I’ve always heard that EVs are not a great option if you live in really cold areas due to them not being very efficient in the cold. Why is that? And do gas powered vehicles have the same issue?
In: Engineering
Cold reduces battery capacity, which reduces range, and you need to run an indoor heater, which uses battery, reducing range, and roads are slippery causing wheelspin, reducing range, brakes lock up on ice, regenerative braking doesn’t work if the wheel isn’t spinning, reducing range, traffic is slower which means heater must run longer for the same distance trip, reducing range and on and on. Add that to extremely poor charging infrastructure, and EVs become less practical in colder climates than ICE or plug-in hybrids.
Where I am currently, it’s -32°C before windchill, I’m not sure an EV would even make it to the next city with charging stations on a full charge. Admittedly im extra skeptical after people I know had so many issues with their tesla in the heat this summer reducing the battery life with A/C.
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