Being the geek that I am, technical stuff has always been interessting. Getting my Model S was like moving into geek-heaven. There are several aspects of Teslas that interests me, the battery and BMS is one of them. If other with more knowledge than me are willing to contribute with info and correct me I would appreaciate it, perhaps this could be interessting for fellow geeks If anyone has gotten CANBUS-read on temp-targets etc it would be great if you post it.
Pros of the battery and BMS of the Model 3 vs S\X:
+ Better for the environment due to less use of cobalt and more use of silicon.
+ Cheaper to build, parts due to using less cobalt.
+ Easier maintenance accesible below back-seats due to most components being integrated (charger etc), on S and X battery must be removed from car.
+ Better performance at low temperatures, from what I have read\heard from other users, without preheating\charging, battery allows for some regen down to about -5C. In Model S and X 0C is the limit for regen, and below 5C regen is very limited.
+ Less complicated since motor can heat battery (2.4-4kW of waste heat?) instead of using an external element (up to 6kW heat on S and X). After my batteryheater on my S became unstable and did not start every time before I got it fixed at service I really missed having different heating-options.
Cons:
- No way to control battery-heating like in S and X where you can use range mode to disable\enable. If range mode is ON, then battery will heat if temps are about -10C or below. In S and X: If range mode is OFF, battery will heat up to around 10C (differs with SW-versions) and you then have about 30kW of regen. On short trips without preheating this causes horrible consumption so many owners use range mode ON on short trips. When batterytemp is around 16C or higher, which is done with waste heat, you will get the full 70kW-regen. This is a bit complicated, and I understand why Tesla would make it less complicated, but some degree of user-control would be most welcome in 3.
- Supercharging in winter is not optimal since the battery takes a lot longer time to heat than the S and X. If Tesla would start motor to generate waste heat during supercharging this could help a lot (maybe new SW has improved this?). There will be longer waiting-lines at SCs in the future if this is not improved.
- Battery can to my knowledge only be heated by waste heat from drivetrain during driving since motor only can generate direct waste-heat when standing still.
- You need around 90% or less SOC in order to gain max regen even if temp is ideal. Performance on high SOC is worse than S and X. On S and X you can get full regen above 95% SOC if temp is good, after full charging in summer I have seen full regen even at 98% SOC in my S.
Overall I like what Tesla has done with 3s battery. They have reduced cost and enviromental impact compared to S and X. Performance at low temps are improved. Biggest issue seems the lack of user control wile preheating and supercharging. A more aggressive approach, possible to control by user like in S and X which can improve regen\charging capabilities while preheating\precharing would be great. For short trips there is no problem, but going on long road-trips at least starting motor to make waste heat to improve charging speed would be most welcome.
Some of this might be incorrect, I apologize if some of the info is wrong. I don`t have a Model 3 myself so all of this comes from reading different articles, talking with owners, watching youtube-reviews etc. I might have missed some importat differences as well, feel free to correct me and leave feedbacks. I will update this post from time to time
Pros of the battery and BMS of the Model 3 vs S\X:
+ Better for the environment due to less use of cobalt and more use of silicon.
+ Cheaper to build, parts due to using less cobalt.
+ Easier maintenance accesible below back-seats due to most components being integrated (charger etc), on S and X battery must be removed from car.
+ Better performance at low temperatures, from what I have read\heard from other users, without preheating\charging, battery allows for some regen down to about -5C. In Model S and X 0C is the limit for regen, and below 5C regen is very limited.
+ Less complicated since motor can heat battery (2.4-4kW of waste heat?) instead of using an external element (up to 6kW heat on S and X). After my batteryheater on my S became unstable and did not start every time before I got it fixed at service I really missed having different heating-options.
Cons:
- No way to control battery-heating like in S and X where you can use range mode to disable\enable. If range mode is ON, then battery will heat if temps are about -10C or below. In S and X: If range mode is OFF, battery will heat up to around 10C (differs with SW-versions) and you then have about 30kW of regen. On short trips without preheating this causes horrible consumption so many owners use range mode ON on short trips. When batterytemp is around 16C or higher, which is done with waste heat, you will get the full 70kW-regen. This is a bit complicated, and I understand why Tesla would make it less complicated, but some degree of user-control would be most welcome in 3.
- Supercharging in winter is not optimal since the battery takes a lot longer time to heat than the S and X. If Tesla would start motor to generate waste heat during supercharging this could help a lot (maybe new SW has improved this?). There will be longer waiting-lines at SCs in the future if this is not improved.
- Battery can to my knowledge only be heated by waste heat from drivetrain during driving since motor only can generate direct waste-heat when standing still.
- You need around 90% or less SOC in order to gain max regen even if temp is ideal. Performance on high SOC is worse than S and X. On S and X you can get full regen above 95% SOC if temp is good, after full charging in summer I have seen full regen even at 98% SOC in my S.
Overall I like what Tesla has done with 3s battery. They have reduced cost and enviromental impact compared to S and X. Performance at low temps are improved. Biggest issue seems the lack of user control wile preheating and supercharging. A more aggressive approach, possible to control by user like in S and X which can improve regen\charging capabilities while preheating\precharing would be great. For short trips there is no problem, but going on long road-trips at least starting motor to make waste heat to improve charging speed would be most welcome.
Some of this might be incorrect, I apologize if some of the info is wrong. I don`t have a Model 3 myself so all of this comes from reading different articles, talking with owners, watching youtube-reviews etc. I might have missed some importat differences as well, feel free to correct me and leave feedbacks. I will update this post from time to time
Last edited by a moderator: