As an excessive warmth wave continues throughout the southern US and threatens to unfold north, listed below are 5 methods EV drivers can preserve their vehicles operating within the face of record-breaking excessive temperatures.

Park within the shade. If parking your EV within the shade is additional away out of your workplace or the grocery store, go forward and take a stroll. Parking within the shade on a sizzling day is especially good for EVs, because it helps scale back the automotive’s temperature and protects the battery from overheating.

In keeping with the Nationwide Renewable Power Laboratory, parking an EV in direct daylight may cause the battery temperature to extend by as much as 12F, however parking within the shade can preserve the battery temperature at or beneath the ambient temperature.

Hold your EV battery charged to 80%. Excessive temperatures may cause an EV battery to degrade sooner. Hold the battery charged to make sure your EV has the ability it wants.

Conserving a battery charged between 20-80% may also help extend its lifespan, whereas letting it sit at greater than 80% for prolonged durations may cause it to degrade sooner. Additionally, plan your driving route so that you simply use your battery energy properly.

Use air con sparingly. Don’t blast the AC – it will probably scale back the vary of your EV. Precondition the automotive earlier than you enter, ideally whereas it’s nonetheless plugged in, which may also help scale back the period of time wanted to run the AC. And should you don’t want it, flip the temperature up, or flip it off.

Monitor tire strain. Excessive warmth causes your tires to develop, and that may result in overinflation and scale back an EV’s vary. So monitor the tire strain commonly and alter it as wanted.

You’ll find the beneficial tire strain in your EV within the proprietor’s handbook, inside the motive force’s aspect door, or on the automotive’s pc display screen (that’s the place I test it for my Tesla Mannequin 3). Conserving the tires inflated to the proper strain improves total effectivity.

Keep away from DC quick charging in excessive warmth. Excessive warmth impacts charging pace, so select cooler occasions of day for DC quick charging – if it’s a must to quick cost. Throughout peak hours, some DC quick charging stations could decelerate speeds to handle demand, which helps to make sure that they don’t overheat.

Because of Kate Harrison, cofounder at MoveEV, as we referenced her article for this put up.

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