Even if the reporter fabricated parts of the story, aren't the concerns about driving in cold weather still relevant? Any Tesla owners want to weigh in?
No more so than the concerns of driving in warm weather (AC uses electricity). You get less than optimal mileage in less than optimal conditions. This is true for any vehicle. My gas powered car jumps around on its range calculation too.
As a Norwegian and Tesla investor, I must admit I'm a bit worried by this story. Isn't range also affected by the batteries performing worse in cold weather? If this effect is worse than Tesla had anticipated (weather this cold is routine where I live, Norway, and this is slated to become the second biggest Model S market after the US), I am worried that they might have missed other things as well.
Tesla is located in California. It's a really hot and really dry climate. How about cabin fogging and moisture? How about the #1 killer of cars in wet and icy climates, rust? It seems elementary, and it should be. But like I said, I must admit I'm a bit worried.
I'm rooting for Tesla, but it would be a hilarious testament to Californian hubris if the Model S was undone by failure to consider the fact that other places have weather.
According to an owner's report(1), driving Nissan Leaf in cold winter (Canada) with aggressive heating reduces its range to about half of its claimed 160km optimal range.
One big difference is that heat (and thus warm air) is a by-product of internal combustion, so a typical car's heater will ALWAYS work, which turns out to be critical for survival in certain climates. Having the A/C go down in extremely hot weather will leave you uncomfortable; having the heater go down in extremely cold weather can kill you.
The author "had" to go heat off because he neglected to charge his vehicle. If you don't put gas into your conventional car it will also pose a safety concern in the winter.
> One big difference is that heat (and thus warm air) is a by-product of internal combustion, so a typical car's heater will ALWAYS work, which turns out to be critical for survival in certain climates.
It'll work as long as you have gas, just as the Tesla's will work as long as you have battery.
Was just what I was thinking. Running out of gas, or having your engine crash in -40 degree Celcius weather is a life-threatening situation if you've been stupid and not packed any clothes.
> 1) gasoline-fueled cars have a significantly higher range than their electric battery-fueled peers,
The Tesla's 300 mile range is pretty close to most of the gas-powered cars I've owned here in the US.
> 2) heat is "free" in a gas-fueled car where it's an added cost in electric battery-fueled cars, and
Yes, but idling an electric car is free, where it's an added cost in gasoline-fueled cars. If I slide into a ditch in winter and get stuck, I'm going to be depleting my fuel either way.
With a 16-gallon tank at 25MPG, you'd get 400 driving miles out of a tank, and many hours of idling (assuming typical consumption of 1/4 to 1/2 gallon per hour idling gives us a minimum of 32 hours on a 16-gallon tank of gas). It's not clear how long you could run just the heater on a model S, but I'd assume it's over a day on a relatively full charge. Still, 33% more range is nothing to sneeze at.
While I'm at it, I'll also note the density of gas stations as a huge advantage over the relatively sparse network of battery charging stations, which can certainly add to the anxiety of winter driving, as mentioned in the review.
I just want to tell my atypical story. I moved to Illinois from Florida, for grad school. My car was 12 years old. I had bought it used in Miami. The A/C worked fine. Come November of my First Real Winter, I find that the heater didn't work at all. Probably a stuck switch somewhere, having not been moved for years. Decided it was cheaper to keep all my gear on while driving than to get the car fixed. Made for some very cold trips.
I wouldn't want to drive in those critically cold areas without blankets/sleeping bag in case there was a problem and the car broke down. I've not been in temperatures cold enough for me to be unable to survive for an hour, with the clothes and blanket I've had in the car. (Worst was when I locked myself out of the car in the NM desert and had to sleep overnight in my coat in ~20F weather until a nearby store opened the next morning.)
And I wouldn't want to drive in the desert SW without lots of extra water, for the same reason.
