My Soul EV's Full Charge Is About 10 Miles Less In Colder Weather(below 50 degrees)

[maxcalvada]

Why would this be. I don't have a heated garage....charge it outside.

 

[IanL]

Are you referring to kWh or Ah charge value obtained from the OBD2 port, or the GOM? If it's the GOM, it seems to knock 10 or so miles off if the heating/aircon is on - switching it off increases the value displayed. Also, my GOM predicts about 120 in winter ( say 5degC) and 150 in summer (say 25 degC).

If it's the kWh values, I have limited records which do not show a seasonal difference.

It seems intuitively correct that the battery chemistry would be more sluggish at lower temperatures, and somewhat less efficient, and that might be even with battery heating. Bearing friction may be more at lower temperatures as well. I expect the GOM algorithm reflects these factors.

 

[gday]

I have kept detailed records of my Kia Soul EV (2020) for over 2 years now, including charging details, GOM, real range and day/night temperatures and can see that the real and GOM ranges follow the temperature pretty precisely. The GOM "exaggerates" but the exaggerated amount varies depending on the temperature.

I am currently going over my stats and up to now it seems that when the nightly low falls below 20 C the reduced range starts. This may be due to both efficiency of the battery, but probably more due to the need for heat when driving.

 

[whiskytangofoxtrot]

That makes sense, the Hvac system does burn power. When I toggle mine on/off my range changes 10 miles. It could be that the 10 mile number is something the programmers stuck in there. Motor mythbusters just did a show on this. The heat actually uses more energy than the AC

 

[Lithium]

sadly across most if not all EVs winter and summer mean dramatic swings, My 2016 Soul goes from 95-100mi in 80-90F down to 75mi in 40f or less. and drops consistently as Fall season moves to winter.
My 2014 Ford Focus Electric dropped form 76-80mi to 45 mi back in the day.
Larger packs suffer less, and preconditioning can help "release" these electrons.
EPA ratings show averages but the range is much wider than ICE averages.... useless in fact and perhaps we need a winter summer range rating vs and Average.

 

[MassDeduction]

sadly across most if not all EVs winter and summer mean dramatic swings, My 2016 Soul goes from 95-100mi in 80-90F down to 75mi in 40f or less. and drops consistently as Fall season moves to winter.
My 2014 Ford Focus Electric dropped form 76-80mi to 45 mi back in the day.
Larger packs suffer less, and preconditioning can help "release" these electrons.
EPA ratings show averages but the range is much wider than ICE averages.... useless in fact and perhaps we need a winter summer range rating vs and Average.

Interesting that larger packs suffer this less. I thought modern cars were suffering this less due to improved thermal management, but if your statement is correct perhaps they're suffering this less largely because they have much larger packs?

 

[IanL]

One possible factor is that larger packs are commonly on newer cars, and battery chemistry has improved e.g the KIA SoulEV cells in MY18 cars, and the 64kWh pack in MY20 (presumably using the same improved chemistry).

 

[vdcneil]

We just purchased a 2022 Soul EV, and we are trying to figure out our optimal settings. In the EV settings there is a Winter Mode which is said to improve the performance of the battery. At what average temperature will I benefit from toggling this Mode on or off? Or another way of asking, at what temperature was it intended to be of benefit?

 

[gday]

Interesting question.

I have kept lots of stats on temperature and range etc for almost 3 years now and one thing I didn't record was when I use Winter Mode. However looking at the temperature curve I suspect I turn it on about mid-November to mid-April and at those times the average temperature for me is about 10 C. I have read it works below 15 C but for me 15 C is not winter!

Having said that I am not sure how much having it turned on above 10 C affects things. I have always felt having it turned on means it will activate only under certain conditions. Maybe someone else knows more about that?

 

[MassDeduction]

Interesting question.

I have kept lots of stats on temperature and range etc for almost 3 years now and one thing I didn't record was when I use Winter Mode. However looking at the temperature curve I suspect I turn it on about mid-November to mid-April and at those times the average temperature for me is about 10 C. I have read it works below 15 C but for me 15 C is not winter!

Having said that I am not sure how much having it turned on above 10 C affects things. I have always felt having it turned on means it will activate only under certain conditions. Maybe someone else knows more about that?

Agreed that 15 C is not winter in any part of the world where Winter Mode would be required! The Kia manual agrees with you that it kicks in at 15 C, and I agree that seems way too high. My understanding is that turning on Winter Mode engages the battery heater in more conditions.

With regard to the topic, my understanding is that using an e-car in the cold somewhat reduces range (more or less depending on the car), and that *charging* in the cold also negatively affects how much of a charge the pack can take. This is presuming the temperature is high enough to charge at all (there is a level so low that a lithium ion battery pack won't safely take a charge), but low enough to reduce the effectiveness of the charging.

However, charging in the cold can be good for the pack's service life. A pack running hot (within reason) operates the best, and a pack in the cold (within reason) has the longest service life. That's why thermal management often tries to split the difference.

 

[gday]

Great - that research suits me!

The "good season " is just around the corner here. I think in April the GOM gets really close to telling th truth for me.

 

[frankinva]

I also have this problem.
Even with the heat off, the battery shows 100% but only says 55miles. It used to say like 80 or something.
Seems like it needs to be very hot for many days for the max to go back up.
I can't tell if it is getting lower and lower over the years. I have a 2016 ev soul

 

[BEC]

Sadly, your battery is dying. Get it into a Kia dealer that has EV certification and get the BMS screens captured and sent off to Kia to see if you’re ready for a warranty replacement (>70% State of health).

That (55 miles or so on the GOM) is where I was at the beginning of the year on my 2016. It’s now down to 34 on a warm day. In my case the warranty process is moving (albeit very slowly — Techline case opened in mid-July and a week and a half ago there were 10 people ahead of me for a new battery, or so I was told).

We’re still driving the car, but really short hops are the rule now….

 

[IanL]

BEC is correct, but a word of warning. Many dealers are ignorant of the details and want to reset the BMS, because they think this will "cure" the problem. It appears to do so, because the BMS reverts to default values, and the GOM value is raised. It will then fall back to where it was after 5 or so cycles.

That is why KIA insist that dealers take the BMS data BEFORE doing any updates. The instructions are at https://www.tsbsearch.com/Kia/PS548. Take a copy and insist they follow it.