I got my MY on Dec. 30th and qualified for the free 1-yr supercharging. Since I can't charge at home, I've been using superchargers exclusively and will likely be doing so for at least the next 8 months. I read that supercharging will shorten the battery life. How much damage will it cause? Is there a way to slow down the charge rate to minimize the damage? Thanks.
Impact of Supercharging on Battery Life?
- Thread starter mfan
- Start date
Superchargers will taper down depending on where your state of charge currently is and other parameters (temperature).
I wouldn’t worry too much about it, and just use it to supplement your home/work/destination L1/2 charging solutions. In other words, don’t Supercharge to 100% and let it sit there at full capacity. Take what you need and get to your destination. It’s a supplement, not a replacement.
I wouldn’t worry too much about it, and just use it to supplement your home/work/destination L1/2 charging solutions. In other words, don’t Supercharge to 100% and let it sit there at full capacity. Take what you need and get to your destination. It’s a supplement, not a replacement.
Correct, but it's difficult to quantify. Also, after enough supercharging, you will begin to notice a slower max charge speed, even when ideal circumstances are met with cell temperature, outdoor temperature, state of charge, etc.
The amount of DC or AC power transferred is recorded so that when it eventually reaches so many kWh transferred via DC charging, it will begin to limit the max DC charge rate to preserve the health of the battery. Once you reach this point, the amount that it limits the charge rate will continue to increase as you continue to supercharge. The amount of kWh that it takes to reach that point is not as much as you may think.
While you can use urban superchargers to charge at a reduced rate of 72kW, it still counts this as DC charging.
First off, this was mainly an issue with the earlier packs in the Model S and X the first few years. I don't think there have been many reports of this with the newly designed Model 3 and Y packs. But then again, the Model 3 has only been out since 2018, so there is less data.
Anyway, do keep in mind how impacting this effect is. On the old S and X, 120 kW was about the fastest they could charge to begin with. When they started to get charging speeds reduced to about 90 kW, there was wailing and gnashing of teeth.
With the Model 3 and Y, they are designed for almost 250 kW max. If they got a similar one fourth reduction, that's still like 180kW. That's still a really fantastic charging speed! So even if the 3 and Y do start to see some capping of their max charging power, it's not going to be nearly as noticeable or inconvenient.
Anyway, do keep in mind how impacting this effect is. On the old S and X, 120 kW was about the fastest they could charge to begin with. When they started to get charging speeds reduced to about 90 kW, there was wailing and gnashing of teeth.
With the Model 3 and Y, they are designed for almost 250 kW max. If they got a similar one fourth reduction, that's still like 180kW. That's still a really fantastic charging speed! So even if the 3 and Y do start to see some capping of their max charging power, it's not going to be nearly as noticeable or inconvenient.
It is better for the long term health of the battery if you limit the charging rate (also discharge rate) of a lithium ion battery to no more than 1C (where C is the capacity of the battery pack in kWh.) So if you plan to use your free Supercharging frequently it makes sense to seek out an Urban Supercharger. At 72kW maximum charging rate the Urban Supercharger is under 1C for charging the Long Range Model Y, Model 3 battery. Charging will be a bit slower than at a 120kW/150kW/250kW Supercharger but you will be putting less stress on the battery.
Thanks! I'll keep that in mind. Most nearby superchargers are Urban. I think my average rate over the last 8 recharges was around 50 kW. I also try to keep my battery between 25% and 85%, except on long trips. So far, the highest I have charged to was 95% and the lowest was 13%.
So far, I'm a little disappointed at the charge rate of v2 & v3 supercharging stations, I have not yet seen sustained charge rate above 100 kW. The highest ever was only about 180 kW at a v3 station, and that was after setting it as the destination about 135 miles away and ran the battery down to 19% when I got there. The station had 20+ chargers and was nearly empty. The rate ramped up quickly to about 180 kW, but then steadily declined to about 60 kW when I stopped it at 85%. I think the average worked out to be about 85 kW, far, far less than the 250 kW rating of v3 chargers.
That's why.
The fastest charge speeds are only at the lowest states of charge.
aerodyne
Active Member
Youtuber Tesla Bjorn has reported slowing SuC speeds on M3 after 10000KwH of DC. It does not appear to get worse after that limit is reached.
Remember older MS and MX (Search Tesloop) were SuCed daily to 100% and some packs lasted well over 100,000 miles, then replaced under warranty.
Remember older MS and MX (Search Tesloop) were SuCed daily to 100% and some packs lasted well over 100,000 miles, then replaced under warranty.
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