Electric Car Range in Cold Weather

Reader Contribution by Jim Motavalli
Published on April 10, 2012
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Where I live, we have bitterly cold winters. I’ve been told that electric cars don’t handle cold weather well. Is that true? Do some models do better than others? 

Electric car battery range is better in warmer climes, because in cold weather, chemical reactions happen more slowly. A drop of just 10 degrees Fahrenheit can sap 20 to 50 percent of a battery’s charge, depending on the system. According to Sherif Markaby, who directs Ford’s electrification program, batteries “are similar to people, as they both achieve maximum performance working under moderate, unchanged temperatures.” A warm battery can better accept charging from the regenerative braking system. Ford (for the Focus Electric) and GM (for the Volt) address this problem with a liquid temperature management system, which warms the battery pack as the car is charging. 

I drove the Volt during a chilly week in the cold winter of 2011, and traveled 28 miles before the gas engine kicked on to recharge the batteries. The Volt’s standard range is estimated to be 35 miles before it switches to gas power. 

Tony Williams, a San Diego-based Nissan Leaf owner, has created a range chart (see it at My Nissan Leaf) that is proving quite useful to other drivers of the all-electric car. According to Williams, at 70 degrees Fahrenheit, a Nissan Leaf with a full charge traveling at 55 mph will have 89 miles of range. But — and this is just one person’s experience — Williams’ calculations show that the car will lose 1 percent of range for every 2 degrees the temperature drops. For many drivers, that would translate into only 65 miles of real range available during a cold winter. 

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