Cold Weather Driving

Time Posted on November 04, 2010 User ChargeCar Team

With an ambient outdoor temperature of 29 degrees, the Civic was taken for a test drive.  Initial battery temperatures ranged from 3-5 C.  After 4 minutes of driving, the temperature had risen to 4-8 C.  After 8 minutes of driving, the temperature was 5-10 C.  Finally, after 12 minutes of driving, the temperature was 8-11 C.  Going up a steep slope (Shady Avenue in Squirrel Hill) with the accelerator all the way down caused the BMS to to have a low-voltage fault requiring a restart of the car.  It seems that all of the voltages were below their normal ranges under load.  Without load, the pack voltage was at its usual 110V, but with the voltage drop under load one could imagine a significant reduction in range.  A preliminary benchtop test shows a 10-20% reduction in Ah capacity, but significant self-heating of the cells under load.

In summary, it seems prudent to design a heating system to keep the batteries at an acceptable range of temperatures.  Additionally, it may be helpful to have a heater activated while the vehicle is charging to keep the cabin at comfortable temperatures as well!  The effects of driving the car cold will likely become even more pronounced as the temperature outdoors drop further (20s are not far off!).

Cat News Tag honda

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