Generally speaking, cars and cold weather don’t mix.

Frozen windshields, losing grip on the roads and increased fuel consumption are all things motorists have to deal with once the winter sweeps in.

While electric cars offer benefits over petrol and diesel ones, they’re also affected by the cold weather.

And we’re not talking about being frozen out of your Tesla because the door handles don’t work, either.

By far one of the most susceptible areas of any car in sub-zero temperatures is the battery. For obvious reasons, this is more of an issue on electric cars.

Interestingly, while many modern EVs are designed to maintain battery temperature (within a certain range) the drawdown on the power source actually comes from us. In cold weather, vehicle occupants obviously turn their cars heating system up and this, in turn, sucks a huge amount of energy from the car battery.

For the study, the AAA tested several different EV models at -6°C, 23°C
and 35°C to determine the effect of ambient temperature on energy consumption and driving range.

The study explained: ‘As temperature decreases, diffusion, conductivity and reaction rates decrease; this leads to increased voltage perturbation and heat generation. Additional heat generation represents a waste of useful energy; at the macro level, this is manifested as reduced driving range and equivalent fuel economy.

‘Additionally, depending on the ambient temperature and the specific architecture of the battery thermal management system, energy may be expended to heat the
traction battery via resistive heating.’

At the admittedly-very-frosty temperature of -6°C, the 2018 BMW i3 lost 26 miles of range compared to 23°C.

The range loss for a 2018 Chevrolet Bolt and 2018 Nissan Leaf under the same conditions were 25 miles and 15 miles respectively. Two other electric cars, a Tesla Model S and Volkswagen e-Golf were also tested and also dropped range.

The study authors concluded: ‘In isolation, hot and cold ambient temperatures did not cause dramatic reductions of driving range and equivalent fuel economy.

‘However, it was observed that ambient temperature influences both parameters to some degree regardless of driving behavior and HVAC use. Motorists that utilize electric vehicles should be mindful of ambient temperatures in their area and plan to compensate for decreased driving range during periods of extreme hot or cold weather.’

We can’t stop the mercury falling during winter, but there are some ways to try and maintain battery life. These include keeping tyre pressure at the recommended level, keeping the weight down by travelling light and not speeding or sudden braking. Bear in mind that charging speed can also be affected by low temperatures.

We’d also recommend heating up the vehicle’s interior while the battery is plugged in and recharging – meaning you won’t be draining preciuous charge while on the road.

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