The Hyundai Creta Electric and Tata Curvv EV are part of a recent boom in the all-electric midsize SUV space. They offer potent powertrains, attractive looks, and long feature lists, but what of range in the real world? We put the top-spec variants of both electric SUVs to the test to find out how far you can travel on a single charge in real-world conditions.

Hyundai Creta Electric vs Tata Curvv EV price

Creta Electric is more expensive overall.

Tested here are the range-topping variants of the Creta Electric (51.4kWh Excellence LR) and Curvv EV (Empowered+ A 55). The latter is more affordable by Rs 1.51 lakh, and lower variants of the Creta Electric are more expensive than those of the Curvv EV too.

Hyundai Creta Electric vs Tata Curvv EV specs

Creta Electric battery options are smaller.

Though the Creta Electric is costlier across the board, the Hyundai SUV’s 42kWh and 51.4kWh battery packs are slightly smaller than the Curvv EV’s 45kWh and 55kWh options. To that end, the Curvv EV’s claimed range figures are higher than that of the Creta Electric, and the former’s 45kWh variants develop more power as well. However, the Creta Electric does have a 40Nm torque advantage, and its 51.4kWh variants make slightly more power.

Hyundai Creta Electric vs Tata Curvv EV real world range

Curvv EV was less efficient despite its larger battery.

In our real-world range testing, the Curvv EV 55kWh surprisingly returned lower range figures than the Creta Electric 51.4kWh. The Curvv EV delivered a 371km range and 6.75km/kWh battery efficiency in the city, and on the highway, the Tata SUV achieved a range of 358km and battery efficiency of 6.52km/kWh.

This works out to a combined real-world range of 365km for the Curvv EV 55kWh – falling 137km short of its claimed range – and an average battery efficiency of 6.64km/kWh. We tested the Curvv EV in Eco mode throughout, and the regenerative braking was set at Level 2 (medium) in the city and Level 1 (low) on the highway.

Creta Electric range surpassed claimed figure in the city.

Meanwhile, the Creta Electric yielded an impressive 486km range – higher than the claimed figure – and a staggering battery efficiency of 9.45km/kWh in city conditions. Out on the highway, the Creta Electric eked out a real-world range of 378km and a 7.36km/kWh battery efficiency.

Combined, the Creta Electric real-world range stands at 432km – 65km more than the Curvv EV and a mere 41km delta from the Hyundai SUV’s claimed range – and the average battery efficiency works out to 8.4km/kWh. Much like the Curvv EV, the Creta Electric was driven in Eco mode throughout, and regenerative braking was set to Level 3 (high) in the city and Level 1 (low) on the highway.

Autocar India’s range testing

For our real-world range test for each car, we began with the battery fully charged and tyre pressures set as per the manufacturer’s recommendation. The cars were driven on a fixed loop covering both city and highway stretches, while maintaining set average speeds. Range was then calculated based on the percentage of charge consumed. The AC was kept at 22degC in auto mode, and other features like the music system, lights and ventilated seats were used whenever needed, just as a regular user would. This way, these tests are consistent and give a clear idea of what to expect in daily use.

All prices are ex-showroom, India.

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