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by Rygian 145 days ago
People driving an EV learn, in a matter of minutes, to coast by just applying the right amount of pressure on the "gas" pedal.
1 comments

They learn to sort of coast. The car feels like it's coasting. Sure.

Next time you do this keep an eye on the actual power readout. See if it's actually zero or if it's reporting ~3kW of braking or accelerating.

It hovers depending on how my foot modulates the speed. I don't want or need "exactly zero power readout", I only need to reach my target speed at my target spot on the highway, without having to action the physical brakes at any time.

Whether that is more or less efficient than a zero-power coast followed by some kind of braking exactly at the end... I assume the difference is so tiny that it makes no difference.

The difference is tiny from an energy efficiency perspective. But we're discussing tire wear, and the periodic regen followed by power that a human foot gives because it can't perfectly match the car's PID loop, wears the tires a bit each time. Which adds up over ten thousand miles.
Indeed it adds up, over ten thousand kilometers, to a lot less wear than the equivalent coast-then-hit-the-brakes in an ICE. If I follow your reasoning correctly.
Less wear on your brake pads. More on the tires.
So, you say that smoother braking (engine braking) causes more wear on tires than harsher braking (applying brakes)?

How so?