The electric segment is still pretty new. This is why customers often have questions about how different conditions affect these vehicles. In this article, we discuss the effect of hot weather on the EV range. Besides this, we also highlight some tips to improve the life of your EV battery during hot weather.
How Much Does EV Range Decrease With Temperature?
So, first of all, you need to know that with heat, the range of your EV will definitely decrease. When the temperature rises above 35°C and you turn on the air conditioner, you must expect the EV range to drop by around 17%.
This is a huge drop and to take into perspective what this means consider an EV that has a range of 100 km. However, if its range decreases by 17% due to heat, the battery will be completely drained after just 83 kilometers.
In the EV world, each kilometer counts because if your battery dies at a place where no EV charger is available, you can get into a big mess really fast.
Is This Range Decrease Constant All Over The EV Segment?
This was suggested by research from AAA. However, Tesla was quick to react that its EVs do undergo range decrease with heat but the drop is not as substantial as suggested by AAA’s research.
How Much Does Range Drop For Tesla Vehicles?
According to Tesla, at temperatures above 35°C, its vehicles only see a drop in range by 1%.
Cost Of Running EVs Also Indirectly Increases During Hot Weather
This decrease in EV range also means that with time the owners will need to charge their batteries more often. While this might not be much, it still has an impact on the cost of running such EVs.
Degradation Of Battery Life With Temperature
Another important finding regarding EV batteries is that the life of these batteries deteriorates with time.
However, when such batteries are exposed to extreme heat, this deterioration is much more than that observed in moderate climate conditions.
Tips For Taking Care Of Your EV In Hot Weather
Here are a few useful tips that when properly followed are likely to considerably increase the range of your electric vehicle’s battery.
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Keep The Climate Control Moderate
During hot weather, we often feel inclined to keep the whole car cabin cool when in reality we just need to cool down the passengers.
This can mean the difference between safely reaching your destination with ample battery or standing on a roadside with no battery left.
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Drive Sensibly & Rationally
While driving, it is vital to adopt a moderate stance. This means that you must not drive rashly because doing so will put an extra load on the batteries and they will heat up faster.
Besides this, applying brakes also raises the temperature and this can be harmful.
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Don’t Use Fast Chargers Too Often
Using fast chargers too often also affects the life of your EV’s battery. The damage can increase further in hot weather.
Thus, try to adopt a moderate approach and minimize the usage of fast chargers.
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Keep It Plugged In
When an EV battery is plugged in, thermal management ensures that the battery stays cool.
This not only adds to the longevity of the batteries but also means that the battery temperature stays low.
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Don’t Overuse Accessories
The more accessories you use on your EV, the more power they will drain and thus the battery will also heat up quickly.
Thus, try to minimize the usage of accessories for taking care of your EV’s battery life during hot weather.
Final Verdict
By using these simple tips, we can ensure that the life of our EV batteries stays well.
This will not only keep the cost of running the EVs low, as mentioned above but will also mitigate the need to replace the EV batteries too often.
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