Teslas in Norway [image credit: Norsk Elbilforening (Norwegian Electric Vehicle Association)]
EVs are looking like yet another ‘save the planet’ fiasco in the making. Some of the points made here were already known, but these studies reinforce them. As many EVs on the road are still relatively new, the full extent of any problems may not yet be clear. With the help of large subsidies and other incentives they sell well in Norway despite the cold winters there.
According to recent studies, cold temperatures significantly reduce the performance of electric cars, especially when it comes to battery life.
One study by AAA suggested that cold temperatures can reduce the range of the batteries in most electric cars by over 40 percent, reports Anonymous News.
It was also noted that the performance can be even worse when the interior heaters are used.
However, even electric car owners who live in hot regions are not safe, because high temperatures can also reduce battery range, although to a far lesser degree.
Luckily, this damage is not permanent, and the battery range returns to normal when average temperatures return, but even if that is the case, this would make electric cars unfeasible for a large portion of the population who live in areas where the temperature is not ideal.
Electric car owners have been discovering this fact over the years as they have attempted to drive their vehicles in extreme temperatures. They are finding that their new vehicles are much more sensitive to temperature than the ones they owned before.
Greg Brannon, AAA’s director of automotive engineering, said that it is important for drivers of electric cars to understand that these vehicles have limitations in extreme climates, this way they are less likely to get caught off guard and stuck out in the cold when their car unexpectedly runs out of battery life.
Full report here.
via Tallbloke’s Talkshop
December 4, 2019 at 11:00AM
Iowa Climate Science Education 