MG4 Intelligent battery heating on SE?

[fnegroni]

It also affects your range.

The increased internal resistance and lower voltages in low temps mean that the battery will start lower and get worked harder to get the same effect - in other words the same driver will need to drive it harder to get the same result, which will result in lower range for the same journey compared to warmer conditions.

This, plus increased use of the cabin heater etc..., is why our batteries give significantly shorter range in winter temperatures.

Therefore it is reasonable to assume that heating the battery would increase the range: after all, that's the difference between summer and winter, isn't it?!

However, on the MG4 it doesn't appear to make much difference to range (or consumption) which does require an explanation.

True that it will increase range somewhat but on the LFP not so much in my experience: for the couple kWh taken to heat the battery fully, I only ever gain 50 % of that (4 miles).
But if I run the battery heater for only 10 minutes I should get back more: havent tried yet though.

 

[Astral]

I also gave it a try and did not get any better range when doing the daily commute, but it's a very short one so maybe not the best of tests. So far it does not seem to help and it only takes juice out of your battery pack but I will test throughout November at least to try to get to some conclusion. For reference our temperatures range from -2°C in the morning to up to 8°C during the day.

 

[fnegroni]

I also gave it a try and did not get any better range when doing the daily commute, but it's a very short one so maybe not the best of tests. So far it does not seem to help and it only takes juice out of your battery pack but I will test throughout November at least to try to get to some conclusion. For reference our temperatures range from -2c in the morning to up to 8c during the day.

Indeed if your journey is short and only done once in the morning and once in the evening, as long as you don’t strain the battery you are better off not warming it up.

Bear in mind VW used to run the battery heating while driving and you didn’t get the option of switching it off.

 

[Anon70]

You are missing the point of battery heating then.

My understanding was battery heating is for 2 main reasons
1) To precondition the battery before a charge so the charge rate can be optimised (faster)
2) To precondition the battery before driving so that it can be at its most efficient

The car HVAC was run for 10 minutes to precondition before the outbound trip and was not run before the return trip

Outbound efficiency reached 3 miles per kWh
Return efficiency was 3.3 miles per kWh (without the 3% penalty of a battery precondition or the 10 minutes of HVAC)

There was a 2 hour rest period between journeys

 

[fnegroni]

My understanding was battery heating is for 2 main reasons
1) To precondition the battery before a charge so the charge rate can be optimised (faster)
2) To precondition the battery before driving so that it can be at it's most efficient

The car HVAC was run for 10 minutes to precondition before the outbound trip and was not run before the return trip

Outbound efficiency reached 3 miles per kWh
Return efficiency was 3.3 miles per kWh (without the 3% penalty of a battery precondition or the 10 minutes of HVAC)

There was a 2 hour rest period between journeys

You must compare the same route over two consecutive runs. You can’t compare A to B with B to A.