Good morning from above Anchorage where it’s 3 F (-16 C°) and has been this cold for a few days.
My Grenny stays outside all winter and I drive it almost daily. This is its second winter outside and it has about 22k miles and the single battery system. Yesterday I did a 25 minute drive into town and back and it sat overnight last night cold soaking at 3°, verified by my industrial temp probe this morning which agrees with the Grenny thermometer. I went out this morning to document its winter electrical state of health.
The new locks work flawlessly so no more messing around with sticking doors. Starting was quick and easy and right after starting, the electrical display showed a battery temp of 3° (same as the outside air temp), 83% capacity and 3-4 amp idle charge rate. The car was started with all switches off (from the night before), fan off, fan zone to position 1, and cabin thermoset set to max. After ignition, I set the fan speed to 1 and directed air to windshield defrost.
I did a short drive up the hill from my house. Battery temp remained stable at 3° as the engine compartment did not heat up much on this short drive.
Charging remained in the 2 to 4A range, briefly running up to the 10 to 12A range when accelerating up the steep (8°) hill but stabilizing in the 2 to 4% range and state of charge stabilizing at 86%. Normally the state of charge to creep up a bit to the very low 90s as the battery warms but that takes a bit longer than I drove today.
After a climb of about 1,000 vertical ft, I directed the fan to heat the cabin and got good heat. As far as I am concerned, this is a great winter car.
FWIW, I do a few things which may help the electrical system on cold mornings.
1) On shut down the previous time I have driven it, I turn off every electrical circuit I can.
2) I double click the key to put the system to sleep asap.
There is no need to have then battery driving anything but the starter the next time I start. Once the engine is running, the lights, seat warmer, fan, etc, can come on when the alternator can deal with the additional electrical load. I am not sure if this necessary but I figure it can only help when it’s cold.
My Grenny stays outside all winter and I drive it almost daily. This is its second winter outside and it has about 22k miles and the single battery system. Yesterday I did a 25 minute drive into town and back and it sat overnight last night cold soaking at 3°, verified by my industrial temp probe this morning which agrees with the Grenny thermometer. I went out this morning to document its winter electrical state of health.
The new locks work flawlessly so no more messing around with sticking doors. Starting was quick and easy and right after starting, the electrical display showed a battery temp of 3° (same as the outside air temp), 83% capacity and 3-4 amp idle charge rate. The car was started with all switches off (from the night before), fan off, fan zone to position 1, and cabin thermoset set to max. After ignition, I set the fan speed to 1 and directed air to windshield defrost.
I did a short drive up the hill from my house. Battery temp remained stable at 3° as the engine compartment did not heat up much on this short drive.
Charging remained in the 2 to 4A range, briefly running up to the 10 to 12A range when accelerating up the steep (8°) hill but stabilizing in the 2 to 4% range and state of charge stabilizing at 86%. Normally the state of charge to creep up a bit to the very low 90s as the battery warms but that takes a bit longer than I drove today.
After a climb of about 1,000 vertical ft, I directed the fan to heat the cabin and got good heat. As far as I am concerned, this is a great winter car.
FWIW, I do a few things which may help the electrical system on cold mornings.
1) On shut down the previous time I have driven it, I turn off every electrical circuit I can.
2) I double click the key to put the system to sleep asap.
There is no need to have then battery driving anything but the starter the next time I start. Once the engine is running, the lights, seat warmer, fan, etc, can come on when the alternator can deal with the additional electrical load. I am not sure if this necessary but I figure it can only help when it’s cold.
