How does the heater work?

[seyclone]

Does the Model 3 use a resistance heater or a heat pump to heat the car in the winter?

 

[Brian's ReX]

I believe (although others probably have much more intimate knowledge than I on this subject) that it is a resistance heater - which I have been told is why it is the single largest draw on the electrical system other than the motors.

 

[brkaus]

Resistance heater.

 

[seyclone]

Too bad. A heat pump is much more energy efficient and they could have used the AC compressor.

 

[brkaus]

There is a many page thread in the model s forum here on the topic.

I agree it would have been a good choice.

There are some reasons this choice makes sense too. I won’t try to remember or rehash them here.

 

[Big Earl]

There is a many page thread in the model s forum here on the topic.

I agree it would have been a good choice.

There are some reasons this choice makes sense too. I won’t try to remember or rehash them here.

Reasons include, but are certainly not limited to, increased cost, complexity and marginal energy savings in very cold climates.

 

[jamnmon66]

Too bad. A heat pump is much more energy efficient and they could have used the AC compressor.

But they don't work very well when it gets really cold & the efficiency goes down as the temperature does. At least that's true of my heat pump/AC in my house. I'm guessing a resistance heater is the most reliable option in all scenarios.

 

[MP3Mike]

Too bad. A heat pump is much more energy efficient and they could have used the AC compressor.

The problem is that while you may need cabin heat it is possible that you need to cool the battery and/or motor/charger/inverter at the same time.

 

[seyclone]

Thanks, all. I suspected that there would be a lot of posts on the subject. I guess I was using the wrong search criteria.

 

[brkaus]

I believe this was the longest thread on the topic - Why does Tesla use a Resistance Heater instead of Heat Pump

 

[smith9]

The problem is that while you may need cabin heat it is possible that you need to cool the battery and/or motor/charger/inverter at the same time.

Would't that be a good use of a heat pump, it takes hot air and expels cold air at the other end so one end of the heat pump could cool something and the other end can heat something, that way the heat pump is more efficient.

 

[brkaus]

Old thread. The other is much more complete.