The push by many top car makers to go all-electric in the next decade or so means more and more drivers will be on the lookout for charging stations versus gas stations. Apple and Google are already incorporating that data into their map apps; Apple first teased EV routing features for Ford and BMW vehicles at WWDC 2020, and it rolled out with iOS 14.
Apple's iOS 15.4 added EV routing support on Apple Maps for the Ford Mustang Mach-E last year. (Ford plans to eventually roll it out for the F-150 Lightning and E-Transit vans, too). This month, Porsche added support for Taycan owners in the US.
The feature connects to your car using Apple CarPlay to monitor a car's charge level, elevation changes, and other factors in order to add charging stations along a route as needed, which should combat range anxiety. Here's how to set up and use EV routing in Apple Maps.
How to Enable EV Routing
2022 Mustang Mach-EFirst, make sure your phone is running at least iOS 15. On a 2021 or 2022 Mustang Mach-E, tap Apple Maps on the car's touch screen and set a destination. A message will appear letting you know about the EV routing feature. Select Ok. A message will also appear on your iPhone in Apple Maps asking you to connect your vehicle. Tap Connect > Share Vehicle Data on the next message.
Taycan owners should log in to the My Porsche app, select their car, and tap the Apple Maps EV Routing function while sitting in their cars. Open Apple Maps, tap your photo or initials on the top right. Select Vehicles > Connect Your Porsche and follow the on-screen directions.
Once this setup is complete, new trips will automatically add charging stops to routes if Apple Maps determines your car will need a charge to get more range. The map will also display an estimated charge time.
How to Manually Add EV Charging Stops to a Route
Even if your vehicle does not yet officially support the Apple Maps EV routing feature, you can still plan trips and manually add charging stops along the route. To do this, enter a destination to see one or more routes and select Add Stop.
When the search box pops up, type in “EV chargers” and tap Add next to your charging station of choice. Your new stop will be added to the end of your list of directions, but you can drag the charging stop up and down the list to reorder the directions.
Other Ways to Find Charging Stations
If you don't have a Mustang Mach-E or Porsche Taycan, there are still ways to find charging stations. Most electric vehicles should include directions to charging stations as part of the mapping data in the infotainment console. Not all trip planning and routing algorithms are created equal, however, and you may want more control over the driving directions.
A Better Route Planner is a solution worth looking at no matter what electric vehicle you drive. It provides a comprehensive list of charging stations, including Tesla Superchargers. It also allows drivers to fine-tune their route based on how many stops they want to make, when they’d prefer to stop, and where the best stopping points are for them.