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Chicago-area Tesla charging stations lined with dead cars in freezing cold

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Re: Chicago-area Tesla charging stations lined with dead cars in freezing cold

#41

Post by hypeatei »

robertlagrant wrote: post #16
supportengineer wrote: post #12

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Not just a hybrid but a series-type hybrid. Electric motors drive the wheels and the gas engine is just there to generate electricity. At every level of society I see products being designed for the "best case" only. For example, unlocking your car with electronic keys. I am afraid a generation will have to live through "hard times" in order to get us thinking about resilience again and planning for the "worst case".…

> When looking at vehicles, it's a fun thought experiment to ask yourself if you would want this vehicle during a "zombie apocalypse" It's fun, but not useful. I want a solar powered Humvee in a zombie apocalypse.

I think GP was referring more to aspects of a zombie apocalypse like servers being shutdown or power grid not working. Things that can happen for relatively short periods today.

Re: Chicago-area Tesla charging stations lined with dead cars in freezing cold

#42

Post by marcosdumay »

MattGrommes wrote: post #13

A friend hypothesized that a lot of Tesla drivers charge the same way they refilled their gas cars, by waiting until the last minute and supercharging back up to "full". This doesn't work when it's so cold so people need to learn to charge a little at a time.

People that don't charge at home do certainly charge this way. And they will continue doing that, at least until they can charge at most stops.

IMO, more people have brought electrical cars than who can make practical use of them right now. We will have lots of impractical issues on the news on the next few years.

Growth pains, I guess.

Re: Chicago-area Tesla charging stations lined with dead cars in freezing cold

#43

Post by zeekaran »

igrekel wrote: post #7

I'm surprised since I've never had any problems at -40C and it happened several times. I Neve had to supercharge the car under these conditions however.

Fun fact: -40C is equal to -40F! So you can just say -40 and it means the same to everyone.

Re: Chicago-area Tesla charging stations lined with dead cars in freezing cold

#44

Post by AlexandrB »

ShakataGaNai wrote: post #23

My "favorite" thing about these stories is all the anti-EV'rs coming out and going "hahaha, stupid EV drivers". Except they don't realize their ICE car is part of the problem. These extremely unusual storms and cold snaps are part of climate change and their pointing and laughing is only going to make things worse. At the end of the day, the real story is that EV's are having teething problems in unusual cold conditi…

Seems like a huge reach. Chicago, specifically seemed to have some extremely cold weather in the 80s[1] and basically nothing since then until now. From my personal anecdata, winters up in Canada seem milder than when I was a kid - some 30 years ago.

Politically, attributing every instance of bad weather to climate change with no evidence plays into climate change denier narratives and seems like a bad move.

[1] https://www.weather.gov/lot/Chicago_Temperature_Records

Re: Chicago-area Tesla charging stations lined with dead cars in freezing cold

#45

Post by goalieca »

gamblor956 wrote: post #27
not_the_fda wrote: post #3

Its been -10F in the upper midwest the last few days. Lots BEV and ICE vehicles are dead. Its not just an EV issue.

In both cases, it's the batteries in the cars that died. The ICE engines work just fine once you warm them up and jump them.

This! I’ve boosted cars in -30 and it takes a bit of extra crank because the fluids are all thick in the cold. But it works. It’s not a bad idea in really cold weather (-40) to start your car every 4 hours or so to keep it warm.

Edit: the gas cars failing to start are almost always having old batteries that need replacing. In a really cold climate you don’t want to push 7 beyond years. Some batteries are in rough shape after 5.

Re: Chicago-area Tesla charging stations lined with dead cars in freezing cold

#46

Post by doctoboggan »

TrainedMonkey wrote: post #25
doctoboggan wrote: post #14

My sister lives in Chicago and her ICE car also won't start due to the extreme low temperatures. The Canadians solved this problem by having resistive heat elements installed in their engine, I think EVs probably need the same.

They do, there are resistive elements on older Teslas and heat pumps on newer ones. The trouble is - they require electricity to operate and so they suck the battery dry. In this case it sounds like charging stations also bombed out...

The ICE cars also need electricity for their resistive heating blocks, so the EVs aren't worse off in that regard.

Re: Chicago-area Tesla charging stations lined with dead cars in freezing cold

#47

Post by lunarimiso »

goalieca wrote: post #45
gamblor956 wrote: post #27

Earlier quoted context omitted.

In both cases, it's the batteries in the cars that died. The ICE engines work just fine once you warm them up and jump them.

This! I’ve boosted cars in -30 and it takes a bit of extra crank because the fluids are all thick in the cold. But it works. It’s not a bad idea in really cold weather (-40) to start your car every 4 hours or so to keep it warm. Edit: the gas cars failing to start are almost always having old batteries that need replacing. In a really cold climate you don’t want to push 7 beyond years. Some batteries are in rough sha…

Would removing your car battery and taking it in over night help? (Gas car)

Re: Chicago-area Tesla charging stations lined with dead cars in freezing cold

#48

Post by gamblor956 »

lunarimiso wrote: post #47
goalieca wrote: post #45

Earlier quoted context omitted.

This! I’ve boosted cars in -30 and it takes a bit of extra crank because the fluids are all thick in the cold. But it works. It’s not a bad idea in really cold weather (-40) to start your car every 4 hours or so to keep it warm. Edit: the gas cars failing to start are almost always having old batteries that need replacing. In a really cold climate you don’t want to push 7 beyond years. Some batteries are in rough sha…

Would removing your car battery and taking it in over night help? (Gas car)

If you have a garage, your best bet is a battery tender, which keeps the battery charged overnight and warm enough not to freeze.

A lot of people also use engine block heaters. There's different types and they all work a bit differently. Usually you would start the engine warmer a few hours before you use the car instead of overnight.

Re: Chicago-area Tesla charging stations lined with dead cars in freezing cold

#49

Post by gosub100 »

supportengineer wrote: post #12
rngname22 wrote: post #8

This is where a hybrid powertrain / PHEV is superior to EV. In an ideal system you want redundancies, especially redundancies that cover for each other's weaknesses.

Not just a hybrid but a series-type hybrid. Electric motors drive the wheels and the gas engine is just there to generate electricity. At every level of society I see products being designed for the "best case" only. For example, unlocking your car with electronic keys. I am afraid a generation will have to live through "hard times" in order to get us thinking about resilience again and planning for the "worst case".…

I can't see a situation in an apocalypse where gasoline isn't consumed immediately, and then rationed to only government authorities. My bet would be 100% EV, and if you want redundancy, buy a generator capable of outputting to an inverter that charges the EV (then stockpile a reasonable amount of fuel for the generator).

Re: Chicago-area Tesla charging stations lined with dead cars in freezing cold

#50

Post by kelipso »

gosub100 wrote: post #49
supportengineer wrote: post #12

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Not just a hybrid but a series-type hybrid. Electric motors drive the wheels and the gas engine is just there to generate electricity. At every level of society I see products being designed for the "best case" only. For example, unlocking your car with electronic keys. I am afraid a generation will have to live through "hard times" in order to get us thinking about resilience again and planning for the "worst case".…

I can't see a situation in an apocalypse where gasoline isn't consumed immediately, and then rationed to only government authorities. My bet would be 100% EV, and if you want redundancy, buy a generator capable of outputting to an inverter that charges the EV (then stockpile a reasonable amount of fuel for the generator).

Or just get an ICE car and stockpile the fuel.. Way fewer steps required.
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