Think twice about using hot air blower during cold snap, electric drivers warned

Drivers of electric vehicles (EVs) have been warned they should think twice before turning on their hot air blowers during the cold weather.

Having a battery rather than an internal combustion engine (ICE) means EVs have to use more electricity to generate their own heat.

Experts have warned this could drain the batteries of their electric cars – particularly older ones – and reduce their range.

Unlike with petrol and diesel cars, owners of EVs do not get to enjoy the luxury of the “effectively free” heat which is created as a by-product of simply having the engine running in ICE vehicles.

Instead, they have to use a “more substantial” amount of battery capacity to keep warm, which decreases how far they can drive.

The warning comes as Britons brace themselves for snow, rain and gusts of 70mph in the form of Storm Bert this weekend.

Greg Carter, The AA’s technical specialist, said: “All electrical systems struggle in the cold a little bit.The main culprit for damaging the range is the heating system.”

He said that most electric cars had a “useful” pre-conditioning feature that should be used, allowing owners to programme the vehicle to be warm and defrosted when they get in.

This was best done using electricity from the charging point, as opposed to draining the battery while driving, he said.

Comparing EVs and ICE vehicles, he added: “Heat in ICE vehicles is a by-product of them running.

“There’s a tiny amount of electricity used to run the blower but the heat itself comes from combustion – meaning it’s effectively free.”

In contrast, he said heating the air in EVs requires a “more substantial” amount of energy because there is no waste heat to make use of.

Steve Gooding, director of the RAC Foundation, said while icy temperatures do not pose problems for the actual charging of EVs, drivers will have to toss up whether to stay warm.

“What drivers of EVs – especially older ones with lower ranges – should consider is how they keep warm,” he said.

“In a petrol or diesel car a heated seat is a luxury but in an electric vehicle it is often a better bet than turning on the blower which requires a lot of battery energy to heat the air.

“In a car with an internal combustion engine the hot air comes from the waste heat of the engine.”

The warning comes ahead of the second storm of the season to be named by the Met Office, which is set to bring heavy rain and snowfall to areas including the north-east and north-west of England, the West Midlands, Yorkshire and much of Scotland.

The Met Office recorded -7.5°C in Warcop, Cumbria, on Tuesday night – some 10°C lower than the national average for this time of year.

The UK Health and Security Agency issued the first amber cold weather health alert of the season in some areas, warning the plummeting temperatures could cause a rise in deaths among the vulnerable, including the elderly.

As hundreds of schools were forced to shut with heavier than expected snow, the RAC reported a sharp rise in breakdowns, with many drivers’ batteries failing because of the cold.

This uses valuable battery stores and therefore reduces the range it can travel.

The Government is sticking to its commitment to phase out sales of petrol cars by 2030.

This comes despite a warning from car manufacturer Nissan who this week told Louise Haigh, the Transport Secretary, that “urgent action” on strict EV sales quotas was needed to protect UK jobs and investment.

The plea followed an announcement from Ford, which revealed its plans to cut 800 jobs across the country.

The ban was previously branded as “terrible for the UK”, by Carlos Tavares, the boss of Vauxhall maker Stellantis.

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