As we race towards Autumn and Winter we thought it would be a good idea to share some tips on how to make the most of your electric vehicle as the temperatures dip.
Like their petrol and diesel counterparts ‘fuel’ economy is affected by the cold.
Studies have shown that driving range for electric vehicles decreases by 9% to 19% when temperatures are below freezing and cold weather also decreases electric vehicle charging speed. This is because of the low temperature of the battery. It’s also worth noting that it may take a little longer for your EV to charge in cold weather because when it’s cold outside, your thermal management system (within the battery) may limit your charging speeds to keep the battery safe.
Here are some tips to optimise your EV in the winter:
Keep your battery’s State of Charge (SoC) above 20%
When it’s cold outside, your EV keeps a percentage of your battery’s power in reserve to warm itself up. That percentage varies per vehicle, so it’s please do refer to your car’s manual, but a good rule is to try and keep your battery above 20%
Preheat your car
Many EV apps give you the option to control the cabin climate so that you can set the heater to turn on 10 minutes or so, before you unplug the vehicle and drive away. This ‘preheat’ may mean you can keep to a comfortable temperature using your seat heaters and steering wheel heater only – this uses far less electricity.
Check tyre pressures
In cold weather tyres lose approximately 2% of their air pressure for every 10 degrees F drop in temperature – under inflated tyres will reduce the efficiency of your EV so regular checks are important
Slow down, especially on motorways
Slow down just a little across the board and your efficiency will increase. Driving faster uses more electricity, less efficiently.
Plan your routes
Important all year round and especially in the Winter know where chargers are located on your route
Park in a garage
If you have access to a garage at home, use it! If not when you are out and about choose undercover parking where possible. Simply put, being undercover will keep your battery warmer!
Please don't worry about EVs not being suitable in cold weather - Norway has one of the largest numbers of EVs on the road and in winter the average temperature is -6.8 degress celcius!