Chevy Bolt EV Forum banner
  • Hey Guest, welcome to ChevyBolt.org. We encourage you to register to engage in conversations about your Bolt.

Chevy Bolt rated worse winter EV by recurrent

24K views 121 replies 48 participants last post by  JRRF 
#1 ·
#33 ·
It's consistent with Norway's findings for the Ampera-e in winter weather. Definitely the worst loss of range.

EDIT: 20 popular EVs tested in Norwegian winter conditions
Opel Ampera-e only managed 70 percent of the stated range (WLTP). The car still has a good range that meets most needs. But the combination of a high price and a battery pack that only charges with a maximum of 50 kW, makes Ampera-e appear outdated in today's electric car market.
 
#3 ·
Saw another report that said 20 to 30% for the Bolt. I can recall 1 maybe 2 posts from people mentioning these percentages.
Various people blame the heater as a major contributor to that loss. Since I don’t live up North I can Niether confirm nor deny theses values.
would be curious to see who does
 
#4 ·
Saw another report that said 20 to 30% for the Bolt. I can recall 1 maybe 2 posts from people mentioning these percentages.
Various people blame the heater as a major contributor to that loss. Since I don’t live up North I can Niether confirm nor deny theses values.
would be curious to see who does
Mine is ~17% less now than during summer months, similar driving patterns. I rarely use the cabin heating and generally precondition before going out. Most of my driving is short errands.

My recent 2000 mile trip to LA had similar efficiency with snow, and temps in the 20-40F range for well over half the miles each direction as my summer trip to AZ with similar distances. I really couldn't say range/efficiency were really much different on these two trips, about .1 to .2 miles/kWh difference max. The LA trip used virtually no cabin heating, the AZ trip used minimal AC.

Without knowing methodology, it is hard to say how reliable the stats are. Bolt with cabin heating will obviously be less efficient than EVs with heat pumps.
 
#5 ·
Sort of a misleading title isn't it? The BOLT is worse in that it suffers the most range drop, but that's only an issue if you don't drive the car as a commuter/daily/around town car. Once you get home just charge it back up 'full'. Other than that how it it worse? It's got great visibility, the weight/front-wheel drive should provide decent grip, the safeties like emergency braking, etc. are all top-notch. The all-seasons aren't snow tires but they're ok.

For longer distance travel, in general, the BOLT's older, slower and lower-cost tech leave a lot to be desired, especially in places like the Deep South (where I live) where public charging stations are few and far between still,

The BOLT's resistive heating in lieu of a heat pump is probably the main culprit. Then again, if you just use the seat heater and the steering wheel heater I bet the range loss isn't nearly as bad as they 'estimate'.

Overall the BOLT is a Great Winter car if you look at the total package you get AND the price! They're a bargain even if they do lose more range than most.

Know what's a worse wnter car? My 1991 Miata with all seasons and also my 2010 turbo charge power retractable hard top Miata with the summer tires. They're touchy to drive in the winter, but oh so much fun :)
 
#49 ·
Sort of a misleading title isn't it? The BOLT is worse in that it suffers the most range drop, but that's only an issue if you don't drive the car as a commuter/daily/around town car. Once you get home just charge it back up 'full'. Other than that how it it worse? It's got great visibility, the weight/front-wheel drive should provide decent grip, the safeties like emergency braking, etc. are all top-notch. The all-seasons aren't snow tires but they're ok.

For longer distance travel, in general, the BOLT's older, slower and lower-cost tech leave a lot to be desired, especially in places like the Deep South (where I live) where public charging stations are few and far between still,

The BOLT's resistive heating in lieu of a heat pump is probably the main culprit. Then again, if you just use the seat heater and the steering wheel heater I bet the range loss isn't nearly as bad as they 'estimate'.

Overall the BOLT is a Great Winter car if you look at the total package you get AND the price! They're a bargain even if they do lose more range than most.

Know what's a worse wnter car? My 1991 Miata with all seasons and also my 2010 turbo charge power retractable hard top Miata with the summer tires. They're touchy to drive in the winter, but oh so much fun :)
Thinking of freezing my arse off while driving in sub 0 minnesota winters to save a few Kw. That's a big nope from me.
 
#7 · (Edited)
And all of these based on an "estimated" value ?
And the loss is based on EPA numbers ? I didn’t click on the link, because it’s just a click-bait.

If they did the testing in temperatures bellow -15C I can attest that the Bolt EV loses about 30% of the range vs EPA. But about the same happens to all BEV with a heat pump too. In -15C the heat pump is useless and needs to be sustained by the resistive element, just like the Bolt EV.
If they did the test in 0C, the Bolt EV with winter tires loses about 10% of the EPA.

The "estimated" range loss of i-Pace and e-Tron is just bogus.



In temperatures of -15C my Bolt EV (with winter tires) was able to cover 275 km @ 100 km/h (62 mph) with an efficiency of 21.7 kWh/100 km.
Speedometer Vehicle Gauge Steering part Trip computer
before the trip
Mobile phone Telephony Communication Device Mobile device Gadget
during the trip
Vehicle Car Automotive design Personal luxury car Gauge
arrived at the DCFC
Communication Device Gadget Mobile device Portable communications device Telephony


The e-Tron in the video couldn’t do more than 232 km in temperatures ranging -5C to -15C.
So yeah, RECURRENT just sucks balls.
 
#8 · (Edited)
Fellow Minnesotan here.

I'll go with our own experience. We just returned from two nights at Northern Lights Casino + Hotel near Walker, 195 miles away. We started with 180 miles full charge when we left the Casino. It had been below zero overnight, and never got above 20 F. We started with one remote start while plugged in to a 48 amp Level 2.

We added 30 miles in Little Falls, and got home with 30 miles to spare. So we actually beat the GOM and did about 195 miles on a full charge.

This was last week in our EUV rated at 247 miles. We had the HVAC on 72° on auto the whole time. I did go a little easy on the speed though, mostly 57-65.

So we had about a 20% range drop in pretty cold weather.
 
#11 ·
That's a good point!

The approximate 20% loss I noted on our trip last week, was with Michelin X-Ice Snows on 16" wheels. The wheels are about 5 lbs. lighter/each than the stock 17" wheels though. I don't really know what effect these tires have on our range, but I would think they would reduce it a bit.
 
  • Like
Reactions: BoltEUV
#10 ·
32% seems excessive of an estimate for the Bolt EV if you're measuring from the EPA value unless you're using the heater.

My previous hypermiling run went for 624km (388 miles) at 35C (95F) and 493km (306 miles) at 5C (41F), which is a 21% drop. I have another video getting ready which should show the range drop of about 20% in a non-hypermiling 220-mile trip when comparing a drive on a warm spring day to a freezing winter day.
 
#13 ·
It's always colorful when someone posts "estimated" results. I can estimate that I'll be a billionaire in six months but that doesn't make it so. I think reporting estimates should be practically considered criminal. Either you tested it or you didn't. If you did test it, hopefully you did it more than once and averaged results. And, hopefully you have facts and figures. Anyone who estimates things that are essentially emperical data items should be castrated with a fork.
 
#16 ·
My 2 percent of the dollar:

Avg mpkwh summer - 4.0

Avg mpkwh winter (so far) - 3.3

Windshield frost/fogging are one of major culprits leading to use of heater. Also I like my butt and my kids warm. (actually warming the butt is cheap with seat warmers, it's the kids who take all the energy, both in and out of the car)
 
#18 ·
New to the post, just my 2 cents but i drive 58 miles per day, 6 days a week in North Dakota from 100 above to 30 below with my Chevy Bolt, my summer range is 240 to 275 miles per charge, my winter range when below 20 degrees is around 110 to 130 miles, thats with precondition battery and interior. Takes major hit in winter but would not give car up, best work car i have had in 27 years that i have lived on the farm
 
#44 ·
I've been to North Dakota a couple of times but it was on my motorcycle - think you can figure out what part of the year it was. Bolt is the best car for commuting running errands I've ever had. I'm retired so don't have a commute. Short trip to the grocery store nearby are really hard on an ICE vehicle but a breeze for my Bolt.
 
#19 ·
It’s really all about a lifestyle….don’t you think? I agree with the above fore mentioned poster. Just relax. It’s gonna be ok. Use it as a second vehicle. Help evolution. Get out of the way. Like I said it’s gonna be ok. Plug it in. Drive. Plug it in. Drive. Get it? These numbers aren’t worth a piss. “It’s in the way that you use it,” by that 80s band we all know…..
 
#23 ·
And with the little miles you do a day, it doesn't matter anyway. You have more than enough to do the 40 miles at least 3 times before empty. I too, when I am doing only 5 miles a day, I get abysmal range for the obvious reason. But this is not how the numbers should be done.
The base EPA is done in 60% city driving, 40% highway driving till the battery is empty. The same should be done for winter driving and then compare, if we want to have a valid idea about what the cold influence is on the BEV.
IMO, those of us who drove in cold weather long trips are closer to the reality. And it looks like the 30% less range vs EPA in cold weather (-15C and less) is a lot closer to the reality.
 
#22 ·
Interesting to note that all of the winter folks posting or verifying that 30% is pretty much normal.

Note to self and others let's check out the i pace and E-Tron forums and check their winter ranges I would love to know if you tran is really just 3%. I would strongly consider that next year
 
#29 ·
These winter range loss "studies" rarely use enough controls to ensure apple to apple comparisons. In the case of Teslas, it is even more difficult because range estimates are based on EPA figures, not recent driving efficiency like Bolt. My Tesla friends all state their real world experience is at least 20-30% winter range loss, a bit less on models with heat pumps.

My own situation is my Bolt is currently sitting at 17% less capacity than typical summer range at the same SOC. I rarely use cabin heating or cooling, and precondition before driving in winter.

I have done 3 long trips in my Bolt this year, in summer and winter conditions. Average efficiency is only +- .1 or .2 mi/kWh on these trips. Overall distances on these were 7100 miles, 1800 miles, 2000 miles. Again, I rarely use cabin heat (or AC), so the winter range loss on the road is minimal. I tend to drive posted limits, and only slow down if I am concerned I may fall short on range to the next stop.

Bottom line, with stats, you can tell any narrative you want but the reality is there are so many variables that it is nearly impossible to measure this sort of thing accurately.
 
#30 ·
With the 80% charge limitation I currently have, I can travel 200 miles in the summer, but only 130 miles in the winter at freeway speeds (65+ MPH). That is a loss of 35%. I acknowledge that I must have the cabin heat set to 72F for comfort, even with the seat and wheel heat on. Winter here in the Seattle area usually just means wet roads, with temps just above freezing. But wet roads can really reduce energy efficiency. My car is reporting a lifetime average of 3.5mi/kWh, but in the winter it's closer to 2.5 average. Living on the hill I do doesn't do my consumption numbers much good either.
 
#45 ·
We're also in the Seattle area and we do have our hills.

We live in a little bowl right near sea level. Almost any driving we do from here is uphill. Therefore in our other EV (ID.4) we see lousy efficiency throughout most of our daily driving trips and then it "normalizes" when we come back down the hills to home. I assume it will be similar when we get our Bolt.

Like you, we like to be in a comfortable temperature as we drive.

Dave
 
#32 ·
None of which bothers me at all, I still love my Bolt..
I just charged to hill top reserve this morning.. been cold in the mid 30’s and used the heater on auto set at 72°F, preheated before I left this morning. Mine seems to be doing just fine.
Font Electronic device Circle Audio equipment Darkness
 
#37 ·
.I just charged to hill top reserve this morning.. been cold in the mid 30’s and used the heater on auto set at 72°F, preheated before I left this morning.
1st. mid 30's is not cold. :cautious:
2nd, the only way for your GOM to be like that is if you never go fast.;)

"There are so many variables"....
 
#36 ·
The GOM in my 2017 says a hilltop charge in spring/fall with no HVAC use is good for 210-230 miles. In winter with HVAC on Auto set to 72 (no heated seats/wheel in mine), that drops to 170-180 with mornings near freezing (30s F) and short trips (not many miles to offset the HVAC power use). So, yes, loss of 40-50 miles in winter is 20-25%. Obviously, not all of that is the cold battery, since there are other power uses in winter that aren't present in spring/fall. Summer, with HVAC set to 80F and outside temps over 100F, again, short trips, I see about a 10-15% drop. All assuming no plugged-in pre-heat/cool.
 
#39 ·
Every week we drive 90 miles each way to check on my parents. It’s mostly highway and we drive around 72mph. We don’t drive much, the rest of the week. We have a 90 percent charge limit set. We charge at their house before coming home. At first we just did L1 but we have now installed a second L2 charger over there since we couldn’t meet the recall restrictions without it.

In summer the GOM thinks we will get around 240 miles and we easily beat it. Easily. In winter the GOM thinks we will get 170 miles and we are lucky if we can avoid dipping below the 70 miles the recall wants us to have.

I don’t know why the GOM is optimistic in winter, and pessimistic in summer. It’s supposed to be guessing based on your history, and ours does not change.

Anyways, I think Recurrent is using the data they collect from lots of Bolts, to come up with their number. And it seems pretty accurate to me. I am sure we lose more than average in winter.
 
#40 ·
don’t know why the GOM is optimistic in winter, and pessimistic in summer. It’s supposed to be guessing based on your history, and ours does not change.
Nope.
Hint : You drive in the weekend 180 miles roundtrip on highway and the rest of the week days you do city only, the GOM will definitely be off when you are ready for the highway.
RTFM as some would say, and you'll understand why.
 
#41 ·
No, when I say we don‘t drive much, I mean that about half of those weeks the car doesn’t move at all between the 180 mile trips. And when we do take it out, the drives are so short we do worse, not better, even though it’s city, because the climate chews up so much.

The GOM is optimistic in winter.
 
#46 ·
There was a lot of discussion of this article on the ID.4 forum, as the ID.4 was one notch above the Bolt on the table. Because of the way we drive, it's a non-issue for us. We can normally go multiple days before we charge up (we're not commuters) so in the winter we might have to charge a bit more often. I don't see that as an issue for us at all.

Dave
 
This is an older thread, you may not receive a response, and could be reviving an old thread. Please consider creating a new thread.
Top