The Impact of Weather and Temperature on Electric Vehicle Range

We know that weather and temperature have an effect on the range of EVs, but by how much? Consumer Reports conducted seasonal testing on some new all-wheel drive EVs that we have in our fleet to find out. We had the same drivers driving a caravan on three different days, testing on a frigid day in the winter, a mild day in the spring, and a hot day in the middle of the summer.

Each car started with a full charge, and we let them charge overnight to their max capacity. We also checked the tire pressure to make sure it aligned with what the door sticker says it should be. All the cars were driven on the same 142-mile loop for each test. We saw a clear trend among all the vehicles we tested.

Unsurprisingly, winter resulted in the shortest range. However, what was most surprising was that we expected to get the best range in mild temperatures because the air conditioning and heating system would have to do less work. But in fact, we got the best range on the hottest day during the summer. This test helps show that EV range is not an absolute metric.

Weather, hills, climate, temperature, cargo, passenger aerodynamics, not to mention speed and traffic can all have dramatic impacts on your EV's range. We also need to adjust our mindset a little bit for EVs unlike a gas car where they're more efficient on the highway and less efficient in stop-and-go city traffic. EVs are actually less efficient on the highway as our test shows, and they're more efficient in the city.

There are a couple of reasons why this is the case. Firstly, an internal combustion engine has a sweet spot where it's most efficient on the highway, where RPM is low but load is high. The internal combustion engine operates in a more efficient range next. Secondly, internal combustion engines use fuel while idling and are far less efficient during stop-and-go traffic compared to an EV.

Lastly, EVs get to take advantage of regenerative braking. This means that during stop-and-go in the city, some of that brake energy rather than being lost to heat is being returned to the battery when you're cruising on the highway with your EV. However, this advantage is lost when you're driving on the highway.

Another interesting finding was that the Mustang Machi was the best at predicting its range when we got into the car for all three tests, whether it was winter mild temperatures or summer. It did the best job at showing us on the gauge cluster how far it thought we could go.

The Test Methodology

Consumer Reports conducted the testing using a similar methodology for each vehicle tested. Each test consisted of driving the same 142-mile loop in one car, with the same drivers and conditions, to ensure that any range differences were due to the specific vehicle being tested rather than external factors.

For each test, we started with a full charge overnight to maximize the range. We also checked the tire pressure to ensure it aligned with the manufacturer's recommended specifications. This helped to minimize any potential variations in the results due to differences in tire pressure.

The Vehicles Tested

The vehicles tested were all new all-wheel drive EVs that Consumer Reports had in its fleet. The exact models were not specified, but they included the Mustang Machi, which was found to be one of the best at predicting its range during the testing.

By conducting this testing, we can gain a better understanding of how weather and temperature affect the range of EVs, as well as other factors that may impact their efficiency. This information will help consumers make more informed decisions when choosing an EV for their needs.

"WEBVTTKind: captionsLanguage: enwe know that weather and temperature has an effect on the range of EVS but by how much over the last year Consumer Reports conducted seasonal testing on some new all-wheel drive EVS that we have in our Fleet we had the same drivers driving a caravan on three different days we tested on a frigid day in the winter a mild day in the spring and a hot day in the middle of the summer now of course each car started with a full charge we let them charge overnight to their Max Capacity we also checked the tire pressure to make sure it aligned with what the door sticker says it should be all the cars were driven on the same 142 mile Loop for each test we saw a clear Trend among all the vehicles we tested unsurprisingly winter resulted in the shortest range what was most surprising on the other hand is that we expected to get the best range in mild temperatures because the air conditioning and heating system would have to do less work but in fact we got the best range on the hottest day during the summer what this test helps show is that EV range is not an absolute metric weather Hills climate temperature cargo passenger aerodynamics not to mention speed and traffic can all have dramatic impacts on your ev's range we also need to adjust our mindset a little bit for EVS unlike a gas car where they're more efficient on the highway and less efficient in stop and go City traffic EVS are the opposite they're actually less efficient on the highway as our Test shows and they're more efficient in the city there are a couple reasons for this first an internal combustion engine has a sweet spot where it's most efficient on the highway where RPM is low but load is high the internal combustion engine operates in a more efficient range next internal combustion engines use fuel while idling and are far less efficient during stop and go traffic compared to an EV lastly EVS get to take advantage of regenerative braking this means that during stop and go in the city some of that brake energy rather than being lost to heat is being returned to the battery when you're cruising on the highway with your EV this Advantage is lost another interesting finding is that the Mustang Machi was the best at predicting its range when we got into the car for all three tests whether it was Winter mild temperatures or summer it did the best job at showing us on the gauge cluster how far it thought we could gowe know that weather and temperature has an effect on the range of EVS but by how much over the last year Consumer Reports conducted seasonal testing on some new all-wheel drive EVS that we have in our Fleet we had the same drivers driving a caravan on three different days we tested on a frigid day in the winter a mild day in the spring and a hot day in the middle of the summer now of course each car started with a full charge we let them charge overnight to their Max Capacity we also checked the tire pressure to make sure it aligned with what the door sticker says it should be all the cars were driven on the same 142 mile Loop for each test we saw a clear Trend among all the vehicles we tested unsurprisingly winter resulted in the shortest range what was most surprising on the other hand is that we expected to get the best range in mild temperatures because the air conditioning and heating system would have to do less work but in fact we got the best range on the hottest day during the summer what this test helps show is that EV range is not an absolute metric weather Hills climate temperature cargo passenger aerodynamics not to mention speed and traffic can all have dramatic impacts on your ev's range we also need to adjust our mindset a little bit for EVS unlike a gas car where they're more efficient on the highway and less efficient in stop and go City traffic EVS are the opposite they're actually less efficient on the highway as our Test shows and they're more efficient in the city there are a couple reasons for this first an internal combustion engine has a sweet spot where it's most efficient on the highway where RPM is low but load is high the internal combustion engine operates in a more efficient range next internal combustion engines use fuel while idling and are far less efficient during stop and go traffic compared to an EV lastly EVS get to take advantage of regenerative braking this means that during stop and go in the city some of that brake energy rather than being lost to heat is being returned to the battery when you're cruising on the highway with your EV this Advantage is lost another interesting finding is that the Mustang Machi was the best at predicting its range when we got into the car for all three tests whether it was Winter mild temperatures or summer it did the best job at showing us on the gauge cluster how far it thought we could go\n"