EVs versus winter driving!

Winter weather works all cars hard, given you’ll typically be driving with lights blazing, demisters blowing and heated wheels and seats set for maximum cosiness. All of which draws more power and increases fuel consumption for petrols, diesels and hybrids alike. Electric cars really feel the cold, though, the complexities of battery chemistry meaning range can plummet while charging times increase. But by exactly how much?
We’ve been running various electric vehicles for our long-term tests and our Expert Reviews team has been reporting back on their performance throughout that time, offering more meaningful insight into what they’re like to live with all year round, not just on a sunny Spanish press event! The recent drop in temperatures has revealed some significant changes in the way these cars perform, though, and you can read more about our experiences below. The results may shock you! Before we get to that if you’re not already up to speed with electric car jargon (you might need to be for what follows!) check out our guides to batteries, charging and the differences between plugging in on public chargers and at home! If you don’t have time for that here are some quick tips for getting the most out of your electric car in winter weather: • Choosing a new electric car? Try and find one with a heat pump to avoid losing out on range when the heaters are blasting • If you have a home charger programme a departure time to defrost the car and bring the battery up to its most efficient temperature before you set off • Eco modes and regenerative braking can help grip in slippery conditions, as well as making the most of your battery • Range will be less than in summer so plan your trip and potential charge stops accordingly, even for regular journeys you know well • Put your destination into the in-car navigation rather than CarPlay or Google Maps for a more accurate calculation of how much range you have to play with • Avoid resetting your trip computer if possible – the more info it has on your driving habits and the conditions the more accurate it will be in its range preditions Skip to: Renault 5 E-Tech Electric Toyota Urban Cruiser VW ID.7 Tourer Farizon SV Winter Driving Tips

Dan says: “Realistically that means a not much more than 100 miles on a FULL charge, or effectively 80 or so before squeaky bum time”

I took delivery of the Renault 5 back in August, and was immediately impressed by its relative efficiency. Mental arithmetic is all part of EV ownership, and multiplying the 3.5 miles per kWh on the trip computer by the 52kWh battery capacity suggested a dependable 180 miles or so on a full charge, which is some way short of the 252 miles claimed by Renault by the WLTP test figures. But these aren’t realistic for what you’ll get in the real world anyway, and 150 miles between top-ups didn’t leave me feeling too short-changed. Then winter hit. And at the moment I’m only getting a little over two miles per kWh. Realistically that means a not much more than 100 miles on a FULL charge, or effectively 80 or so before squeaky bum time. That doesn’t leave much margin on my 75-mile round-trip commute to Manchester. And ‘my’ 5 has the bigger of the two battery options! I could just about live with this if the range prediction was keeping pace. But in the cold weather it drops twice as fast as the ground I’m covering. For example, the last time I set off for Manchester it promised 128 miles of range, but after just 30 actual miles covered this plunged to just 56 miles. 10 of which it then ‘lost’ while parked, meaning I got home with just 13 miles of actual range left. It’s still a cute looking car and lovely to drive. But I think I’ve come down with a bit of seasonal range anxiety! Dan Trent
Living with a Renault 5 E-Tech Electric Search for a Renault 5 E-Tech Electric on Autotradera Back to top

I picked up ‘my’ Toyota Urban Cruiser in early December and immediately set off on a 240-mile journey. I have enough experience with electric cars to know they won’t be as efficient in colder weather, and I was dubious of the Urban Cruiser’s claim it could do 211 miles on a full charge. My husband’s Renault Megane E-Tech is a similar EV and it gets a real-world range between 160-180 miles at this time of year, so I was hoping the Urban Cruiser would be about the same. You can imagine my disappointment when 100 miles into my trip the Urban Cruiser said it was averaging 2.5 miles/kWh, equating to a maximum range of only 150 miles. This didn’t align with the 90 miles of claimed range the car was displaying with 44 per cent charge still left in the battery and, not knowing which number to trust, I thought it best to top it up. Half an hour later the Urban Cruiser was back up to 81 per cent and reckoned it was good for 170 miles – I was not so sure. I didn’t want to stop again and by limiting my speed to under 60mph for the last 100 miles of the trip, I arrived home with nine per cent and a claimed 18 miles left in the battery. When I sat down to crunch the numbers, my calculation suggested the Urban Cruiser had in fact managed between 2.9-3.2 miles/kWh, so not quite as bad as I thought. However, this goes to show how important it is to get to know your car in different conditions because the range shown on the dashboard is only an estimate and it’s often wildly off the mark. The good thing about starting my time with the Urban Cruiser in winter is I’m getting to know it at its least efficient. Hopefully the only way is up from here! Catherine Kent
Read the review Search for a Toyota Urban Cruiser on Autotrader Back to top

Erin says: “We’ve gone from touching 400 miles to praying for 300 on a full charge”

Imagine my relief when the electric car I would be living with for the next six months turned up with a full range of almost 400 miles. Happy, happy days. With a home charger for the overnight top-up, it would mean farewell to my public charging friends. Smug? You bet. It would be like driving a petrol car, which is the highest praise for an electric car. But that was back in the halcyon days of early autumn. Now we're all shivering round a single hot water bottle so we don't have to pay for heating oil as the temperature stays stubbornly below zero for three consecutive days. And what of the ID.7’s range in this period? Buggered, is the technical term, I believe. We’ve gone from touching 400 miles to praying for 300 on a full charge. Efficiency has fallen to 2.4 miles/kWh, which is the electric equivalent to miles per gallon. All this is down to the cold weather requiring more energy from your car in all directions. Does that make the ID.7 a bad EV? Judging by the experiences of my colleagues in their electric cars, the answer is no. That electric cars lose range in cold weather is accepted, and part of the deal. The bigger question is should car brands be more honest about what consumers can expect all year around? The answer to that, surely, is yes. Erin Baker
Living with a VW ID.7 Tourer Search for a VW ID.7 Tourer on Autotrader Back to top

The Farizon SV is one of the first drive-by-wire electric vans to hit the UK market so I was excited to have it on test over the festive break. It’s a striking vehicle, all modern curves and LED lights backed up with solid levels of equipment, tech and safety systems. It’s also practical, with load volumes of up to 13 cubic metres and payloads exceeding 1,300kg. But cold weather is the bane of electric vans. If they didn’t have to carry any weight, they’d have an easier time but that’s not how they’re used. So, I loaded the van with 250kg of dummy cargo and set off to a family gathering. The journey was around 22 miles in two-degree winter weather on A-roads and a dual-carriageway. We started our trip on 86 per cent charge showing 192 miles of range, the claimed WLTP maximum range for this model 230 miles with its 83kWh battery fully charged. The heaters were on, air-con engaged and regenerative braking set to its lowest level. Average speed on the journey was 60mph, most of that on a dual-carriageway. We arrived with 62 per cent charge and 159 miles remaining. Breaking that down, we used 24 per cent or 19.9kWh of the battery’s charge and lost 33 miles of range on a 22-mile journey. That equates to 1.7 miles/kWh against the vehicle’s quoted efficiency of 2.4 miles/kWh, though selecting more regenerative braking might have helped. Of course, we weren’t carrying anywhere near the vehicle’s maximum payload capacity. If we were, it’s likely our 22-mile journey in cold weather could have left us with little over 130 miles of range. The positive takeaway is that the range of the Farizon SV feels reliable in cold weather. After all, if the average van driver in the UK drives 30 miles per day, even in sustained cold weather the SV will only need recharging once every five or six days. Which feels about right to me. Tom Roberts
Search for a Farizon SV on Autotrader Read the review Read more about electric vans on Autotrader Back to top

More winter driving tips at the links below!
General winter driving tips Winter driving essentials Winter driving in vans Best cars for snow Electric cars in winter Winter tyres explained