Given the recent cold snaps, how much are EVs affected by chilly weather?
We all know that electric car ranges are affected by winter weather. When it’s cold out, the physical chemistry of an electric car’s battery is affected, and it becomes less efficient (batteries, like us, tend to prefer a nice stable ambient temperature of about 20 degrees).
Compounding that effect on chemistry is the simple fact that humans need warming up too, and heating the inside of the car uses battery energy to turn on heating systems. Even with an efficient heat pump set-up, the losses can be significant (we may need to resume wearing driving coats and gauntlets).
Of course, not all cars are affected equally so we’re thankful for the joint efforts of both the Norwegian Automobile Association (NAF) and Norway’s Motor magazine, which carry out an annual test of the leading EV models in freezing, snowy conditions to see which performs best, and which performs worst.
[ More electric vehicle Q&AsOpens in new window ]
The good news this year is that EVs seem to be getting slightly better when it comes to dealing with icy conditions.
In the 2024 test, the average loss of range stood at 22 per cent, while for this year it was 18 per cent, although the testers urge caution in reading too much into that figure as this is a test carried out on real roads in real conditions, so the parameters change all the time.
Indeed, at one point on this year’s test, all of the cars had to stand idle for almost an hour as the road was blocked by a truck that had slithered off on the ice, while exceptionally wintry conditions in the final mountain road stage meant that high speeds couldn’t be maintained.
In terms of the difference between claimed and actual range, the overall winner of the test this year had a certain amount of Scandi home advantage, as it was the Polestar 3. The big SUV claims a range of up to 559km, and on the test (in which the cars are driven continuously until they reach between 10-15 per cent charge) the 3 managed to cover 530km – a drop in range of only 4.1 per cent. Its average energy consumption of 18.9kWh/100km was only 8.7 per cent shy of the claimed WLTP figure.
The next best was the Mini Countryman, which may only have a pretty short claimed range of 400km, but it managed to cover 356km before giving up the ghost. Rounding out the podium places was the BYD Tang, a large Chinese-built seven-seat SUV which isn’t on sale in Ireland yet, but which has a claimed range of 530km and it managed to cover 483km.
The poorest performer on the test may surprise you – it was the Tesla Model 3, which against its claimed 703km range delivered 532km; a decent distance to cover, but some 170km shy of the official claimed figure.
That means winter costs you 23.6 per cent of your Tesla’s winter range. That said, Motor did point out that even with the range drop, the Model 3 still had the best cost-per-kilometre of all the cars on the test.
Also performing poorly was the Peugeot E-3008, which drove for 348km, but fell 162km short of its claimed range. Also on the naughty step were the VW ID.7 Tourer (although in fairness it was the high-performance GTX version), which fell 24 per cent short of its claim, covering 434km, while the Porsche Macan Electric saw its range drop by 22 per cent, managing to reach 429km before needing a charge.
The new Xpeng 6 electric SUV – a Chinese model which is launching in the Irish market this month – dropped its range by 22 per cent as well, covering the same 429km as the Macan. Also in the 22 per cent club was the BMW i5 xDrive40 Touring, which drove for 387km on a full charge.
And if you’re assuming that all the Scandinavian models would perform well in a winter test, think again – the Volvo EX30 also lost 22 per cent of its range, reaching a maximum of 368km.
