dealing with cold weather

The manual says that you should keep it plugged in when it is below 32 degrees. This isn't always possible or convenient. What is the reasoning behind this?

Normally, I only drive about 20 miles a day. I don't want to cycle the batteries multiple times per day. Ideally, I could go 3 or so days between charges. It feels wrong to plug in after only a 6 mile drive when I get to work. Also, I don't want to stay plugged in the whole time I am at work hogging the charger. Also, I go places where there are no chargers and no place to plugin. I wonder why that rule is in the manual so that I can understand what I should do. Should I not drive during the cold season where it might be below freezing during the day? If so, that sucks. Is it just that it needs to condition the batteries? If so, will the batteries use their own power to condition themselves? I have plenty of range so this is probably no big deal. I'd just want to be sure that is what is going to happen before I were to test it

Some kinds of lithium battery can be permanently damaged by using them while they are too cold. I don't know the limits of this pack, but 40 F is a safe lower bound for most batteries. I'm not saying you are going to hurt the battery by leaving it unplugged because I don't know for sure, but I suspect Chevrolet had their reasons for building a whole separate heating and cooling system just for the battery pack and for making that recommendation about plugging it in when it is cold. If it were my car I'd plug it in and take consolation from not having to get out of the car in the cold at a gas station to fill it.

I think GM has two main reasons.
1) They want the car topped off and ready to go all the time so owners don't talk poorly about the car not being ready to drive on longer trips and bringing down the overall satisfaction of the car.
2) The ideal battery conditions are 70F and they don't want it to get too far below that and rely on wall power to heat it some to ensure the core temp doesn't drop too low.

There are a couple of good reasons to plug in the car when it's cold (or hot)
1) The battery will not degrade (lose capacity over time) as much if kept from extreme temps (hot or cold).
2) The battery indeed operates best at about 70, and the Spark actually has one of the most advanced thermal management systems available. It will heat (or cool the battery) as needed and having it plugged in will maximize battery range by using wall power to do this before driving. According to the manual, if the battery gets too cold (they don't give an actual temp), you'll get a warning on the dash that you MUST plug in the car to warm the battery before driving.

I'm currently on waiting lists for a Honda Fit EV, but am starting to take a closer look at the Spark. The people with the Fit EV in the NE are struggling with severe range drop in frigid weather, and some are using/considering external electric heaters to warm the battery pack before driving (or just leaving it parked). They also find that the car will not use regen until the battery pack warms when they first start in cold temps. Pre-warming the battery offers many benefits.

Is it absolutely necessary to plug in while cold? No (unless you drop to whatever the number is where the car demands it). But topping off a lithium battery will not harm it (they don't develop a "memory"). Hogging a charger at work would be inconsiderate if others needed to charge, so unless you are somewhere where it gets very cold, I wouldn't worry about it since you have plenty of range. However, I would keep it plugged in when at home.

Gary

P.S. I may have missed it, but I didn't notice an option to pre-condition the cabin. Most EV's allow you to use the remote (or an app) to heat/cool the car before you get in to drive.

DucRider said:

P.S. I may have missed it, but I didn't notice an option to pre-condition the cabin. Most EV's allow you to use the remote (or an app) to heat/cool the car before you get in to drive.

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Yes we use the preconditioning in the cold mornings and if you have the seat warmers already set when you left the car last, he seats will warm up too. Works for hot days too and can be activated by the app or fob.

Lithium batteries aren't going to freeze until they hit about -30C. Too hot, above about 50C / 122F will likely also damage them.

Cold (but not frozen) is best for long battery life.

Hot (but not much over 50C) is best for longest range / power.

70-75F is the compromise temperature.

Since the battery thermal management (TMS) will be working to warm the battery, TMS might not even work unless the battery is above 50% full, or plugged in, or in READY (driving) mode.

I realize this is a much older post but I wanted to ask if anyone has NOT kept their 2014 Spark EV plugged in when its 15 to 20 degrees outside and seen ill effects?

I've been scouring older posts on several venues (and google searching) and what I've come up with is the following:

2014 Spark EV doesn't do battery management (warming or cooling) unless plugged in or ON (I've seen this referenced in several places but cannot find out if this is fact in a factory manual and calling my local Chevy dealer is useless to gain this information.)

^ does anyone know for sure on this tidbit?


I've seen conflicting info on leaving a Spark EV unplugged when its below freezing outside. Some references say the battery freezes and starts degrading as quickly as overnight. Others say it just kills the 12V battery and you'll end up having to replace that. Still others say its good to have it in 'cold' storage and it doesn't hurt anything. So which is it?

I've noticed while plugged in and anything 20 degrees or below the car uses power every hour to do its 'battery management' but I wonder if this is just anticipating and prepping for use at any moment or actually helping the battery last longer?


My bottom line curiosity is what if you plan to leave the car PARKED for a week or 2 (while on vacation) and would rather not leave it plugged in for that absent time because a) you won't use the car anyway and b) don't want to risk vandalism of someone unplugging the car just for fun OR worse, theft of the charger because its obvious no one is home (yes we park it outside).

In our upcoming 10 day trip, it will get to -1 outside (predicted) so how bad would it be to leave the car unplugged and unused in our absence starting out with it fully charged before we leave?

...which is another question, is having it fully charged a bad idea? Some research indicates it should be at 80% charge and NOT fully charged if left to sit.. something about fully charged is bad with temp changes I'm guessing?


Any insight anyone?

Chris101 said:

..I've noticed while plugged in and anything 20 degrees or below the car uses power every hour to do its 'battery management' but I wonder if this is just anticipating and prepping for use at any moment or actually helping the battery last longer?


My bottom line curiosity is what if you plan to leave the car PARKED for a week or 2 (while on vacation) ...

In our upcoming 10 day trip, it will get to -1 outside (predicted) so how bad would it be to leave the car unplugged and unused in our absence starting out with it fully charged before we leave?

Any insight anyone?

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I totally understand this question. In this gadawful weather I also see the Thermal Management System use power intermittently all the time.
It's keeping the battery at a happy temp. Your neighbors Leaf does not do this.

If I was leaving on an extended weekend I'd leave the pack at ~40-45% SOC and disconnect the the 12V.
(Although I read something about the Onstar transceiver having it's own keep alive battery and if it goes all the way dead.....)

I have a 12V Battery Tender that I would use instead of the disconnect. But then that could be stole also. Disconnected would harm the battery.

But then, I would drive my car to the airport and plug into one of the 24 L2's that are in the economy parking lot,, and pay the price because I hate driving that darn gasser....

I have been using my Spark through Montana winters without a problem. Even when the weather is -20 degrees F outside. In the mornings I unplug and drive to work. The car sits all day unplugged. After work I get in, press start and drive home. Never a problem.


(somewhat related question: How do I post pictures? Want to show Sparky plowing through the snow.)