Range w/heater?

[mattrettig]

Was doing some mental math as I was diving home from work yesterday. This will be my first winter with the Lucid, and now that the cold weather is coming on, it seems my ‘22 GT is only getting about 300 real-world miles of range. My understanding is that the ‘22s don’t have a heat pump so their heaters are less efficient, but I’m only getting ~60% of the EPA range? Tires are good and properly inflated, I’m not charging my phone, I don’t run a roof rack or anything, I’m using the seat and wheel heat to minimize the cabin heating…trying all the strategies but it seems the cold weather operation is a BIG de-rate.

Is this what others are experiencing? Or do I need to employ a different strategy for using heat? Concerned about the next couple months when it gets REALLY cold.

Matt

 

[elusive7]

I think in the winters I'm getting about 60-70% of EPA in my Touring in Chicago, which is still like 250 miles, which still beats the rest of the competition when you think about it. EVs in general don't like the cold very much, but at least our Airs still put up strong range #s despite that (compared to other EVs)

 

[mattrettig]

I think in the winters I'm getting about 60-70% of EPA in my Touring in Chicago, which is still like 250 miles, which still beats the rest of the competition when you think about it. EVs in general don't like the cold very much, but at least our Airs still put up strong range #s despite that (compared to other EVs)

Haha yes, 60% of a GT is still more range than 70% of any other EV, but I was watching the “Miles Upon Arrival” calculation plummet as I drove. It started out at 80 miles upon arrival, but by the time I got home it was at 60. Does that calculation not account for heater use? If not, it might be a good thing incorporate in a future software update. Maybe use a “fudge factor” based on ambient temp?

 

[elusive7]

Haha yes, 60% of a GT is still more range than 70% of any other EV, but I was watching the “Miles Upon Arrival” calculation plummet as I drove. It started out at 80 miles upon arrival, but by the time I got home it was at 60. Does that calculation not account for heater use? If not, it might be a good thing incorporate in a future software update. Maybe use a “fudge factor” based on ambient temp?

I think it does account for heater use. I took a 40 mile trip and the 'Range upon Arrival' actually seemed to be accurate if I was driving at 62mph (truly 60 since its +2 in the dash). As soon as I went to 70+ it started dropping again.

 

[mattrettig]

I think it does account for heater use. I took a 40 mile trip and the 'Range upon Arrival' actually seemed to be accurate if I was driving at 62mph (truly 60 since its +2 in the dash). As soon as I went to 70+ it started dropping again.

Wait, the dash always reads 2 mph faster than the car is actually going? That’s news to me. Why is that?

 

[tonybot]

At least in the US, car speedometers often show slightly higher speeds than actual to account for factors like tire wear, variability in tire size, and manufacturing tolerances. This ensures the speedometer doesn’t understate speed, which could lead to safety or liability issues. This is a very common practice. All of my past vehicles have done it to some degree.

 

[Cosmo Cruz]

If people would put their location and car model in their profile...

 

[mattrettig]

At least in the US, car speedometers often show slightly higher speeds than actual to account for factors like tire wear, variability in tire size, and manufacturing tolerances. This ensures the speedometer doesn’t understate speed, which could lead to safety or liability issues. This is a very common practice. All of my past vehicles have done it to some degree.

Wow I didn’t know that, thanks!

 

[fisheral]

I'm getting around 50% of range (1.5-2.5) with a very light foot always in smooth with high regen. Temps have been in the 20s to 30s. It's kind of shocking since I averaged 4.0 during the summer/fall. Perhaps switching to winter tires on alternate rims obliterated my range (both sets 19-inch). My wife's Subaru Solterra has much less range loss (I got 180 out of it the other day - rated at 227, whereas I got 200 out of the Air - rated at 400).

 

[ColonelBadger]

How many miles per kWh is your Air reporting? times that by the size of your battery and that's how many real miles you'd be able to achieve. I just did a 27 mile commute with heater on (29F here in NH) driving at 77mph on the highway and got 3.31 kWh, so just over 300miles range which I'm ok with.

 

[fisheral]

How many miles per kWh is your Air reporting? times that by the size of your battery and that's how many real miles you'd be able to achieve. I just did a 27 mile commute with heater on (29F here in NH) driving at 77mph on the highway and got 3.31 kWh, so just over 300miles range which I'm ok with.

1.5-2.5 kWh

 

[suchluke]

I am noticing similar drop in efficiency on my 2023 Air Pure AWD when temps are in their 30s. Maybe not as significant but still almost 1mi/kwh lower. In addition I noticed that when driving in the same outside temp 34F the heater keeps up the interior temperature at the comfortable level when driving below 50mph. When accelerating past 70mph the interior temp drops and it feels much colder without adjusting temp settings. My theory is that Lucid is prioritizing battery health and longevity above everything else. Trying to keep the battery temp at the ideal level. Where other manufactures might not. Hopefully this means lower battery degradation over time. I believe Lucid has the best BMS out there but it might translate negatively to driver/passengers comfort levels.

 

[ColonelBadger]

I am noticing similar drop in efficiency on my 2023 Air Pure AWD when temps are in their 30s. Maybe not as significant but still almost 1mi/kwh lower. In addition I noticed that when driving in the same outside temp 34F the heater keeps up the interior temperature at the comfortable level when driving below 50mph. When accelerating past 70mph the interior temp drops and it feels much colder without adjusting temp settings. My theory is that Lucid is prioritizing battery health and longevity above everything else. Trying to keep the battery temp at the ideal level. Where other manufactures might not. Hopefully this means lower battery degradation over time. I believe Lucid has the best BMS out there but it might translate negatively to driver/passengers comfort levels.

Noticed something similar. The thing that I felt the most was a cool air hitting my hand son the steering wheel and face. My suspicion (and I checked last night), is that the windshield is very cold and the warm air that hits it from the front cools by the time it arrives on me. I checked and the air coming out by the windshield is definitely warm, but I suspect the slope of the windshield and the fact its relatively close to the driver means you get hit with the air that's cooled from the windshield. I also suspect that when driving on the highway the windshield never gets chance to warm up, vs local stop and start driving. Just a theory but I have definitely noticed the car is cooler on the highway.

 

[suchluke]

Noticed something similar. The thing that I felt the most was a cool air hitting my hand son the steering wheel and face. My suspicion (and I checked last night), is that the windshield is very cold and the warm air that hits it from the front cools by the time it arrives on me. I checked and the air coming out by the windshield is definitely warm, but I suspect the slope of the windshield and the fact its relatively close to the driver means you get hit with the air that's cooled from the windshield. I also suspect that when driving on the highway the windshield never gets chance to warm up, vs local stop and start driving. Just a theory but I have definitely noticed the car is cooler on the highway.

Good point on redirecting air flow to the windshield.

 

[ColonelBadger]

Good point on redirecting air flow to the windshield.

Yeah I experimented by switching off the air to the windshield and the cabin did feel warmer then.

 

[momo3605]

Haha yes, 60% of a GT is still more range than 70% of any other EV, but I was watching the “Miles Upon Arrival” calculation plummet as I drove. It started out at 80 miles upon arrival, but by the time I got home it was at 60. Does that calculation not account for heater use? If not, it might be a good thing incorporate in a future software update. Maybe use a “fudge factor” based on ambient temp?

They were supposed to fix this in one of the updates a few months ago...but i've noticed it's still a very bad calculation. Not sure why