We’re already ankle-deep in the fall leaves, and the weather is starting to get cold. Low temperatures bring many auto-based challenges, and even the best electric cars are no exception to this trend. Especially if you are traveling long distances.
EV batteries don’t perform well in the cold, thanks to the physics for what they are, and will likely drain a bunch of extra power to keep you at a comfortable temperature. All of this means you have less energy to spare while driving, which affects your overall range.
This is the bad news for the road. The good news is that some of the problems with electric cars in the cold are exaggerated. And while you may see a decrease in range in cold weather, there are plenty of things you can do to reduce the effect. But it’s still worth remembering how to maximize your range in cold weather, especially if this will be your first winter drive without gasoline.
How does cold affect electric vehicles?
One of the things that gets asked a lot about electric vehicles in the winter is the fact that lithium-ion batteries can be very sensitive to temperature extremes. Excess heat speeds up the decomposition process, and excessive cold slows down the ions responsible for capturing and discharging energy.
So the fear is that the colder the environment, the less stored energy you have to tap, which will directly affect your range.
It looks bad, but it’s also only half of the picture. For starters, the performance of a lithium-ion battery is affected only when it drops below freezing – which is zero degrees Celsius or 32 degrees Fahrenheit. Automakers are well aware of this fact, and have taken steps to ensure batteries are kept at optimum temperatures.
However, the main problem with the range in cold weather is the heater. Climate control takes a lot of energy, but where a gas-powered car can harness the waste heat from the engine, electric cars have to heat up all that air from scratch. You also have to take into account the fact that the amount of power in the largest EV batteries is still less than a small to medium sized gas tank. So you have less stored energy to take advantage of.
So when the cold weather fluctuates, electric vehicle drivers basically have to do a balancing act. Increase your range, and the time before you have to recharge, while still staying comfortable enough to drive effectively.
How much will your electric vehicle lose in the cold?
There are many factors that affect the overall range of electric vehicles, and temperature is just one of them. But putting a number on it led to some controversy.
Consumer Reports (Opens in a new tab) It claims that its tests have revealed electric cars to show a range estimate of twice what is actually needed. This was based on trips taken in a Tesla Model 3 and Nissan Leaf in temperatures between 0 and 10 degrees Fahrenheit (-17.7 to -12.2 degrees Celsius). The report noted that the energy drain comes from climate control, but did not specify how warm the two cars would be.
AAA (Opens in a new tab) He previously warned that you could lose up to 41% of your battery’s total capacity in temperatures around 20°F (-6°C) – 12% of which drops completely to temp. The rest came from the heater itself.
On a more optimistic note, norwegian auto federation (Opens in a new tab) (NAF) Run some tests with 20 different EVs and find that the average drop is close to 20%. Moreover, the cars showed themselves perfectly when their power was low, so drivers had a lot of warning when it was time to recharge the car.
Norwegians have been fans of electric cars for decades, even before Tesla made them “cool” in other areas. Given temperatures dip below freezing in the winter months, electric vehicles wouldn’t be very popular if the cold had a significant impact on the range.
WhatCar (Opens in a new tab) They ran similar tests and came to a similar result, indicating that you can expect a 15-20% average range loss in the cold. However, the site also noted that it all depends on the car, with the long-range Tesla Model 3 losing just 1.1% of its range compared to summer temperatures, while the Porsche Taycan 4S performance model lost 20.1%
car and driver He also ran some tests, with the specific goal of understanding how a heater affects driving distance on a aa Tesla Model 3. This was done with winter tires, with an ambient temperature of 38 degrees Fahrenheit, after giving the car’s engine and cabin time to do the warm-up.
Compared to test runs without climate control, Car and Driver found that setting the climate control to 72 degrees Fahrenheit reduced range by 17%. Setting the heating system to maximum, turning on all heated seats, increased consumption even more – resulting in a loss of range by 35%.
Automakers are starting to add heat pumps to modern cars, and not just in the luxury segment. They should use less energy than traditional hot air systems and improve efficiency—something WhatCar saw evidence of in cold weather range testing.
No matter what happens, climate control will always have an impact on your energy consumption. However, every little helps and electric cars that use heat pumps, whether standard or optional, include the Tesla Model Y, Chevy Bolt, Nissan Leaf, Polestar 2, Jaguar I-Pace and more.
How to improve the range of electric vehicles during the winter
Winter isn’t a death sentence for electric cars, and you’ll be able to drive as normal – even in areas where temperatures dip below zero. But no matter what you do, or how far your car gets, the distance it can drive will be affected.
Fortunately, there are some very simple steps you can take that will allow you to maximize your range during the winter months.
Don’t let the battery run low: Automakers know the deal, and they know batteries like to stay within a certain temperature range. So any electric vehicle worth its salt will have a thermal management system that can keep everything running optimally. Unfortunately, this requires energy that comes from the battery, and as a result electric cars keep between 15 and 20% of this energy in reserve.
Keeping your battery more than 20% already is an important step in maintaining long-term battery health. But, if you want to keep moving in cold weather, you have to be more vigilant about those percentage points.
Lose your extra weight: The more weight your vehicle has to bear, the lower your range. If you have anything in your car that doesn’t really need to be there, take it out. Every pound you remove will increase your range slightly, and every bit helps when the weather is against you
Park your car inside if you can: One of the important things you can do is keep your car out of the weather, and out of the cold. The garage isn’t particularly warm, but the shelter and cover mean it’s much warmer than it would be on the street—and it takes less energy to maintain the temperature than to raise it. So those extra few degrees will help the battery charge faster, keep that charge longer, and reduce the energy needed to heat the cabin in the first place.
Make sure your car is preconfigured: Electric vehicles do not need to “heat” the way combustion engine cars do. However, it is still useful to precondition your car before departure, either using a pre-set schedule or by activating it manually. Heating the car before leaving makes the cabin more comfortable, while also improving the temperature of the battery – which is reflected in its performance.
This is especially useful if you have a home charger, as it will be able to use power from the network rather than the battery.
Heat the people, not the car. No matter what type of electric vehicle you have, a cabin heater will drain energy and reduce the overall range. Instead of heating the air in the cabin, it is better to directly warm the occupants of the car.
Heated seats are very common in modern cars, and they use significantly less energy than a heater in the HVAC system. Using them, and other hot tools like a heated steering wheel, can do a better job of keeping everyone comfortable with less energy. While it’s helpful for everyone to dress appropriately for the weather, make sure you wind up warm, too.
Check tire pressure: Tires that aren’t inflated cause extra drag, which reduces your vehicle’s efficiency – lowering range as a result. But cold weather causes the air to shrink, which reduces the internal pressure of your tires. So be sure to check your tires regularly and make sure the pressure doesn’t drop.
It is noteworthy that winter tires have increased grip in snowy conditions, which will automatically reduce the range of your car. There’s no avoiding this if you live in an area prone to snow and ice, so it’s worth looking for tires that offer a great balance between vehicle efficiency and the attractiveness of increased rolling resistance.
Turn on eco mode: There is a very good chance that your electric vehicle will have a dedicated eco mode, which reduces power consumption at the expense of acceleration and the performance of other energy-intensive features such as a heater. This makes it one of the most important tools for increasing your range – and winter is no exception.
There is a very noticeable difference when you turn eco mode on and off, and if you want to get as many miles out of your battery as possible, make sure you turn it on every time you go for a drive.
Driving more efficiently: The most important thing in maximizing the range of electric vehicles in winter is driving efficiently. All the things that help maximize your EV range during the warmer months stay in place when winter sets in. So be sure to avoid sudden acceleration and braking, stick to reasonable speeds, and take advantage of regenerative braking. Likewise, use tools like Google Maps to help take more energy-efficient routes.
There are advantages to driving electric vehicles in cold weather
While the range of electric vehicles can be affected during the winter months, electric vehicles themselves offer some advantages over combustion engine vehicles. The main thing is that you can usually turn on the heater when the car is still plugged in, so you can warm the car and still leave the house with a full battery.
Remote access is a common feature in electric vehicles as well, which allows you to do so from your smartphone without ever opening your car door.
The fact that electric vehicles do not have exhaust means that it is perfectly safe to leave them running in an enclosed space, such as a garage. And while it’s a good idea to get some heat on the battery when it’s especially cold, you don’t need to warm the car itself the same way you would the engine.
But the main benefit lies in driving, especially in slippery conditions. Electric vehicles do not have gears, which means that force is applied to the wheels more smoothly. This is useful in bad weather, and means you are less likely to slip or slide while accelerating in icy or snowy conditions.
Likewise, regenerative braking can also be useful for slowing the car smoothly – a boon when the roads are slippery. The only downside is that regenerative braking, even on cars with single-pedal drive systems, is not as powerful as the actual brakes, so you need to be more aware of the increased stopping distance.
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