Listen to classic music to boost EV range, says Kia

Drivers looking to get the most range from their electric cars should listen to Beethoven while behind the wheel, according to a new study by Kia. 

The South Korean manufacturer has been investigating the effect that different music can have on a driver’s behaviour, with Kia’s findings revealing that calming music can make a motorist drive four times as efficiently than other songs. 

Using Kia’s new EV6 electric car, the study was overseen by Dr Duncan Williams, a lecturer at the University of Salford’s School of Science, Engineering and Environment. 

Kia invited a range of participants, all of whom had never driven an electric car before, to pilot its EV6 for a fixed 18-mile route, with all listening to the same music playlist, incorporating a range of different artists and genres.

The route took in a mix of town traffic, busty roundabouts, faster dual carriageways and twisty country roads, with the start point being Meridian Audio’s Cambridgeshire HQ – which provides the sound system to the Kia EV6. Drivers were also fitted with a device known as an Empatica E4, which is able to detect data such as skin temperature, heartbeat, and heart rate variability. 

Song choices included Adele’s ‘Hello’, Beethoven’s ‘Symphony No 9 in D Minor’, ‘Fade’ by Kanye West and The Weeknd’s ‘Blinding Lights’. 

The findings showed that Beethoven’s music ‘creates a calm, focused and balanced environment’ for participants, with this genre of music said to enable the best real-world driving range, with this song making motorists drive up to four times more efficiently. 

At the other end of the spectrum, the ‘up-tempo’ music from The Weeknd ‘provoked an intense emotion in the test drivers’. Kia said this resulted in a ‘more spirited and energetic driving style’ that encouraged participants to use more of the car’s performance, limiting the range.

Dr Duncan WIlliams said: “What we found from only two days of testing was that music really can have a dramatic influence on the real-world driving range of an electric vehicle. 

“Different songs resulted in varying electrodermal activity and blood volume increase for each of the participants.This had a knock-on effect on driving style, and ultimately influenced the real-world driving range of the EV6.

“In short: if you want to go further, listen to the likes of Beethoven and other relaxing classical music; if you’re not worried about range dropping a little more quickly, by all means put on some more high tempo tracks.”