Driving an electric car on a long route is not the same journey with different fuel. The charging curve reshapes where a driver stops and for how long.
Charging speed falls as the battery fills
A battery accepts high power when relatively empty and progressively less as it approaches full, because charging faster would damage the cells.
The practical consequence is that the last portion of a charge takes a disproportionate share of the time spent plugged in.
Route planning therefore favours arriving with a low state of charge and leaving before the battery is full, which is the opposite of how drivers treat a fuel tank.
Frequent short stops beat rare long ones
Two stops of twenty minutes usually deliver more range than one stop of forty, because both take place in the fast part of the curve.
This changes the shape of the day into shorter driving legs separated by breaks roughly matching a natural rest interval.
Drivers accustomed to covering long distances between stops find this the largest adjustment, and it is a scheduling change rather than a range limitation.
Conditions affect consumption more than in a combustion car
Energy use rises steeply with speed, and sustained motorway cruising consumes considerably more per kilometre than steady secondary-road driving.
Cold weather reduces both battery performance and available range, since energy is also spent warming the cabin and conditioning the pack.
Long climbs consume heavily, though a proportion is recovered on the descent, which makes mountain routes less costly than the ascent alone suggests.
Charging networks are not interchangeable
Networks differ in connector availability, payment method, maximum power and how reliably their units are working on any given day.
Some require an account or an app, others accept contactless payment, and provision differs considerably between countries and even between regions.
Because coverage and terms change over time, current network information for the specific route matters more than any general guidance.
Where the stops actually go
Destination charging at accommodation removes the problem entirely for touring, since a car parked overnight has many hours to fill slowly.
Planning around a charger at a lunch stop converts charging time into time that was going to be spent anyway, which is the main efficiency available.
Keeping a margin above the minimum needed to reach the next charger matters, since an occupied or faulty unit is the most common disruption on the road.