Kia Reveals That Music That You Listen To Impacts EV Range

Kia Motors has revealed in a fascinating study that the type of music listened to by the driver directly correlates to the range the electric vehicle gets. The Korean automaker revealed that it had conducted an experiment that had drivers complete a fixed route with the EV6 while listening to Beethoven's iconic "symphony no. 9" as well as The Weekend's smash hit "Blinding Lights". The experiment was overseen by Dr. Duncan Williams, a lecturer at the University of Salford's school of science, engineering, and environment. He is an expert in acoustics and the science of sounds.

"Playlists featuring ambient classical pieces and famous symphonic-form compositions from the likes of Beethoven can help drivers sustain battery power far better over other types of music genres and artists, including The Weekend, Kanye West, and Adele. Up-tempo pop, hip-hop, and even soul ballad pop were found to impact EV range due to the effect these genres have in influencing driver behaviour and driving style," Dr. Duncan Williams revealed.

The Kia EV6 is slated to launch even in India this summer

For the experiment, two identical EV6s where the driver was supposed to drive through a 29 km stretch. The driver was equipped with a device that tracks all their biometric measures. The test found that while listening to Beethoven the driver's average heart rate was at 111 bhp, while listening to the Weekend it jumped to 171 bpm.

"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. 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," Dr. Williams concluded.