Model Y very poor range/efficiency

[Gooseg8]

Hi there,

I took my first trip in my Model Y today (less than 100 miles on the car). It consisted of primarily highway driving at around 75 MPH on very flat ground. I noticed that I seemed to be getting very poor mileage. When left, I had an estimated 280 miles of range..when I got to my destination that was 141 miles away, I had an estimated 35 miles remaining.

I checked the stats on the return trip, and found that over 141 miles, I used 56 KWh with an average of 400 wh/mile. Temperature was around 32 degrees during the drive.

This seems off to me, and was pretty disappointing.

Let me know if you guys have any ideas.

Also, not sure if it’s related, but I got repeated warnings about cameras being blocked/blinded, despite no visible debris/condensation seen.

 

[jaydiculous]

Speed, temperature, heating, wind, elevation and payload will affect your mileage. Your real world mileage will always vary due to those factors.

7 Factors That Affect Electric Vehicle Range - Charged Future

There are many factors that affect electric vehicle range such as speed, cold weather, and cabin heating. For example, at 75 MPH, EVs can lose 15% of range.

www.chargedfuture.com

Where were you driving to and from?

 

[cwerdna]

Yep. Purpose of asking to/from is so that we can check to see what the net elevation gain/loss is between the two points.

75 mph and low temps (e.g. 32 F), esp if you run the heater and defogger == high energy usage and low efficiency.

 

[Gooseg8]

Speed, temperature, heating, wind, elevation and payload will affect your mileage. Your real world mileage will always vary due to those factors.

7 Factors That Affect Electric Vehicle Range - Charged Future

There are many factors that affect electric vehicle range such as speed, cold weather, and cabin heating. For example, at 75 MPH, EVs can lose 15% of range.

www.chargedfuture.com

Where were you driving to and from?

Thanks for the responses. I was going from Kennewick, WA to Spokane, WA. Looks like maybe a 1200 foot elevation gain in total.

 

[Empiro]

Cold weather will cause you to lose range, though in your case it seems excessive if it was just the cold. It takes energy to heat up the battery, but once you get going, it didn't take too much, because the heat generated by the motor is usually enough to keep things warm at 32 degrees.

Was it snowy or raining? That could cause higher rolling resistance. If you had a headwind, that could also reduce your range.

Double check your tire pressure. Low tire pressure plus cold weather could mean lots of rolling resistance.

Do you have roof racks or anything mounted externally on your car? Those things kill efficiency at high speeds.

 

[Midnightsun]

You need to figure 30-40% range lost depending on how cold it is and even then at 75mph you are not going to get anywhere near the claimed EPA range even in perfect weather. When I first got my Y I was completely sure I could make it to the marina and back on weekends without a charge. Car is rated at 525km and the distance there and back is only 405km. At first I was going about things in my usual fashion driving 120kph which killed the range. I tried 100 a few times and finally concluded there is no way I can make this trip unless I put on the hazard lights and drove at 80kph the entire way. It would usually not be a problem except the supercharger is way off the beaten path and I have no means of charging while at the marina. You get used to it after the initial eye opener but still is no comparison to range available on any ice car out there. I MAY be able to make it next spring in the Model S with over 600km of range but it will be close.

The way these EV are range rated needs to be addressed, so many comparisons out there which make no sense at all when comparing manufacturers claimed range to real world figures. Seems like there is no norm as some get more than claimed and others less than claimed, the margin is much too wide.

 

[Kandiru]

On cold winter days with storms rolling in one still needs to blow hot air onto the windshield to be able to see. It was on of those storms when I set off for a 100mi trip with 260mi on clock, and had only 30mi left on arrival.

Normal winter days with coat zippered up to neck, seat heaters on, and AC off or lowest cold blower setting, I lose about 40% range.

 

[rwiegand]

These reports of range lost in modest cold are really depressing, bringing back the range anxiety I'd almost shaken. What's it going to be like when winter comes?

 

[jcanoe]

Winter driving requires more energy, perhaps as much as 40% more energy, than driving the rest of the year. There are things you can do to improve your efficiency, other things that are beyond your control.

1) Slow down; lower your cruising speed by 5 MPH for an estimated improvement in range and efficiency of almost 10%. When you lower your cruising speed by 10 MPH then you can expect an improvement of almost 20%.

2) Check your tire pressure (before driving.) Set tire pressure to the recommended pressure or a few pounds higher for best rolling efficiency.

3) Use the seat heaters and the steering wheel heater as the energy used by these cabin accessories is negligible compared with using the climate control for cabin heat.

4) Precondition, preferably while plugged in, before driving. The Tesla app will notify you when the desired cabin temperature has been reached. Fully precondition the Model Y until the passenger cabin has reached your preferred temperature, then a bit longer.

5) Set the climate control to the desired temperature and leave it alone. Use the recirculate cabin air setting but be aware that this may cause the windows to fog up so you may have to periodically turn this setting off to clear the windows.

The following are largely beyond your control:

1) wet or snow covered roads

2) head winds

3) outside air temperature below 32F

4) increases in elevation.

 

[jaydiculous]

3) Use the seat heaters and the steering wheel heater as the energy used by these cabin accessories is negligible compared with using the climate control for cabin heat.

You would have to use voice commands in order to do this now with the v11 update. Tesla Voice Commands

 

[jcanoe]

You would have to use voice commands in order to do this now with the v11 update. Tesla Voice Commands

Not sure what you mean by having to use the voice commands. You can certainly use the voice commands but you also have the ability to turn on the seat heaters, steering wheel heater using the Tesla app climate control settings or from inside the Tesla vehicle. You can manually turn off the climate control system if you want to do so. I was suggesting that you don't need to exclusively rely on the climate control cabin heating to keep warm. The seat heaters and steering wheel heater make it possible keep the cabin temperature set to 68F to 72F and be comfortable.

 

[jaydiculous]

Not sure what you mean by having to use the voice commands. You can certainly use the voice commands but you also have the ability to turn on the seat heaters, steering wheel heater using the Tesla app climate control settings or from inside the Tesla vehicle. You can manually turn off the climate control system if you want to do so. I was suggesting that you don't need to exclusively rely on the climate control cabin heating to keep warm. The seat heaters and steering wheel heater make it possible keep the cabin temperature set to 68F to 72F and be comfortable.

You are right. I was pointing out the inconvenience brought about from the engineers at Tesla by removing the button feature. Using the App is also an alternative, but I'm not doing that while driving.

 

[boulder.dude]

Hi there,

I took my first trip in my Model Y today (less than 100 miles on the car). It consisted of primarily highway driving at around 75 MPH on very flat ground. I noticed that I seemed to be getting very poor mileage. When left, I had an estimated 280 miles of range..when I got to my destination that was 141 miles away, I had an estimated 35 miles remaining.

I checked the stats on the return trip, and found that over 141 miles, I used 56 KWh with an average of 400 wh/mile. Temperature was around 32 degrees during the drive.

This seems off to me, and was pretty disappointing.

Let me know if you guys have any ideas.

Also, not sure if it’s related, but I got repeated warnings about cameras being blocked/blinded, despite no visible debris/condensation seen.

Get used to getting much less real world range than was advertised. At highway speeds & comfortable cabin think 200 miles in summer and 150 miles in winter, allowing for variations in wind and road conditions. It’s a disappointment but you’ll get through it (I did).

EVs will need 150 kWh batteries before mainstream adoption is gonna happen. In the meantime, there will be consumer backlash over these rosy EPA range estimates.

 

[jpy1980]

One thing I was most concerned about, prior to buying the car, was range. Now that I lived with it for awhile, range didn’t really bother me since I charge up at home and the SC network is so vast. I just plug in an address to the navigation application and if it tells me to go to an SC, I go and hang out for a bit.

I had to get over the fact that the EPA range estimates are off and just accept that longer trips will require trips to SCs.

Last night, I went to a city far from my home to view some homes to buy. While there, I found an SC with an In and Out and my wife and I parked and ate some fries while charging. A welcome respite.

 

[MY-Y]

The car, and especially the tires, need to break in. It'll get better in 1000 miles.

I've see 400 Wh/mi only once (except for tire break in). Temp in the teens, 75 MPH, and a stiff headwind. In those conditions, charging after 150 miles was required. That's the exception to the rule though.

 

[thecavalry]

You are right. I was pointing out the inconvenience brought about from the engineers at Tesla by removing the button feature. Using the App is also an alternative, but I'm not doing that while driving.

You can turn them on using the car's screen. You tap the climate control button and there's the front two seat warmers on that page. Tap Rear and you have the rear settings including the seat warmers.

No sense crying about UI changes, because you either have to adapt or sell the car. Tesla will update the car continuously. Get used to it.

 

[John in LB]

The car, and especially the tires, need to break in. It'll get better in 1000 miles.

I've see 400 Wh/mi only once (except for tire break in). Temp in the teens, 75 MPH, and a stiff headwind. In those conditions, charging after 150 miles was required. That's the exception to the rule though.

Fully agree with this - there does seem to be a break in period - probably to get bearings and brakes in their groove...

Having said this, all of the other comments are pertinent - uphill / downhill, temperature, etc....

Finally, from my experience, practical range (that you can count on) is about 80 to 85 percent of EPA range - And that's before significant degradation occurs... Although disappointing, it is consistent with the gas mileage of ICE cars (real life vs EPA rating...)

 

[acatwith12]

400 wh/mi is crazy high... which explains your "poor range/efficiency"

 

[cwerdna]

It's been ~19 hours since the OP posted and there haven't been any replies from them... might be wise to hold off on spending much more time on this until we hear back.

 

[tangible1]

Hi there,

I took my first trip in my Model Y today (less than 100 miles on the car). It consisted of primarily highway driving at around 75 MPH on very flat ground. I noticed that I seemed to be getting very poor mileage. When left, I had an estimated 280 miles of range..when I got to my destination that was 141 miles away, I had an estimated 35 miles remaining.

I checked the stats on the return trip, and found that over 141 miles, I used 56 KWh with an average of 400 wh/mile. Temperature was around 32 degrees during the drive.

This seems off to me, and was pretty disappointing.

Let me know if you guys have any ideas.

Also, not sure if it’s related, but I got repeated warnings about cameras being blocked/blinded, despite no visible debris/condensation seen.

I've done some testing and 'mileage' declines quickly as speed rises. Duh, physics.
At 85mph, I can get 190 miles.
At 75mph, about 240-50
65mph seems to be the spot Tesla calculated their mileage around. 300+ at that speed.