2024-01-06 12:55:05
The range of an electric car can be reduced by 20% when temperatures drop. Here’s why and tips for limiting losses.
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All vehicles, gasoline or electric, lose performance when it is cold. But paradoxically, the electric car suffers more because of its “too good” efficiency: while a thermal car generates a lot of heatheat unnecessary, electric models convert the entireenergyenergy produced for propulsion. But this is precisely its weak point in cold weather.
Most electric vehicles are equipped with lithium ion batterieslithium ion batteries, which operate optimally between 0 and 45°C. When it is too cold, the electronselectrons Li+ loses their mobility in the electrolyte. Result, a loss of power when discharging and especially when charging: the battery will take much longer to fill up when it is plugged in.
Protect the battery by reducing autonomy
Current models are designed to take this loss into account and heat the battery accordingly to maintain its performance. But for this, it must either draw heat produced by the motor or the inverters, or heat it by an electrical system. In both cases, this makes less power available for driving. In addition, in order not to damage the battery during a “cold” recharge, the car also automatically limits the energy recovery system by braking, which further reduces the normal range. On a TeslaTesla, this system is even deactivated below 0°C. Finally, the cabin heating also pumps electricity into the battery. In total, we travel between 20% and 30% fewer kilometers for the same load in cold weather.
To be sure not to break down, you must therefore take extra precaution.
- Make sure you always have a minimum charge of 20%, the reserve necessary to sufficiently warm the battery when starting. Be careful if your car is parked outside: the system keeps the battery warm even when stopped to allow it to restart. Allow approximately one kilometer of loss of range per hour for a night at 0°C.
- Recharge the battery preferably one hour before departure to benefit from the warmth of the charging system. When the car is still plugged in, take the opportunity to precondition the battery by heating it from the inside, an option offered by some manufacturers such as Tesla. When traveling, prefer heating the seats to heating the cabin, which wastes less energy.
In the long term, manufacturers are working on electrolyte batteries solidsolidwith a much wider operating temperature range (from -20°C to +100°C).
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#autonomy #cold