A new study has revealed the impact of heatwaves on the performance of electric cars – and in some instances claimed battery range can fall to almost half official figures.
While it’s relatively well known that winter conditions can have a debilitating impact on the range of EVs – due to batteries needing to reach an optimum temperature to deliver energy efficiently – an exclusive test by What Car? found sweltering heatwave temperatures can be equally range sapping, if not worse.
For its latest range assessment, the automotive title drove three popular EVs – a Citroen e-C3 Max, Kia EV3 Long Range GT-Line S and Tesla Model 3 Long Range RWD – through the ‘frying pan of Andalusia’ in Spain.
The journey, travelling over 200 miles eastbound from Seville, to Cordoba and Montoro, before heading to the south coastal region of Aguadulce, was completed in boiling ambient temperatures between 32 and 44 degrees C.
And it was the Tesla that suffered most – despite the brand’s origins in Texas, where it typically exceeds 38 degrees in the summer months.
What Car? said that while it’s rare for the UK to endure such extreme conditions, summer heatwaves recorded this year will have taken a toll on the performance of electric cars.
