We Don’t Need No Frozen Sparky Cars

Nobody saw this coming;

A new AAA study finds that when the thermometer dropped to 20 degrees Fahrenheit, [EV] range fell by an average of 41 percent on the five models it tested.
 
“We found that the impact of temperature on EVs is significantly more than we expected,” said Greg Brannon, AAA’s director of automotive engineering.
 
Some EV drivers — including this correspondent — recently found that range can drop by half when the mercury tumbles into negative territory. The AAA study appears to be the first to have used standard, repeatable methodology to confirm the problem and compare the effect of winter temperatures on different models.

Except for, eh, almost everybody.

30 Replies to “We Don’t Need No Frozen Sparky Cars”

  1. What a sad day for me on SDA. First of all, to my horror and surprise, the Panera Cares restaurants that let people pay what they want went out of business and now-NOW- I find to my shock and horror that the same problem car batteries have had in cold weather for, let me see now-oh ya forever- i.e. that they loose capacity- also happens to the batteries in EV’s.

    1. Not to worry Horny One …

      Just today, AOC announced “The Green New Deal” … today was the day when the homes flooded by Global Warming sea level rise began to dry out! And the day when flatulent cows were BANNED! No more cows! No more MEAT!! Yeayyyyy!!! We’re all Comrades Now!!!

      Oh, and she said that if you don’t want to work, and help usher in the New Dawn of our Greening … you can still receive a “paycheck” from the government. All in all a GREAT DAY on SDA

    2. I knew about battery power loss when I was a kid in school and that was a long time ago. Has everybody developed a stupid gene?

  2. I hate to break this to you, but the hive dwellers in the West did NOT see this coming. And unless ABCNNBCBS and their dead-tree fellow travelers spew this into their mouths, they won’t believe it. Because Science!

  3. Who knew batteries would freeze(My sons Jeep in Calgary 7 years ago)..Lol.. I saw a Tesla in Vanc. a few days ago. Was like -3-ish..Stressful ride no doubt.

  4. Tesla et al should simply install a small diesel generator in the trunk! I’d suggest the beautiful little Volkswagen 1.6 liter four cylinder that powered a couple of my cars in the 80’s. Just used as generators they’d probably run for about an hour per liter.

    Or throw the f***ing batter powered pos’s out and just use the VW motor, getting about 46 MPG with the old fashioned four speed standard, with today’s tech, probably get another 20 or so MPG, and reliable as anything on the market.

  5. Remember when the Gubbermint starts using Tax-payer’s funds for the some system which keeps the Elities children having Careers and high paying__”jobs which make a difference” another group of elites is telling some untrue ___Inconvenient Truths.

    naturally the Amygdala dominated suburban soccer moms will be the quickest to buy into being a Gore-Gullible. Probably as fast as bringing Measles as a Concern for North American Children again.

  6. And the solution they’re considering of course? Solar panels on the cars to keep the battery charged. Someone might want to mention earth’s inclination and the relationship to the sun at this time of year.

    1. Customer: My Tesla won’t charge even though the roof solar panel is installed.
      Technician: Where is the car now?
      Customer: In my garage.

  7. Next up; free towing to go with free charging for electric vehicle owners. Maybe add free rentals for when it’s too cold for your car.

    1. You may already know that if you want to get ANY new commercial or residential building approved in CA … you MUST provide a bevy of “Green” features including; solar panels, electric car charging stations, window shading, etc. most buildings are required to achieve a Leed Gold rating … or even Platinum rating.

      Requiring battery-Fire suppression systems, and towing services are not far behind.

      Does this add to the cost of construction and therefore rents? Dumb question.

  8. Gee, if they wanted to know about batteries and the effects of cold, they could have asked anyone in Saskatchewan with a car.

  9. The article states that similar to people, the batteries like a temperature of 70 degrees Fahrenheit.

    Electric cars should be nicknamed snowbirds, because the owners need to drive them south: 1. before the winter temperatures reduce their batteries capacity. 2. before the extra drain on what is left of the battery to keep the inside of the car warm. 3. before some battery drain is used to keep the batteries warm. 5. before more battery drain due to using the headlights during longer periods of darkness in the winter.

    Electric cars are basically glorified golf carts. Likewise should be sold only for summer time use.

    If, you’re hit by a van full of dogs on the highway, busted up and slide off into a slough.
    Are you then electrocuted? Just asking for a friend.

    1. Around “Are you electrocuted” – on a thread at IIRC Jo Nova back a while when Teslas were having a bit of a problem with water and fires. In comments there was a sequence like this:-

      “Is an ejection seat an option”

      “No, but it gives a loud ding when the occupants are done”

  10. It doesn’t matter how obviously impractical electric cars are. They’re rich men’s toys. If they actually need to get sonewhere they go in bullet-proof limos.

    Meanwhile, the time is coming when not only will your gun be confiscated but you will be forced at gunpoint to sell your perfectly functional car for its value in scrap. Just in case you use it as a weapon of terror, you see.

  11. “the effects of cold, they could have asked anyone in Saskatchewan”
    Our friend owns an auto parts outlet. He was telling us he has sold a ton of new car batteries since this brutal cold weather moved into the province.

  12. 41% less at 20 f.

    What’s the loss at -20

    Or at -40?

    And then how efficient are electric motors at those temps and what is the drain required to defrost the windows and heat the cabin ?

    Range anxiety when it’s sunny and 75f is one thing – at -35 and on a rural road miles from any charger it’s something else entirely.

  13. Too bad these auto engineers failed to read SDA, or talk to any Canadian outside major urban centres who ever owned a car. Suspect the real engineers already knew this, maybe not the media spokespeople.

  14. And then there is the problem of getting INTO your Tesla 3 with its flushed door handle that freezes in place and won’t pop out. But
    when it finally does pop out, the window doesn’t automatically retract and hangs up on the car roof. Tesla claims software update to
    address the problem is coming. Evidently the window in the door is frameless and thus to seal the car the window must run up into
    a gasketed groove in the roof and automatically retract a bit to allow the door to open.

    1. … and automatically retract a bit to allow the door to open.

      What could possibly go wrong? Jackholes…

      …I’ll pass on any vehicle that requires “software updates” to correct schitty engineering.

      1. Well then, you’d have to walk Past any GMC/Chev Duramax from 2011 to 2016. “Engineers” decided that the Injection pump needed to be re-engineered (CP4), as apparently, the perfectly good CP3 as its known, was not good enough for these new models.

        Now at least 15% of those trucks have had said pump implode destroying & contaminating their ENTIRE Fuel system. Tank to Injectors all require to be replaced. A serious chunk of change..!! (injectors alone are close to $ 9K), if it happens out of warranty. So the After Market has responded by offering an adapter kit to use the old CP3.

        I’ve never regretted buying my 06 LBZ D’Max….it’s still considered the Best one GM ever built…ya never see them or for that matter, any Classic Body style d’max in the Dealership.

        As for elect cars….? LOLOLOL. It looks wonderful on the virtue signalling imbeciles that bought them.
        Stupid is as Stupid Does – PERIOD.

      2. My 1983 Subaru brat has frameless doors. The windows do not need to retract to get in, and as far as I know the door seals are original, and they do not leak! Subaru could get this right a long long time ago, why can’t tesla?

  15. I think those stupid cars would work amazingly in Venezuela lol. Everyone associated with them should head on down there for a spell.

  16. It’s hard to believe engineers wouldn’t have seen this coming and tested for it. I wonder if manufacturers decided not to run too many stress tests so they didn’t have to lie when asked?

  17. Gee, that wouldn’t be the reason I had to go to Canadian Tire yesterday and buy a new battery to replace my 10 year old one? Something about 40 below and batteries. Why don’t the idiots at Tesla put a research centre in Alberta or Saskatchewan? I guess if they actually did the research they wouldn’t have plausible deniability.

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