I live in Los Angeles and charge my car outside. I used to get about 13 miles at full charge. Recently the temperatures have dropped to around 40s and my full charge has dropped to about 9 miles, is this something I should accept? Does temperature have such a significant impact on the EV?
EV miles is an average of your MPH during EV travel. If you drive slower consistently your average EV miles will go up. Faster, will go down. And Yes colder temps will give you lower averages too
The battery is charged about the same amount. The estimated EV range dropped due to the colder temp -- heating, tire pressure drop, denser air to push, etc..
The major effect of a reduced EV miles numbers is due to actually driving fewer miles on a full charge (more use of heat, defrost, seat heaters, lights, colder tires, denser air, etc) But, as I've noted elsewhere, I have seen a drop in the Chargepoint reported kwh for a full charge as it has gotten colder*. It is probably a combination of things, but could be: - more efficient to charge (hence less losses) when it is colder - battery takes fewer kwh when colder (chemistry/physics of battery) - software programmed change in charging based on air temp - watt meter change in accuracy in colder temp *same charging station... Summer (~80F): 2.90 - 2.95 kwh (10+ readings) Winter (~45F) 2.78 kwh (3 readings) This is a 4-6% change in the amount of wall socket power measured for a full charge. If the major effect is not due to a better charging efficiency, then this could result in about 0.5 miles lower EV range during cold weather just due to less energy stored in the battery. Mike
