A Canadian study is causing a stir in the community of electric car owners. She explains that in winter, the best way to preserve your battery would be to drive faster.
This is a study that has been talked about a lot since its publication on February 6th. According to Geotab, a Canadian company that offers connected solutions for the automobile, driving faster would increase the autonomy of vehicles in winter. The statement is quite surprising and deserves to look not only at the results of Geotab’s work, but also at the methodology used. Do we really have to press on the mushroom as soon as the temperatures drop?
What does the study say? Geotab analysts explain very seriously that increasing your driving speed in winter can extend the range of electric cars, regardless of their size. The argument used is quite simple: according to the organization, at low temperatures, the energy required to heat the passenger compartment becomes too great. Therefore, reducing travel time by increasing its speed saves some precious kWh, even if the speed would also be a source of overconsumption. Concretely, heating would have a greater impact on final consumption than the energy needed to move the vehicle forward.
According to the study, this observation is valid on the vast majority of journeys and up to 110 km/h. Beyond that, and especially on the motorway, wind resistance (or aerodynamic drag) or air density will have a greater impact and will require more engine energy to combat.
A test protocol that questions
Geotab announces that it relies on the analysis of more than 350,000 routes, made by around 500 electric sedans, i.e. around 180,000 hours of driving data available. The body has also extended its research to electric utilities and minivans on an even higher volume. Data from more than 2,000 commercial vehicles were collected, over more than 2.8 million journeys, or 370,000 hours of driving. All the data collected was smoothed on a 65 kWh battery model in order to obtain truly comparable data.
Aware of walking on a tightrope, the organization therefore relies on the large volume of data analyzed to support its argument. The fact remains that his study has some biases.
A study that quickly shows its limits
Can the Geotab study be taken seriously? If it is difficult to question the data observed, it is still possible to question the methodology used, the absence of certain data, and the very theoretical aspect of the whole. Explanations.
The Canadian organization, for example, forgets to mention the average travel time of each trip analyzed. Indeed, the energy consumption necessary for heating the passenger compartment is reduced as the vehicle is used. In other words, after 30 minutes of driving, the interior of the vehicle having already risen to temperature, the battery will be less stressed.
The study also omits any practical aspect. Indeed, there is nothing to indicate whether or not the vehicles used were equipped with a heat pump and especially whether their users used the preheating option before starting their journey. However, any sensible user of an electric car knows to what extent the option of preheating the cabin, when the car is connected to the network, allows the battery to be preserved.
Finally, how not to question the merits of a study that encourages increasing driving speed even though it is known that a reduction in the latter reduces the risk of an accident.
Geotab
