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Disappointing range on new Tesla 3
- Thread starter Jimbo56
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- range degradation
I measured almost every single tankful. It was automatic when I gassed up each time. As I said it did change if I was on the highway I got much better mileage than I did locally. I also recognize that I like the speed and that that may affect my range in the model 3
mtndrew1
Active Member
If you’re new to EVs you may not know that the inverse often happens in warm months; I can often exceed EPA range ratings in warm months by substantial margins.
You can watch the “energy” screen graph to see how close your rolling consumption is to the EPA ratings. There is a dashed line titled “rated” and if you’re consuming more than that, your range will be lower. If you’re consuming less the range will be greater than 310.
You can watch the “energy” screen graph to see how close your rolling consumption is to the EPA ratings. There is a dashed line titled “rated” and if you’re consuming more than that, your range will be lower. If you’re consuming less the range will be greater than 310.
bd7349
Member
Doesn't use anywhere near as much as the cabin heater does (especially since it auto turns off after 10-15 minutes), but it is extra power being used so it does deplete the battery that much faster. Will it be noticeable though? I highly doubt it to be honest.
mtndrew1
Active Member
Yes. Anything that produces heat consumes energy from the battery. For example driving down the road at 55 MPH can consume far less than 10 kW of power draw. The heat, in cold temperatures, can consume up to ~7 kW while contributing nothing to forward propulsion. Incidentally air conditioning is far less of a draw.
bd7349
Member
No problem. Also, you've got an AWD Model 3 which is a little less efficient than the RWD Model 3. This is due to more weight because of the front motor and slightly increased drag when only one motor is being used. Unlike the Model S which has an induction motor in the front and rear, the Model 3 has an induction motor in the front and a PMSR (permanent magnet switched reluctance) motor in the rear. Induction motors can freely spin while the other motor is "off" and not using power to boost efficiency.
This is what the Model S does, the front motor is used to cruise at highway speeds as the gearing is more efficient for that and the rear motor is turned off and just freely spins. This is why the dual motor Model S gets better range than the RWD, but since the Model 3 can't do this the effect of having dual motors is the opposite and reduces efficiency slightly.
There was a "true" range chart for each variant of the Model 3 that's floating around on here somewhere and if I remember correctly, I believe the rated range of the dual Motor Model 3 is actually closer to 290 (with 19" wheels) due to the slight decrease in efficiency. The RWD "true" rated range from that same chart was actually 335 miles, so it's very easy to get the rated range (or higher) with the RWD Model 3 and a bit harder with AWD.
bd7349
Member
Yes. Using the AC consumes way, way less power than using the heat in the winter. I'd guess in warm months it'll be pretty easy to get rated range.
mtndrew1
Active Member
The air conditioning at full-tilt bonkers demand probably tops out at 3 kW of power draw. Once the cabin is cooled it's likely to consume 0.25 - 0.5 kW of draw to maintain the cabin temp. The heating element uses dramatically more power (up to 7 kW).
There are a few ways to mitigate this by the way. One is to try to time your charges to *complete* around your destination time in the morning which will have you departing for the drive with a warm battery. The other is to use your phone app to start the car's climate control 15 mins before departure so that it can use shore power from the charger to run the heater and get the highest-consumption period of cabin heating done without depleting the car's battery. Maintaining a warm car takes less energy than warming up a cold car. You want to do this part from the wall power.
The solution is to go into the settings, and change the battery meter to % instead of miles.
The heater is the number one killer of range.
If you expect to use your heater the entire time, expect no more than two thirds of your rated miles.
This is normal.
In the summer driving in a moderate manner you should be able to approach rated miles.
If you expect to use your heater the entire time, expect no more than two thirds of your rated miles.
This is normal.
In the summer driving in a moderate manner you should be able to approach rated miles.
In reality, that’s how it works. Once in a blue moon you might hit the EPA range, but under normal driving conditions you probably won’t.
Also, a lot of energy seems to be spent warming up the battery after the car has been sitting for a while, especially in the winter. My first few miles always show huge consumption, no matter how slow I drive. Over a shorter drive, that skews the average quite a bit.
I just posted a short trip report in the Canada forum describing my recent experience with range in the cold. Cold drive update - 250 km total round trip report
Essentially in the cold driving at relatively fast speeds (125 km/h or 77 mph) and split 90/10 highway/city driving, at -5C/23F, got around 67% range efficiency. This is with AWD with next to no effort to reduce power usage for this trip.
Essentially in the cold driving at relatively fast speeds (125 km/h or 77 mph) and split 90/10 highway/city driving, at -5C/23F, got around 67% range efficiency. This is with AWD with next to no effort to reduce power usage for this trip.
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