There has been a lot of news lately that might convince you winter may not be the best time to own an EV, but the Tesla Model 3 has proven to be the best adaptable to the coldest months of the year. In a winter driving range test conducted by the Finnish paper Tekniikan Maailma (TM), the popular electric sedan surpassed all others in -20°C (-4°F) conditions.
While EV makers boast of standardized tests carried out in laboratories and testing centers, real-life ownership often tells a different story when it comes to driving ranges. Tekniikan Mailma rounded up ten electric cars, including the new Tesla Model 3 Long Range, BYD Dolphin Comfort, Volkswagen ID.7 Pro Elegance, MG4 Luxury, and more. (via Teslarati)
The newspaper adopted a simple test; drive each of the cars until it could no longer work under some of the coldest conditions. According to results, some models, including the Volkswagen ID.7, switched to battery-saving features as the battery levels dropped, including stopping heating the whole cabin. In a somewhat surprising turn of events, the Hyundai Kona Electric stopped completely working during an uphill climb at 7% battery, eventually restarting but then coming to a near standstill at 4%.
“The severe cold has an effect, but in the challenging weather, some of the cars were still able to assess the battery’s sufficiency really well, and some stopped unexpectedly,” said Lauri Ahtiainen.
However, the Tesla Model 3 continued to move even until after the battery level dropped to zero after covering more than 300 km (186 miles) in -20°C temperatures.
The full results of the test will be released next month.
