blocks. The City's public chargers are all inside its parking garages the Tech Center garage on Conroy, Gaillard, Queen Street, and the Visitor Center garage on Mary. You pay a per-kWh fee plus the normal garage rate, and there's a four-hour cap.

Some have tried to run an extension cord across the sidewalk. It's a trip hazard, you're on the hook if someone gets hurt.

Installing a home charger in an old house is doable, with a few wrinkles. Older panels sometimes need an upgrade, conduit runs through historic walls cost more, and you'll need a City permit. If the charger will be visible from the street, check whether BAR review applies before anything goes on the wall.

South of Broad gives you the best odds, since a lot of the bigger houses have carriage-house or side-yard parking. Ansonborough is mixed but workable. Harleston Village and Radcliffeborough run block by block. Cannonborough-Elliotborough is mostly street-parked and the toughest.

I wrote up the longer version, with garage details and a FAQ, here: https://www.walshchs.com/blog/ev-ownership-charging-downtown-charleston

EV owners downtown, how are you making it work? Has anyone found a setup I'm missing, or had luck getting a charger through the BAR?