Question for EV owners: anyone own one long term? Battery degradation?

[mcnels1]

My 2015 BMW i3 has 96,000 miles on it and has lost about 10% battery capacity.

 

[SentinelOne]

The battery degradation is pretty well managed these days, personally have no concern given the warranties provided by most.. I typically keep my trucks 10 years so it's in the ballpark for me. Only concern I'd be worried about is if the range (EV only, no harvester) is on the edge of your use case then losing x% makes it a bit more of a challenge.

Also, given the rate of tech advancement, innovation, new battery tech, etc I have a feeling 10years might be a bit long to hold on to a vehicle for me this time around.

 

[RMK!]

My 2018 Model X has 55K miles on it and 92% of the original battery range.

 

[blmtnc]

My 2017 Volt has just under 80k miles, with 82% of that in EV only mode. I hadn't seen a noticeable difference in capacity until about 1.5 years ago, when the depletion point of the battery (when the gas engine kicks in) dropped from 14.4 kwh to 13.6. That would indicate a 5.5% loss in capacity for the driver (there's a 4kwh buffer for hybrid operation that I assume is still whole). I'm pretty consistent about keeping it on utility power when temps are above 90F or below 50F so it doesn't consume itself for thermal management, and I short cycle it on charges (multiple sessions under 50%) vs. deep cycles whenever possible. I fully expect it to be above 90% original capacity at 100k miles/10 yrs.

 

[DrPerez007]

Okay, so here’s my issue, or should I say reservation, about EVs. I have a summer residence and a winter residence and wherever my Scout might go, it will stay permanently. Therefore, when I am not at that residence it will sit unattended for around six (6) months or possibly longer every year. What are the downsides to leaving an EV, even a hybrid, undriven for such a long period of time? Any snowbirds or others with experience out there who are in the same situation?

 

[PNW Nate]

We have a 2018 model 3 with 100k+ miles on it. It is rated at 310 mile range.
I have not run it down to zero, to be sure, but we think it has at least 90% of the range left. It is hard to tell because we run different tires now. We regularly take a 260-mile road trip and have not noticed much difference in the range.

Okay, so here’s my issue, or should I say reservation, about EVs. I have a summer residence and a winter residence and wherever my Scout might go, it will stay permanently. Therefore, when I am not at that residence it will sit unattended for around six (6) months or possibly longer every year. What are the downsides to leaving an EV, even a hybrid, undriven for such a long period of time? Any snowbirds or others with experience out there who are in the same situation?

An EV is probably going to be good for this as long as you can plug it in so that it can trickle charge / sustain the battery. If you have to leave it at an off-grid location, a small solar panel set-up would work.

 

[SentinelOne]

Okay, so here’s my issue, or should I say reservation, about EVs. I have a summer residence and a winter residence and wherever my Scout might go, it will stay permanently. Therefore, when I am not at that residence it will sit unattended for around six (6) months or possibly longer every year. What are the downsides to leaving an EV, even a hybrid, undriven for such a long period of time? Any snowbirds or others with experience out there who are in the same situation?

I had a 2019 Model 3 Performance that I didnt drive 5-6 months out of the year (for 4 years) - eg in winter because it had summer performance tires on it and I have other vehicles. I left it on the charger all winter set to 50%. Car had degraded 6% in the 4 years / 30k miles. Assuming Scout has a good BMS / Batteries - which I have no reason to believe they wouldnt, I think you'd be good to go.

 

[Tazzer33]

Have a 2018 Tesla model 3 - new 100% charge battery range was 310 miles. November 2024 battery range at 100% charge is 275 miles. Not happy about the range loss but still loving the EV. The only thing I've replaced is the small start battery for $130. Can't beat the cost to own.

 

[Scooby24]

Have a 2018 Tesla model 3 - new 100% charge battery range was 310 miles. November 2024 battery range at 100% charge is 275 miles. Not happy about the range loss but still loving the EV. The only thing I've replaced is the small start battery for $130. Can't beat the cost to own.

Does the Tesla not adjust the 100% charge target based on either temperature or driving history?

At least with Ford, it's an entirely unreliable metric to assess degradation as the difference between 80 degrees and 50 degrees is significant...and if you have a lead foot it will show lower.

The best way we test is by doing it at the same temp as initially recorded, then do a driving history reset. Mine's actually higher now than it was 3 years ago, presumably because Ford provisioned the battery capacity from 88 useable to 91 kwh.

 

[Mr._Bill]

Sooo, I'm the type of guy that likes to keep cars. If I buy car that I really like and I have room for it, I'll keep it for a loooong time (I have high expectations for the Scout). Does anyone own an EV thats over 10 years old and or has over 100,000 miles? If so, please tell me about your experience and the current condition of your car.

I have a 2013 Nissan Leaf that I still drive. It was a lease return with about 15k miles when I bought it in March of 2015. The battery pack was replaced under warranty in October of 2017. It still shows all capacity bars on the Guage, so it is still above 85% capacity. I only charge to 100% on days where I drive across the valley, otherwise it is just 80% charged.

I drove it a lot for about four years. Then I traded my 2006 Duramax 2500HD with 130k miles for a Jeep Gladiator. The Leaf doesn't get as much use now, but I still drive it for Doctors appointments and errands. It has 35k miles on it, and still on the original brakes. I have put a new set of tires on it, and replaced the 12v battery a couple times. It is the lowest maintenance and least expensive to operate of all the vehicles I have ever owned.

 

[Tazzer33]

Have a 2018 Tesla model 3 - new 100% charge battery range was 310 miles. November 2024 battery range at 100% charge is 275 miles. Not happy about the range loss but still loving the EV. The only thing I've replaced is the small start battery for $130. Can't beat the cost to own.

Does the Tesla not adjust the 100% charge target based on either temperature or driving history?

At least with Ford, it's an entirely unreliable metric to assess degradation as the difference between 80 degrees and 50 degrees is significant...and if you have a lead foot it will show lower.

The best way we test is by doing it at the same temp as initially recorded, then do a driving history reset. Mine's actually higher now than it was 3 years ago, presumably because Ford provisioned the battery capacity from 88 useable to 91 kwh.

I don't really know how Tesla presents their estimated range at a given percent. I do leave it plugged in all the time at 80% charge capacity. Also only have 24k miles. I do a trip from AZ to CA twice a year of 495 miles and that's the only time I charge to 100%. Temps are about 80's when I do the trip. I have done the charge to 100% and drive down to below 10% to try and reset the miles, but no real gain.

 

[timmyhil]

I never have owned an EV. But what customers have told me at BMW service when I work on i3‘s and i7‘s people have told me it all depends on charge habits and limits. I have seen a i3 recently and it had pretty good range for a 2013 had 123 range when fully charged idk what percentage battery health that would be but its not bad when the cars factory range was 126 to 150 depending on temperature.

 

[Nikoli]

Original owner of 2012 Model S P85. It only has around 33,000 miles and has been babied. Very little supercharging and it's only been charged to about 60% while garaged for the past several years. I've had little battery degradation and it's the original battery. Would agree degradation is more about usage and charging habits than time.