Reply to EVs (Teslas) DOA in cold weather

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[quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous]https://www.fox32chicago.com/news/dead-teslas-oak-brook

We are thinking of getting an EV but this gives me pause given today's temp.   I think I'm leaning towards a hybrid.

DC area doesn't get as cold as Chicago, but has anyone with an EV had issues charging their cars today?
[/quote]

I live in Utah at 8000 feet and it’s cold. More cold days than Chicago and definitely way more snow. No problem charging our Tesla here in the past 4 years. Precondition (heat) battery before charging. We have driven it to snowbird, Alta, Jackson hole, sun valley, etc when the temps were frigid. No issues. The Chicago story sounds frustrating for sure, but I’m not sure why the cars died, unless they showed up to the charger with 0% battery and had no power to precondition. If you navigate to a charger, your car knows that it will charge soon and will automatically start conditioning the battery for fast charge. Just like you don’t wait until the gas tank is empty before heading to the gas station, you shouldn’t wait until the battery is dead before heading to a charger. People have teslas in Finland and park them outside in arctic conditions without an issue, as long as they don’t let the charge drop too low.[/quote]
Does that mean you always have to be aware of the weather forecast to make sure your battery is preconditioned?[/quote]
No - regardless of the weather, when I pick a charger on navigation, Tesla preconditions the battery when we’re close. It makes charging quicker 
I’m on my third Tesla X and have had zero issues. I love that I can have it set to get warm before I get in on these cold days, and set it to keep warm when I’m running errands, so I never get in a cold car. It performs better in the winter snow and slush than my Landrover [/quote]
But, that only happens when you are driving to a destination, right?   What happens overnight, if your car is outside?  How would you  know to precondition your the battery without knowing the weather forecast?

Is your car in a garage? I think that makes a difference in regards to your car being able to charge.

If your car is outside, does the door handle freeze?  This guy spent an hour trying to open his door.

https://www.yahoo.com/news/electric-car-owners-confront-harsh-130352017.html

I don't have an EV, but I am thinking about it. Just trying to understand what I would be in for if I get one.  The cold weather issues do give me pause.[/quote]

We have 2 teslas. We switch one of them to winter tires (400” snow a year) and keep summer tires on the other. Summer Tesla is stored for the winter in an unheated shed and swapped with an ice car with winter tires that can hold 8 people and 8 pairs of skis for ourselves and our guests.

Summer Tesla is taken out of the shed every 4-6 weeks and over that period it will have about 20% battery, but I think there are many factors. We heat it up from below freezing for an hour or two  before we pick it up and we kept “waking it up” by checking the battery level on the app, and we also left sentry mode on.  No frozen handles (I think that was the old design where the handle pops out). That reminds me to turn sentry mode off right now!

Also, if you live in a really cold place, you check the weather for snow forecast, but it’s always cold. Like I will check the forecast for how much snow to expect, but I know it will be cold. Until march, basically. And then there will be some “warm” days in the 40’s here and there. [/quote]

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