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Heat pump vs Resistive on Model 3
- Thread starter macgeng
- Start date
All should have resistive coil heat since the Heat Pump is slower and less effective in extreme cold. It will just not use the resistive coils much to save power. A home heat pump is the same.
Heat pump can also use main gas (cheaper than electricity) when the heat pump would be ineffective/unavailable.
I had a 2020 M3 SR and now have a 2021 M3 SR+. They seem to heat up the same.
Now, this might be climate-specific. I live in GA and “cold” here is in the 30s. I also park in my garage and the interior temp rarely goes under 50 even on cold days.
But, I will say, it was 26 degrees yesterday afternoon. I went for a haircut and left the climate controls on for nearly an hour at 71. That only used 1% of the battery. It’s crazy efficient.
Now, this might be climate-specific. I live in GA and “cold” here is in the 30s. I also park in my garage and the interior temp rarely goes under 50 even on cold days.
But, I will say, it was 26 degrees yesterday afternoon. I went for a haircut and left the climate controls on for nearly an hour at 71. That only used 1% of the battery. It’s crazy efficient.
If you are trying to justify a new car, ask yourself if you need the range...
They both get hot and heat fast enough.
The heat pump is not like your home model, much more advanced with the ability to move heat to/from multiple areas. It's invaluable in colder areas (mine) where we can purchase the SR+ and average 250wh/mi for our first 1K miles (20's or less at night and 30's daytime since we purchased in mid Jan. - just general nasty New England winters)
They both get hot and heat fast enough.
The heat pump is not like your home model, much more advanced with the ability to move heat to/from multiple areas. It's invaluable in colder areas (mine) where we can purchase the SR+ and average 250wh/mi for our first 1K miles (20's or less at night and 30's daytime since we purchased in mid Jan. - just general nasty New England winters)
It's not necessary to have a dedicated PTC heater anymore. Tesla uses one or both drive units stators to generate heat by "stalling" them. Combined they can output 7+kW of power. Here's a good video that explains it:
Resistive. But shouldn't be a big difference unless the temperature outside is really cold. My resistive heater can heat up the interior of the car from 32F to 70F in about 4 mins.
TomB985
Member
I don’t have any objective data, but I was very impressed with the system in the Y that I test drove for a weekend back in December. If anything, it felt a bit more powerful than the PTC unit in my 3. It wasn’t extremely cold out, but December in Minnesota isn’t tropical by any stretch.
My 2020 Model Y cabin is warm within 3 minutes (40F to 67F). Not much of an issue imo. It's a larger cabin, so I'd imagine the 3 would heat up slightly quicker.
Things may be different for those in climates, such as Canada, Wisconsin, Alaska, etc but for those in mild /moderate temps, the heat pump is fine.
Things may be different for those in climates, such as Canada, Wisconsin, Alaska, etc but for those in mild /moderate temps, the heat pump is fine.
FrunkLover
Member
I have nothing valuable to contribute here other than to say I wish I had the heat pump. Over the last two months I’ve been consistently driving in temps averaging between 20s and 30s and my efficiency is approx. 370 Wh/Mile. In fact, TeslaFi only knows me to drive in temps like this, and it thinks my battery capacity is significantly lower than rated on my seven month old 3.
My assumption is that would be improved greatly with the pump, tho I understand other threads dive more deeply into the comparison.
To the original question, it heats up real fast, zero issues there. I thought I’d miss the heated steering wheel when I moved from the S, but with pre conditioning I am very comfortable. The biggest heat issue for me is when temps get down into single digits while driving, the car doesn’t seem to be insulated very well, have to really keep that heat cranking if I’m wearing a t shirt.
My assumption is that would be improved greatly with the pump, tho I understand other threads dive more deeply into the comparison.
To the original question, it heats up real fast, zero issues there. I thought I’d miss the heated steering wheel when I moved from the S, but with pre conditioning I am very comfortable. The biggest heat issue for me is when temps get down into single digits while driving, the car doesn’t seem to be insulated very well, have to really keep that heat cranking if I’m wearing a t shirt.
You are wearing a t-shirt in the car in the middle of the cold winter weather and have to "really keep that heat cranking" to stay comfortable? I think that I have found the explanation for your "370 Wh/Mile" energy usage.
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FrunkLover
Member
You are wearing a t-shirt in the car in the middle of the cold winter weather and have to "really keep that heat cranking" to say comfortable? I think that I have found the explanation for your "370 Wh/Mile" energy usage.
Fair point!
For additional context for future readers looking at that average efficiency, my average temp inside is 68 degrees, according to TeslaFi. Of course there are a ton of other factors at play at any time.You are wearing a t-shirt in the car in the middle of the cold winter weather and have to "really keep that heat cranking" to stay comfortable? I think that I have found the explanation for your "370 Wh/Mile" energy usage.
I can relate to that poster. If I’m just going out for a curbside pickup (which I do a lot more of in the age of COVID), sometimes I’ll just hop in the car with whatever I have on (often a tee shirt and gym shorts) and go.
Even if it’s freezing outside. Doesn’t matter because the car is a nice cozy 71 degree and the seats are warm before I get in the car.
That is basically my understanding of how it works, but they are two different components in the model y and model 3.
That's then principle behind a heat pump, it works like a AC system in reverse... But the heat pump is not merely the air conditioner running in reverse.
It's a new and distinct component designed to efficiently deliver heat to the cabin... And is engineered to be reliable in that function.
Just for reference: overall winter range is significantly affected if you are taking a lot of short, intermittent trips during cold weather, as the battery has to use up a lot of energy to initially get itself, and the cabin, up to temperature each time. It is less affected (though still affected) by taking trips in cold weather for which the battery and cabin are preheated while being plugged in prior to the trip.
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