Throughout the Biden presidency, there’s been a constant refrain that eliminating fossil fuels will solve all our environmental problems. A big part of that narrative is the push to encourage, cajole, and force everyone into buying electric vehicles (EVs).
The disadvantages of EVs are obvious. They’re more expensive than gas-powered cars and don’t have a long enough range for traveling, but both facts are lost on the elite leftists who think that EVs are the answer to every question. The charging infrastructure is lacking, and it won’t be sufficient to support extensive EV use for a long time.
Remember Secretary of Energy Jennifer Granholm’s disastrous EV roadshow back in September? That debacle showed that most members of the urban-dwelling Democrat elite are blind to the impracticality of the EV push for most of the country.
But there’s a huge flaw in the push for EVs that is playing out right now. It’s called winter.
“All cars lose efficiency in the cold weather,” explains Andrew Garberson at Recurrent. “However, drivers only really worry about it when it comes to electric cars, since the lower efficiency translates directly to lower range. For EV owners in colder climates, like northern portions of the United States and Canada, daily driving and charging behaviors must be adjusted in winter months.”
It’s a problem here in the South, too. I drive a plug-in electric hybrid, which means that I get some electric driving mileage before the hybrid gas engine kicks in. In the spring, summer, and most of the fall, I get about 17 miles of all-electric driving, which is perfect for making a trip to town without using a drop of gas, but when the weather gets cold, that electric mileage drops to between seven and 10 miles. Needless to say, that’s a significant difference.
Recurrent analyzed the cold-weather behavior of 18 different EVs and found that these batteries performed at about 70% capacity in temperatures below freezing. Obviously, each vehicle is different, but an average of 70% means that some vehicles did much worse. The worst offenders were the Volkswagen 1D4, which lost 46% of its capacity, and the Chevy Bolt, which saw a 42% drop.
What’s the main culprit? It’s drivers and passengers trying to keep warm.
“The major reason that EVs lose range in the winter is due to cabin heating to keep the driver and passengers warm. Unlike in a conventional car, electric cars have to use energy to produce cabin heat,” Garberson points out. “In the internal combustion engine (ICE) that powers traditional cars, the ‘waste heat’ generated by the engine can be pumped directly into the car to warm people up. On the other hand, an EV has a much more efficient motor which does not generate nearly as much heat. The heaters that keep the car warm generally draw energy from the high voltage battery, reducing how much capacity is left for driving.”
We’re in the middle of a tough winter. The polar vortex has caused temperatures across much of North America to plunge into bitter cold, which means that EV drivers are struggling with decreased battery life. This example from Canada may be extreme, but it’s an example of the plight of EV drivers in a harsh winter:
Took my wife into work today for safety sakes. It’s -45 this morning.
Saw a fellow sitting in his EV at a charging station. The businesses were still closed for him to stay warm and dawdle while his car charged.
I briefly spoke with him as he went into the store. He said… pic.twitter.com/INfnWU7eu1
— Mark Bohaichuk (@m_bohaichuk) January 13, 2024
The people pushing EVs on members of an unsuspecting public who think they’re saving the planet are causing all sorts of heartache and frustration. It’s time for common sense to prevail and this EV push to slow down — if not stop completely.
