Autonomy in cold weather is a source of real concern for many motorists who are thinking of taking the path of electromobility. To see more clearly, CAA-Quebec has led a large winter test bench bringing together 14 electric models. The objective of experience: fully exhaust the batteries of these vehicles to compare the gap between the estimated autonomy and that obtained in winter.
Made on a journey between Mont -Tremblant and Ottawa while the temperature oscillated between -7 ° C and -15 ° C, this large test made it possible to identify very interesting data on the impact of cold on certain electrical models. Vehicle settings have been standardized to ensure a good comparison base.
It is the Chevrolet Silverado EV van which came out a large winner both in terms of the autonomy obtained of 456 km and the gap with the estimated autonomy, encrypted at 14 %. The Polestar 2 also obtained a difference of 14 % by covering 384 km. The Kia EV9 and Volkswagen ID.4 are ex æquo in third position with a degradation of 20 % of their autonomy by achieving 349 km and 338 km. The Honda Prologue won the fifth position with a loss of autonomy of 24 % by covering 334 km.
The Volvo Ex40 occupies the last place in the ranking with a 39 % stretch of the distance traveled, encrypted at 248 km during the exercise, not far behind the Toyota BZ4X (loss of 37 % and 255 km curly).
Recharge also suffers
CAA-Québec also looked into the recharge speed of vehicles used during the test bench. This can slow down winter considerably to protect cells from high-voltage batteries and during the regulation phase of their temperature. The tests were all carried out on a quick charging station.
It is to the Tesla Model 3 that the fastest charging palm returns with 205 km stored in 15 minutes, just in front of the Chevrolet Silverado EV which accumulated 199 km in as much time. The Chevrolet Equinox EV closes the podium by increasing its autonomy by 131 km, still in 15 minutes.
At the bottom of the ranking, we find the Toyota BZ4X which managed to accumulate only 19 km in 15 minutes and maintained a charging power of only 33 kW during the test. This has increased the recharge time to 92 minutes to get the charge from 10 to 80 %. The Kia Niro EV has barely done better, with 35 km garnered in 15 minutes and 77 minutes to grow from 10 to 80 % the battery load (average of 36 kW of power). It's extremely slow, it goes without saying.
The disparity between this collected data is partly explained by the technologies used by manufacturers in the chemistry of their batteries as well as their thermoregulation in addition to the maximum voltage of electric architectures. It is therefore necessary to have these variables in mind when purchasing an electric vehicle to avoid bitter disappointment when using them in cold weather.
