As the winter chill sets in, you might be wondering how low temperatures can affect your electric vehicle (EV). Like any car, it can feel the impact of colder weather, so it’s helpful to know how to care for your battery during the winter months.
Motoring expert Gareth Herincx shares his top tips for looking after your EV battery in the cold, helping it last longer and stay in great condition.
While you cannot control the weather, you can control how you prepare, drive, and look after your car. Here are some tips to get the best out of your EV when it gets cold outside.
How cold weather affects your EV battery
No matter the type of car you drive, the winter months bring their own set of challenges for drivers. If you’ve switched to a fully electric car, or you’re thinking about it, it’s helpful to know that driving and taking care of an EV can be a bit different, especially during winter.
The batteries in EVs, called lithium-ion batteries, work best when the outdoor temperature is around 20°-25°C. They make electricity through chemical reactions to power the car. But when it gets cold, these reactions slow down which can make the battery less efficient.
According to research by What Car?, cold weather can reduce an EV’s range by around 15-20% and it can slow down charging speeds.
Battery power: Under the skin of a Nissan Leaf
Tips to make your battery last in cold weather
Getting the most miles from your electric car in cold weather can be simple with a few helpful tips.
1. Cover up your EV
If you can, keep your electric car in a garage (preferably one with some heat) during the winter. This will protect it from the cold and help the battery charge better. If you do not have access to a garage or carport, think about getting a cover to keep your car warmer.
2. Precondition your EV
As with any car, turning on the heating can use up some of your fuel or battery. There’s a feature, unique to EVs, that can help with this. You can use preconditioning to set the temperature of the cabin before leaving the house. It can also demist and defrost windows in winter. Ideally, you should precondition while your EV is plugged in at home so that you do not use any extra battery. Some EVs have battery preconditioning too, which makes sure your battery operates at its ideal temperature. It can heat up or cool down your battery automatically while you’re driving, and make sure it’s prepared for recharging if you’ve set a charging stop in the sat nav.
Go electric with the Motability Scheme
As a part of the full lease package with the Motability Scheme, you can get a home chargepoint installed at no extra cost with Scheme partner, Ohme.
Settings for pre-conditioning the cabin of a Hyundai Ioniq 5
3. Watch out for extreme weather
All the usual winter driving tips for petrol and diesel cars still apply to EVs, but there are a few differences. Big battery packs tend to make EVs heavier, which means that it can be harder to correct sliding in slippery conditions. Many modern electric cars have more advanced traction control systems than petrol and diesel vehicles, which adjust power to each wheel. This is turn can help with handling on icy roads.
Your breakdown cover with the RAC
You get breakdown cover as part of your all-inclusive package with the Motability Scheme.
The quickest and easiest way to report a breakdown to the RAC is through the MyRAC app. The app can pinpoint your location so the RAC will know exactly where to find you.
Tips to care for your EV in winter
There are also simple, practical things you can do to look after your electric vehicle during the colder months, most of which also apply to petrol and diesel cars.
1. Keep it clean
If you don’t have a garage or cover, park your car away from trees. Trees can drop sticky sap that can damage your car’s paint, and birds in trees can leave droppings on your car too. It’s also a good idea to keep your car and wheels clean too. Washing off things like salt from the road can help protect your car’s paintwork and prevent rust.
Under the bonnet of a Kia Niro EV
2. Get your maintenance checks
EVs have fewer moving parts than conventional cars, meaning they usually need less maintenance than a petrol or diesel car. But there are a few simple things you should check on regularly to make sure all is running smoothly.
You should make sure the three key fluids are topped up regularly: coolant fluid, brake fluid, and windscreen washer. It’s also a good idea to check your wiper blades are clean so they do not leave smears. Also, by law, all your car’s light need to work, from the headlights to the small light above your number plate.
Servicing and routine repairs with the Motability Scheme
Regular servicing and maintenance are included as part of your all-inclusive package for your electric car. You’ll have your car serviced at set times during your lease or once you’ve driven a certain number of miles. Most dealers will contact you when your service is due, but you can also see your service date in your Motability Scheme online account.
3. De-ice properly
Unless you’ve pre-conditioned your car, the rules for defrosting an EV’s windscreen are the same as a petrol or diesel car. You should use a de-icer spray and/or scraper to remove the frost. Do not use boiling water because it can crack the windscreen. If you can, you should cover your windscreen the night before, as this can make it easier to clear in the morning.
4. Check your tyres
You should regularly check the pressure on your tyres, as colder weather can make the air inside your tyres shrink, lowering the pressure. Having too much or too little air in your tyres can affect how well your car grips the road and how easy it is to steer. Also, look over your tyres for any damage, like cuts, bumps or nails stuck in them. Try to check the tread depth of your tyres at least once a month, as the legal minimum is 1.6mm.
6. Charge safely
It’s is perfectly safe to charge your EV in winter weather. Public chargers and home chargers are built to handle all kinds of weather safely. They’re designed to resist water and stay safe even in rain or snow.
There are things you can do to keep your charging safe, like regularly checking your charging cable for wear and tear and replace it if there’s any damage.
Tips to look after your EV’s battery
Electric car batteries, like those in phones and other gadgets, naturally wear down over time. Here’s how you can help your EV battery stay strong for longer:
1. Avoid overcharging
To help your EV’s battery last longer, try to charge it only when needed. EV batteries work best when kept in the 20-80% charge range, so there’s no need to charge it every night if you still have plenty of battery left for the next day.
2. Let the battery cool down
After a long drive in your EV, it’s a good idea to let the battery to cool down for 10-15 minutes before charging. In general, batteries perform better when warm but charge better when cool.
3. Parking up your EV
If you need to have to leave your EV parked for a while without driving it, RAC recommends that you leave it with around 30-60% of charge. Some EVs also have special power-saving modes to use less energy when the car is not being use for a long time.
4. Keep it smooth
The best way to drive any car is to avoid quick acceleration or hard braking and stay within the speed limit. Driving sensibly is especially important in an EV during colder months to help the battery last longer and go further.
Also, make the most of regenerative braking as this can add a few extra miles to your range, like when going down a long, steep hill.
5. Turn on Eco mode
Use your EV’s Eco mode, which saves power and helps you go further by using less energy for the motor and high-energy features like heaters.
Find an electric car with the Motability Scheme
You can see the full range of electric vehicles (EVs) available on the Motability Scheme. Simply click the ‘Electric’ box under ‘Fuel Type’ in our Find a vehicle tool.
Request a free information pack to learn more about the Scheme.
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