Tips and tricks on what to consider
You wake up in the morning and it's cold. It's really cold. It feels like the electric car doesn't go nearly as far as it usually does on its charge. Why is that so?
Charged Gesture
It takes more for the electric car's battery than cap and mittens when the temperature drops well below the zero mark. The range is reduced and charging takes longer. The reason is that the cold inhibits the speed of the chemical processes necessary to charge the battery. Follow our tips to get better control of electric car charging when it's cold.
Why are electric cars affected by cold?
It is not the charging station that determines how fast you can charge and how far you get in winter. battery capacity. The range is affected by the fact that many kilowatt hours are spent heating the battery and the car's passenger compartment. Therefore, you will not get as far on a charge.
Concrete numbers:
Already at zero down to five degrees below zero reduces the average range of an electric car with a fifth. In extreme cold (-15°C), the loss can be twice as great. Some models can maintain up to 89% of the range, while others only reach 63% under the same conditions.
But electric cars start easier than many fossil cars when it's cold. With a little planning and understanding of what affects the charge, you can do well even when the thermometer shows at both ten and twenty, even thirty degrees below zero.
Prepare the car before leaving
Many electric cars have batteries that are equipped with preheating systems. Unfortunately, most hybrids lack this clever solution. By preheating the electric car during the winter months, you can optimize battery performance and extend the range.
Here's how to do it:
- Preheat while the car is plugged in Use energy from the grid instead of battery power
- Schedule preheating via app — Set the car to be warm when you go
- Park in heated garage if possible — It helps to reduce the amount of energy needed for heating the passenger compartment and battery
- Pre-condition the battery — Preconditioning means that the system heats up the battery before you start charging. You often activate this automatically by putting a fast charger as the destination address in the GPS — the car heats the battery already when you are on your way there.
Smart charging in winter
The optimal charging temperature of the battery is 15-35°C. When the battery is cold, charging takes longer and produces worse results.
Best Charging Practices:
- Charge when the battery is hot — Preferably charge immediately after driving when the battery is still warm, not when the car has been out all night
- Avoid fast charging with cold battery — Wait until the battery warms up, or activate preconditioning (may take 20-30 minutes)
- Plan charging stops well in advance — Maintain at least 20-30% charge, don't wait until the last moment
- Daily charge to 80-90% — This is best for battery health
- Charge to 100% only immediately before a long trip (for maximum range) ---- Avoid charging to 100% unless you leave on the same day. Leaving the battery at high charge levels for extended periods of time impairs long-term battery health.
In most electric cars, you can specify that you want to charge in your GPS. Then the car makes sure to heat the battery a little extra to be able to charge at full power.
Maximize range in cold weather
Much of the kilowatt hours are spent heating the passenger compartment and the battery, which affects the range. Here are smart ways to save energy -- with the first two, you can almost regain all lost range from the cold.
Energy Partition Tips:
- Use Eco Mode — Reduces energy consumption by 5-10 percent for both engine and air conditioning
- Use seat and steering wheel heating in the first place “They consume much less energy than interior heating. Here you can save 10-15 percent energy.
- Maintain consistent speed — Every 10 km/h increase has a noticeable impact on range
- Check tire pressure regularly — The pressure drops in the cold and the car rolls worse
- Do not drive with roof box unnecessarily — Increases air resistance and significantly reduces range
Interesting fact:
As the temperature drops, the air thickens and the air resistance increases, which especially affects larger cars.
Especially for hybrid owners
Charged hybrids have particular winter time challenges, especially with the 12V starter battery:
- Charge with low amperage — Set low charging current (standard 6-10A instead of max) in your charging app or charging station menu. It takes longer but charges both the driving battery and the critical starter battery properly, especially important in extreme cold.
- Run at least 20 minutes — The battery needs this time to properly charge in sub-zero temperatures
- Pay extra attention to the starter battery — It is more vulnerable to cold than the main battery
Plan longer trips
Of course, you keep an extra eye on the battery level and where the charging stations are located if you are going to drive longer distances. It's always good to have an alternative itinerary in case something unforeseen should happen. For many, that habit sits in the spinal cord.
Winter driving checklist:
- Expect 20-30% shorter range than daylight saving
- Identify fast chargers along the route
- Have a backup plan in case a station is out of service or busy
- Many people travel to ski resorts during the winter -- the difference in altitude affects the charge. For example, if you travel 15 miles and the altitude difference is 300 meters, you lose 3-4 miles in range uphill and gain the same distance downhill
Just like having realistic expectations when it comes to electric car performance during the coldest days of the year. So prepare properly and take it easy on the roads to avoid range anxiety.
Quick guide: 10 tips for charging and driving when it's cold
- Charge when you get home Not when you're going away. A car battery charges much better when it's hot so don't wait until morning
- Preheat while charging — Take the opportunity to heat the car with energy from the mains
- Run for a while before fast charging — A hot battery charges better than a cold one
- Use GPS for charge planning — The car heats the battery extra for fast charging
- Parking in garage Heating a cooled car, both the passenger compartment and the battery, takes a lot of energy
- Plan your trips — Especially if you are going to drive far, in case a station is out of service or busy
- Count off a quarter of the range — From summer performance when driving in the cold
- Consider the air resistance — Roof box and cold air significantly increase resistance
- Calculate height differences — On mountain trips you lose range uphill but win downhill
- Use seat and steering wheel heating Instead of heating the entire cabin
