While these areas are never warm, it can make a slight difference to your winter battery capacity. Cold batteries do not charge as fast as warm batteries, that’s a fact. To ensure that you’re charging as efficiently as you can, try to charge when the battery is warm (i.e. just after driving) Be mindful of battery health throughout the year!
In the UK, winter temperatures average between 0 - 7 degrees Celsius - that’s between 8 to 15 degrees colder than a lithium battery can optimally perform. Due to the internal kinetics of the battery cell, colder temperatures slow the chemical reaction. What does this mean in real life? 10 - 15% less driving range.
Yes, frigid weather may reduce your EV battery range. Here's how to prepare Freezing temperatures can have a significant impact on an electric vehicle's battery, but experts say there are ways to mitigate the effects of extreme cold.
Yuasa, a producer of 12-volt car batteries, says: “Cold temperatures directly affect the performance of car batteries. In fact, at zero degrees celsius a battery will lose about 30 per cent of its cranking performance. If your car will not start it’s usually because there is an issue with your battery.”
Winter driving won’t harm your EV battery in the long run, but long-term exposure to extreme temperatures — whether freezing or boiling — can gradually affect its health. Luckily, most EVs have built-in battery management systems to keep things running smoothly, so you can stay on the road without worry.
The chemistry of EV batteries means that the bold claims in adverts are adversely affected when the mercury plummets – and Parkers’ research suggests that electric car range can typically drop by as much as a third in winter.