Cold – Just another barrier to overcome
Juice sucking temperatures
It has been known for a long time that cold weather and driving conditions can have a a great impact on the electric range of battery-powered cars. But how much of an impact?
While it will take years to fully understand that question via reliable real world evidence, preliminary data is starting to flow in, such as MotorTrend’s recent cold weather experiences with the Chevy Volt.
Most important, MotorTrend has found that the Volt is reliable in cold weather, both in terms of starting and handling, even in snowy conditions.
However, cold weather can have a pretty big impact on Volt fuel economy and energy efficiency, and if used for winter highway driving, the numbers can be somewhat unimpressive. Fortunately, MotorTrend’s testing was carried out during some pretty extreme winter weather, meaning this should pretty much be worst case scenario cold weather driving since these conditions only last a few months at most.
Anyway, if you’re interested in more on Volt performance in winter weather, check out MotorTrend.