Lightning's range in cold weather... not very good

[greenne]

All EVs lose range in winter. Put your cell phone outside in the old, and inm30 minutes go see how long the battery lasts.

In very cold weather, like 20 degrees, expect a drop of 40%. That 2.1 miles per kilowatt hour becomes 1.3.

If you spent this kind of money without understanding that, you made a mistake.

I will buy a Rapid Red Lariat ER for sticker minus $10k. Let me know.

Gotta laugh a bit at you calling 20 deg "very cold".

(Lots of love from upstate NY. FWIW I've shoveled snow in shorts at 20 deg....)

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[RickLightning]

Gotta laugh a bit at you calling 20 deg "very cold".

(Lots of love from upstate NY. FWIW I've shoveled snow in shorts at 20 deg....)

Because he's from LA. Tomorrow it will be -3 here in SE Michigan. Nice legs.

 

[metroshot]

1/3 winter drop not unusual. My eGolf did that and I live in sunny CA.

So Cal not experiencing any range loss.

With 70+ degree weather, no climate controls, windows rolled down in urban driving - I am still getting 15% over EPA range.

Not as nice as 25% over range last month but I think it's because I started to use the A/C again last week....

Still in shorts, T shirts and flip flops here in sunny San Bernardino County...

 

[RickLightning]

So Cal not experiencing any range loss.

With 70+ degree weather, no climate controls, windows rolled down in urban driving - I am still getting 15% over EPA range.

Not as nice as 25% over range last month but I think it's because I started to use the A/C again last week....

Still in shorts, T shirts and flip flops here in sunny San Bernardino County...

I think I can speak for the 99% of forum members that don't live in Southern California.

 

[metroshot]

I think I can speak for the 99% of forum members that don't live in Southern California.

Yes agree with you but just pointing out to the OP that weather and temps have a huge impact on EVs.

Just asking: if you bundle up, use no climate controls (no heat), seat heater turned up, steering wheel heater on, pre-condition, etc - will that negate a major amount of battery range loss ??

 

[luebri]

Because he's from LA. Tomorrow it will be -3 here in SE Michigan. Nice legs.

Fake news! That's your wind chill... not your temp.

 

[luebri]

That said, I am a bit apprehensive to see what a true -10 below day looks like. I am lucky that I have an insulated garage so my garage is not too bad, but when it is sitting outside at work for 8 hours I'm sure there will be some major effects.

Nothing unexpected... knew this would be the case when I reserved it. Just curious how bad it will be.

 

[trenner]

All EVs lose range in winter. Put your cell phone outside in the old, and inm30 minutes go see how long the battery lasts.

In very cold weather, like 20 degrees, expect a drop of 40%. That 2.1 miles per kilowatt hour becomes 1.3.

If you spent this kind of money without understanding that, you made a mistake.

I will buy a Rapid Red Lariat ER for sticker minus $10k. Let me know.

Of course all EVs lose range. Some clearly more than others depending on the technology, just like phones (android vs iPhone).

I definitely wouldn't say I didn't understand. Definitely shocked at the actual percentage drop, though. There are tons of articles which came out last winter when everyone was reviewing the Lightning that indicated that the battery is doing amazing in cold climates. None of the reviews would lead me to believe I'd lose 40+% at temperatures of roughly 30 degrees.

 

[p52Ranch]

Fake news! That's your wind chill... not your temp.

It would appear from the responses that everyone on this forum north of the 41st parallel walked uphill both to and from school in 3' snow drifts when they were children.

Your range may vary.

 

[RickLightning]

Yes agree with you but just pointing out to the OP that weather and temps have a huge impact on EVs.

Just asking: if you bundle up, use no climate controls (no heat), seat heater turned up, steering wheel heater on, pre-condition, etc - will that negate a major amount of battery range loss ??

In short, no.

Preconditioning (i.e. setting a departure time) will allow the first leg of your trip to have much better efficiency. Cabin is warm, seats are hot, you can set the heat on 68 and Auto (1) and be comfortable.

But,... as you drive, the battery is cooling, not heating, when it's say 20 degrees out. Its temperature is dropping, not going up. In my measurements, it dropped to 40 - 45 degrees. Then, at the DC charger, it rose to around 95. As I started driving again, it started dropping to 40 - 45 degrees.

And, you can't use no climate controls, the windows quickly fog up. You will find you need to use at least some, and that's where setting the temp lower and running Auto on the low setting comes in to minimize usage of the battery.

 

[VTbuckeye]

I've seen a small reduction in efficiency. 2.8 vs 3.2 or 3.3 for my morning drive to work. High 20s to low 30s. If I am in the truck alone at these temps it means jacket, hat, maybe gloves, heated wheel and seats with the back window cracked open a tiny bit and the moon roof venting occasionally to keep to he windshield clear. In our bolt the efficiency ranged from 4.9 to 5.1 in the spring/summer down to 2.3 to 2.5 in the winter. I am prepared to see 1.6 to 1.8 for my daily driving, but 25F is barely cold (I take the dog out for a morning run down to -10F...My wife thinks I am crazy.)

 

[metroshot]

In short, no.
.....
But,... as you drive, the battery is cooling, not heating, when it's say 20 degrees out. Its temperature is dropping, not going up. In my measurements, it dropped to 40 - 45 degrees. Then, at the DC charger, it rose to around 95. As I started driving again, it started dropping to 40 - 45 degrees.

And, you can't use no climate controls, the windows quickly fog up. You will find you need to use at least some, and that's where setting the temp lower and running Auto on the low setting comes in to minimize usage of the battery.

Ah that makes a lot of sense - cold temps dropping while driving in cold temps, the battery temp drops which in turn leads to less efficiency.

And never thought about windows fogging up in the cold - just breathing in cold weather causes fog generation - never have that issue where I am....

My windows always gets rolled down due to the sun heating up the truck interior....

 

[RickLightning]

Of course all EVs lose range. Some clearly more than others depending on the technology, just like phones (android vs iPhone).

I definitely wouldn't say I didn't understand. Definitely shocked at the actual percentage drop, though. There are tons of articles which came out last winter when everyone was reviewing the Lightning that indicated that the battery is doing amazing in cold climates. None of the reviews would lead me to believe I'd lose 40+% at temperatures of roughly 30 degrees.

Never seen a study that says that iPhones and Androids differ on battery usage based on temperature, no.

I have to point out, because so many people don't understand, that your ICE F-150 also lost range in winter. Cold air, combined with winter gas, caused a noticeably drop in MPG for you. However, you didn't have a predictive range based on weather, you only had one based on driving history, so it didn't show you right away that you were losing range.

https://www.fueleconomy.gov/feg/col...d weather and winter driving,to 4-mile) trips.

In the warm weather, I get 17 - 18 MPG on my 5 liter 2013 F-150. In the dead of winter, I get closer to 13.5. 13.5 / 18 = 25% loss in winter.

Here's actual data from my F-150:

Feb 2014 - 13.2 mpg, 14.73 mpg, 18.5mpg (trip on highway)
July 2014 - 18.7mpg, 19.2 mpg
March 2016 - 15.0mpg
July 2016 - 17mpg

 

[Zprime29]

We never even dipped into the 20's last year in Tucson

We do like to take road trips to play in the snow each winter though, so it's always nice to read how you cold weather folks handle it.

 

[VTbuckeye]

Ah that makes a lot of sense - cold temps dropping while driving in cold temps, the battery temp drops which in turn leads to less efficiency.

And never thought about windows fogging up in the cold - just breathing in cold weather causes fog generation - never have that issue where I am....

My windows always gets rolled down due to the sun heating up the truck interior....

I tell the rest of my family to stop breathing when it gets cold. Fogging can be somewhat mitigated with air flow. I open the back window less than an inch and maybe vent the moonroof or the passenger front window just a tiny bit to get air flowing in the truck. The cold air is very dry, so the fogging goes away once moving. Window openings can be adjusted to affect as needed.

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