Delay in Battery Heating message

[neroden]

I have had a lot of cold starts, and never saw this message until 5.6

I agree that it does not come on for several minutes. What I have seen is the the heater does not come on until the car thinks you are serious about driving (moving a tenth of mile or so). I assume this is to preserve charge. When the heater kicks in, it is serious. I have seen 10 kW or so used, and that use starts well before the message comes up.

How can I convince the car to preheat the battery?

Now that it's cold, I get this message *every single damn time* I drive. While I suppose this is to be expected when I park outside without plugging in, when I am plugged in, I should be able to convince the car to preheat the battery while I'm still plugged in, in order to maximize range. Do I have to drive for a tenth of a mile in a circle, come back, and plug in again? Because that's asinine!

Any advice before my road trip would be welcome.

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Note that I don't have a smartphone. I need to be able to preheat the car *from the car*.
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Note also, not using range mode.

 

[jerry33]

How can I convince the car to preheat the battery?

1. Set the time so that the charge ends at the time you're going to leave.

2. About 30 minutes before leaving turn the heat on from the passenger's side so that it won't shut off. (If you do it from the driver's side, it will shut off when you exit.)

If you guessed wrong about the charge ending time, when you go to turn on the heat, also increase the charge level and initiate charging.

Honestly, a range charge doesn't hurt as long as you don't leave it sitting at high SOC. Charging and immediately driving is fine. The damage is done by a full range charge and then leaving it sit for a day or two.

I'd think seriously about getting an iPhone. You don't have to get the latest model and older models are free with some carriers.

 

[neroden]

1. Set the time so that the charge ends at the time you're going to leave.

That's gonna require some calculations. *Sigh*. I can do that for a road trip, but it's not going to be worth doing it daily.

2. About 30 minutes before leaving turn the heat on from the passenger's side so that it won't shut off. (If you do it from the driver's side, it will shut off when you exit.)

Aha. Thank you very much for this tip; I would never have guessed that distinction.

If you guessed wrong about the charge ending time, when you go to turn on the heat, also increase the charge level and initiate charging.

On a road trip I'm going to be charging to max. And I have to leave some leeway, so I have to plan to have the charge finish slightly before I need to leave. This tip doesn't seem like it will quite work in that situation.

So... I guess I charge to nearly-full and time it to finish before 30-minutes-before-leaving, then 30 minutes before, I turn on the heat (from the passenger side), turn charging up to max and start charging again?

 

[jerry33]

That's gonna require some calculations. *Sigh*. I can do that for a road trip, but it's not going to be worth doing it daily.

Unless your commute changes every day, you'll figure it out after two or three days. it doesn't have to be perfect, just close.

On a road trip I'm going to be charging to max. And I have to leave some leeway, so I have to plan to have the charge finish slightly before I need to leave. This tip doesn't seem like it will quite work in that situation.

When I do a range charge the last minute of charging lasts for quite a while--up to 30-40 minutes--as the pack balances.

So... I guess I charge to nearly-full and time it to finish before 30-minutes-before-leaving, then 30 minutes before, I turn on the heat (from the passenger side), turn charging up to max and start charging again?

That should work. I do it regularly, even when not range charging.