Do electric vehicles lose range during Phoenix’s heat wave? - Arizona's Family

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PHOENIX (3TV/CBS 5) - Never having to stop at the pump sounds like a dream, with the price per gallon just under $4.00. But are electric vehicles really a better alternative in a place like Phoenix, with its extreme heat? “You definitely get a decrease in range because the air conditioning is working so hard,” said Jean-Luc Le Provost.

Jean-Luc Le Provost is a self-proclaimed car guy. He’s into fast, loud cars with big gas-guzzling engines. But he bought a quiet little Tesla two years ago. “Yes, it’s worth it. Absolutely it’s worth it,” he said.

In a recent study by Recurrent, a company that tracks EV battery efficiency, analysts found the higher the temperature, the more loss of range or distance on a single charge.

Data collected by the company shows the range loss at 80 degrees is about 2.8% and 5% at 90 degrees. But the range loss at 100 degrees can be around 31%. They preface that with a disclaimer saying data for temperatures that high is very limited.

“A combustion engine vehicle can use gas which lowers miles per gallon, but people don’t experience that because they fill up at the gas station, and electric car becomes more noticeable, although we see it’s much smaller than people often expect,” said Andy Garberson from Recurrent.

In other words, a gas-powered car also loses miles per gallon when the air conditioner is working in overdrive. Garberson said a car uses much more energy to warm the car in the cold months than to keep it cool in the summer. “So in winter people Minneapolis, the car has less range because maybe it’s 0° and they’re warming the cabin to 70°, and that’s a 70° difference. It’s less of an issue because it’s not even 100°, and you’re dropping it to 70, that’s 20 or 30°,” he said.

Garberson says electric vehicle drivers should precondition their battery while the car is plugged in to mitigate some of the energy needed to cool their car and try to park in shaded areas.

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