Thinking about upgrading my 2017 Malibu to a Mach E, but I keep hearing electric cars don’t do well in really cold places. I live in Illinois, and it’s supposed to hit -25 tomorrow. Is this a dealbreaker? Should I wait? Would love to hear from people with experience.
For daily driving, it’s totally fine. But if you’re taking a road trip, it’s a different story. My GT barely gets 175 miles when it’s below freezing, and charging takes longer too.
I’m in Canada, and when it gets really cold, my range drops to about half. Preconditioning helps, but you’ll still feel it. If you do long commutes, get the biggest battery you can. I usually drive my truck in winter instead to avoid the hassle.
It depends on how far you drive and if you can charge at home.
Another Canadian here. If you have a garage or a Level 2 charger where you park, you’ll be fine. Just be ready for range loss when temperatures drop. If you have to park outside without a charger, it’s a different story—you’ll lose a lot more range, and cabin heating might be limited on extremely cold mornings.
I live near O’Hare and I’m on my third EV. If you’re driving on the highway at 80 mph in freezing temps, you’ll definitely see a big range hit. In my Tesla M3P with 80k miles, I’d run out of battery on my 130-mile round trip commute when it was really cold.
I have a 2024 Select eAWD with Michelin CrossClimate2s. Handles great in the snow and icy roads here in Michigan.
That said, get the extended battery. I lose at least a third of my range on really cold days. But since I have a Level 2 charger at home, I just plug in overnight and it’s not a problem.
Been in the teens here in New England. I get around 180-190 miles at 80% charge, but in reality, with the heat on, it’s more like 120 miles.
If you can charge at home, it’s not a big deal. The Departure Time feature helps warm the battery before you drive, which reduces range loss.
I lose about 30% range in the winter here in Ohio. If that worries you, go for the long-range model.
The 2025 Mach E will have a heat pump, which should help. Other EVs like the Equinox EV, Ioniq 5, and EV6 also have heat pumps and charge faster if you need to stop for a quick top-up.
You’ll notice the difference, but it’s still totally usable. With the extended battery, expect about 50% range on the coldest days, maybe 60-75% on normal winter days. The standard-range battery is less affected by temperature but has lower capacity overall.
If you can, install a Level 2 charger where you park. You’ll need a 60-amp 240V circuit to your garage or driveway, then either a NEMA 14-50 plug or a direct-wired charger. This way, you can fully charge overnight.
To extend battery life, keep it charged around 80% for daily use and only go to 100% when you really need it. But honestly, even if you charge to 100% all the time and use fast charging often, the battery should still last over 15 years.
No issues here. I charge at home and drive it just like a gas car.
I’m in Illinois and have the GT model. It has heated seats and a heated steering wheel, which helps.
The cold definitely lowers the range, but as long as you can charge at home and plan around heat usage, it’s a great car. I usually lose about 20 miles of range in winter, but since I plug in overnight in my garage, I don’t even notice it.
I’m in Illinois too. Where exactly is it supposed to hit -25? Unless you’re talking about Celsius?
Can you charge at home? Do you have access to a Level 2 charger? How far do you drive each day? Any free charging at work?
Whether it works for you depends on your setup. Plenty of people in Canada drive EVs just fine.
@Dorian
Northern IL, near the Quad Cities. Weather report says -20 to -25 tomorrow lol.
BumpyJohnson said:
@Dorian
Northern IL, near the Quad Cities. Weather report says -20 to -25 tomorrow lol.
Might be the ‘real feel’ temp. Either way, same advice applies—lots of posts here on managing EVs in winter.