Get the BEST from your electric car, whatever the weather | Electrifying.com
We love to moan about the weather here in the UK it’s actually one of the first things that us Brits like to talk about We complain if it’s too hot We complain if it’s too cold and then there’s the rain there’s always the rain but look
It’s not just us that struggles with the extreme weather electric car batteries also work better when it’s mild but fear not electrified because we have teamed up with our friends at Nissan to come up with some hacks to make the most out of your car whatever the weather
You will know how your heating bill goes up in Winter because you have to use energy to make your home warm well you’ll also need energy to keep your car battery comfortable and if you use the power in the battery to do that it will mean you have less battery charge to
Drive around so you will see less range which is why you need to get to grips with something called preconditioning to get both you and the battery to a comfortable temperature let’s start with the battery now I know you can’t really see it but the battery is the most important part
Of an electric car and just like us humans battery packs do their best work when they are warm and cozy not too hot not too cold and not stood outside in a cold car park while everyone else is inside by the heater having hot drinks oh that’s better now the best way
To make sure that your car battery is in the best operational temperature is doing something called preconditioning now this is essentially where you can warm up the cabin and the battery while it’s plugged into the mains at home now it’s all very different uh depending on
The car that you’re driving but for the Nissan area I can do it via the Nissan Connect app so all I’ve got to do is set my departure time in the app and then it’ll be ready to go for when I leave so if I set it for 7 in the morning that’s
A bit early isn’t it set it for 9 there we go and then I put in the time and then the car will be nice and toasty and warm the moment that I open the door but the thing is crucially the best bit is that it’s warmed up the battery so it’s
All ready to go before you’ve even hit start with the cabin being at the perfect Goldilocks temperature before you actually set off means that you’re not using the battery to do any of the heating or the cooling so saving energy on the heating or the cooling while you’re being plugged into the mains
Means that you’ve got more energy to power the wheels simple the added bonus is that you’ll save all that time that you used to spend scraping ice off your windows and waiting for the car to get warm and this works in a similar way to warm weather as well say you’ve been
Working all day and your car has been parked in the sun use the precond conditioning cuz then the car will use the air conditioning to get the interior down to a comfortable temperature for when you’re ready to leave this Nissan area is also equipped with a clever battery management
Technology that also helps to look after your battery this liquid cooling system can cool down the battery cells when you are rapid charging for example or warm them up so that they’re at the ideal temperature to take a charge my next tip is a simple one heat
Your body and not the car you see when it comes to a petrol or a diesel engine they can generate quite a lot of excess Heat and that wasted heat then gets brought into the car and can warm you up thing with electric cars is the electric motors and the batteries don’t generate
That much heat well not enough anyway to keep me warm on a very cold morning so to generate a bit of warmth inside the heater has to draw charge from the battery cars like this ARA and the Nissan Leaf have a heat pump which is more efficient than an old-fashioned
Heater however you can save more energy by just heating your yourself and not the empty space around you in the car so you’ll do much better if you crank this down and then crank up the heated seats and the heated steering which this area has passenger in the front seat can also
Do the same thing oh and the same goes for the wind screen so instead of using the heater or the airor to defrost the windscreen press this button here and it will defrost it quicker on the other hand keeping your car interior cool on a
Hot day isn’t as tricky but the thing is is the air con still uses a lot of power so try not to turn the temperature down so low that you’re having to wear a winter coat in the middle of July and maybe shut the blinds on the sun roof
And try and park the car in the shade and try and figure out where the shade will be when you eventually come back to your car cuz apparently the sun moves who knew do you remember the days when we all had to carry a little cloth so that
We could wipe a smear Mark through the condensation so that we could see out of the window on cold and wet days with modern airon and heated wind screens it’s safer and easier but of course these things take energy so here is a little tip on how to keep your car fog
Free you know things like your damp coats and your wet dog beds and your blankets and your umbrellas and your Wellies put them in the boot because it will make the car smell nicer as well so while this area can go from 20 to 80% in about 40 minutes at a suitable
Charger it actually makes things faster if you stop less to charge I mean it makes more sense as well especially if you got kids in the back or it’s really hot or really cold outside you might find that taking things a little slower and mastering the driving modes might might mean that you
Can stop to charge less frequently like most electric cars this area has a normal mode for everyday driving sport for when you want the car to feel more responsive and a snow setting for when it’s really slippery oh by the way if you want to see that in action have a
Little look at our video of this car on a ski slope so cool but it’s this button here that is the most interesting so that puts it into eco mode so that engages the most economical settings for the motors and the ventilation system so you can go
Longer between charges and let me tell you now as soon as you put it into eco mode you will notice the difference in your range oh and keep an eye on the charge meter while you’re driving as well because teaching yourself to drive more efficiently May save you time and
Energy so another way to avoid having to charge on a long journey is to plot a different route now the satnav in the area will always give me a few different Alternatives and I can either do that in the Nissan connector app or on the screen in the car and while the Eco
Route may not be the fastest option it will save me the most amount of battery power because I’m doing a shorter route at a lower speed so while it may take a little bit longer you’re actually Saving Time by not having to stop and charge plus it’s more Scenic cuz you don’t have
To look at a Motorway the whole time and that my friends is our guide on how to get through a year of British weather while also making the most out of your car’s range
#electriccars #badweather #evs
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We love to moan about the weather here in Britain. It’s usually the first thing us Brits talk about. We complain that it’s either too hot or too cold. And then there’s the rain. Always the rain….
But it’s not just us that don’t like the extremes of the weather – your electric car’s battery performs better when the weather is mild too. But fear not lovely electrifiers, because we’ve got together with our friends at Nissan to come up with some brilliant hacks that will help you get the most from your car – whatever the weather!
You will know how your heating bill goes up in winter because you have to use energy to make your home warm. Well, you’ll also need energy to keep your car comfortable. And if you use the power in the battery to do that, it will mean you have less battery charge to drive around, so you will see less range. Which is why you need to get to grips with something called ‘preconditioning’ to get both you and the battery to a comfortable temperature.
Join Nicola as she guides you through all the various ways you can maximise your range in all kinds of weather conditions.
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