Model 3 SR+ for a 75 Mile Commute?

[NorthernEV]

Hello everyone,

Background:
After the recent addition of the federal rebate up here in Canada, I am strongly considering picking up a Standard + Model 3, however I've got a few questions for everyone. I live in Montreal, and have a 125 km (~75mile) round trip commute everyday. I live in a house, and would be installing a 240V charger at home. This will either be outdoors, or if needed inside a heated garage. The savings in gasoline alone make the SR+ very appealing to me.

Questions:
1. Since I'd be charging the car every night - does this seem to be "doable" situation for the Model 3 SR+? I'd be charging it every night to 90%, and pre-heating to avoid battery losses when driving. The typical "coldest days" dip down to -25C -13f. Most of winter is around -10C = 14f

2. I've read most winter losses occur in short distance traveling with a cold battery (limited regen). Would charging the battery overnight just before I leave help mitigate this? I'm assuming a longer drive would help as well as the systems would heat up.

3. Would parking the car in a heated garage help with the range degradation during winter - as the battery and car would be warm immediately in the mornings?

Thanks for all the information!

 

[NorthernEV]

I'm not sure how to edit the main post- but I probably should have posted this in the general section.

 

[cwerdna]

I'd say the commute's no problem at all. EPA range rating on SR+ is 240 miles: 2019 Tesla Model 3 Standard Range Plus

Even if you were to cut that in half due to the cold, that still leaves you plenty.

 

[duanra]

Yes, to all the questions !
I live in Montreal as well.
I commute from the Plateau to the airport, about 20km. In the winter 20 km will take about 5 to 7 % of my midrange. It is a mixt of street and highway driving.
Charging the battery until you leave will help a lot.
In your case, it would help you to plug at work in a 120v. For your planning play around abetterrouteplanner website. It works well. Enjoy ! And avoid parking in the street in Montreal, trust me !

 

[Raechris]

Yes to all three questions. The car battery does not like a cold soaked my below 40 degrees F. If in a heated garage during winter this will help a lot with winter range loss at least to work. You have plenty of range for the commute

 

[willow_hiller]

I can never recommend A Better Route Planner enough.

https://abetterrouteplanner.com

In the settings you can select the SR+, and in the advanced settings you can change the weather. Test out some worst case scenarios (-40 C, heavy snow), and you can get a pretty good estimate of how the vehicle would perform!

 

[ewoodrick]

Hello everyone,

Background:
After the recent addition of the federal rebate up here in Canada, I am strongly considering picking up a Standard + Model 3, however I've got a few questions for everyone. I live in Montreal, and have a 125 km (~75mile) round trip commute everyday. I live in a house, and would be installing a 240V charger at home. This will either be outdoors, or if needed inside a heated garage. The savings in gasoline alone make the SR+ very appealing to me.

Questions:
1. Since I'd be charging the car every night - does this seem to be "doable" situation for the Model 3 SR+? I'd be charging it every night to 90%, and pre-heating to avoid battery losses when driving. The typical "coldest days" dip down to -25C -13f. Most of winter is around -10C = 14f

2. I've read most winter losses occur in short distance traveling with a cold battery (limited regen). Would charging the battery overnight just before I leave help mitigate this? I'm assuming a longer drive would help as well as the systems would heat up.

3. Would parking the car in a heated garage help with the range degradation during winter - as the battery and car would be warm immediately in the mornings?

Thanks for all the information!

Most of the cold period you can expect a 30% degradation of battery. In the coldest, maybe up to 50%.
Yes, absolutely keep it warm in a garage.
Battery really doesn't need to be warmed, most of what you are reading is people trying to overcome limited regen when cold, and there is absolutely no need to do this. The car drives fine, with or without it (there's actually an option to basically disable it even).
Because the car has windows the drop down a half inch when you open it (as many other cars do today), you need to be careful when opening the car with snow and ice on it. Keeping in a garage fixes half the issue.

But, unless I'm mistaken, the rebate that you may be referring to is the ones that exclude most of the Teslas, except for the recently announced 98 mile version.

 

[duanra]

Most of the cold period you can expect a 30% degradation of battery. In the coldest, maybe up to 50%.
Yes, absolutely keep it warm in a garage.
Battery really doesn't need to be warmed, most of what you are reading is people trying to overcome limited regen when cold, and there is absolutely no need to do this. The car drives fine, with or without it (there's actually an option to basically disable it even).
Because the car has windows the drop down a half inch when you open it (as many other cars do today), you need to be careful when opening the car with snow and ice on it. Keeping in a garage fixes half the issue.

But, unless I'm mistaken, the rebate that you may be referring to is the ones that exclude most of the Teslas, except for the recently announced 98 mile version.

Because the 93 miles version is availanle, the SR+ is available too with the discount.
The car will drive fine with a very cold battery, but if it is warmed up you will benefit from regen which will save the brakes and extend your range specially in city driving

 

[NorthernEV]

Thank you for the replies. I can park inside the garage if needed - although I'd prefer not too. I do not have charging at work (yet). The drive is 85-90% highway if that makes any difference.

I'm doing research on battery capacity loss after 100k now. If I get the SR+ i plan to keep it for a long time.

 

[TheGrimSweeper]

Thank you for the replies. I can park inside the garage if needed - although I'd prefer not too. I do not have charging at work (yet). The drive is 85-90% highway if that makes any difference.

I'm doing research on battery capacity loss after 100k now. If I get the SR+ i plan to keep it for a long time.

Battery loss is very minimal. (Tesla battery degradation at less than 10% after over 160,000 miles, according to latest data).

Keep in mind that this was even with the first generation batteries and motors. The new Model 3 has an upgraded battery architecture where this range loss is expected to be even less. The motors are rated to a million miles.

Keep the car parked in a heated garage in the winter, where it can stay plugged in all the time when not driving it. If you do this, then just pre-heat the car using the app before you leave while it is plugged in.

This will dramatically reduce the lost range in winter. However, even with the range drop, you should still be fine.

 

[NorthernEV]

Thanks for the reply!

Keep the car parked in a heated garage in the winter, where it can stay plugged in all the time when not driving it. If you do this, then just pre-heat the car using the app before you leave while it is plugged in.

This will dramatically reduce the lost range in winter. However, even with the range drop, you should still be fine.

I will be keeping the car plugged in at home regardless if it is inside or outside the garage.