Top 20 - Best performing electric cars in winter conditions | Range test in Norway

Norwegian company Motor.no recently did an interesting test with a total of 20 electric cars , which have had to cover a 516 km route from Oslo to Dombas in winter conditions (temperatures up to (minus) -6° C, rain, snow and wind). Of course, this is not a real ‘performance’ test, but a pure user ‘range’ test.

Nevertheless, the test seems to be conducted as fair as possible ; all the electric vehicles under test were subjected to the same conditions: same route, same time, all the EVs started the trip with full & cold batteries, and interiors were conditioned at constant 21 ° C.

Given the toughness of the conditions, it was obvious that one of the EVs could complete!.

As expected, Tesla Model S Long Range, which covered a distance of 469.8 km tops the list. In second place, Tesla Model X Long Range, which managed to cover 419.6 km. Surprisingly, the third position is occupied by Hyundai Kona Electric (64 kWh) which achieved 404.5 km. The Tesla Model 3 Long Range Dual Motor for its part achieved 404.4 km, something possibly because the model 3 does not have a heat pump, which made an impact to the winter conditions.

Interestingly, the KIA e-Niro (64 kWh) and the KIA e-Soul (64 kWh), equipped with exactly the same powertrain as the Electric Kona, stayed at 360.2 km and 352 km respectively. The seventh position falls to the Audi e-tron, which managed to travel 341.1 km, closely followed by the Jaguar I-Pace, which remained at 333.8 km. The ninth model is the affordable Renault ZOE ZE 50, which with 313.8 km became one of the great revelations of the test .

The top 10 is closed by the Mercedes-Benz EQC with 307 km . Behind EQC, find models with autonomies below 300 km: the eleventh position is achieved by the Nissan LEAF e + with 298.6 km, while the twelfth is for the Opel Ampera-e, which achieves 297 km. The efficient Hyundai IONIQ Electric stays for its part with 269.3 km.

The test also includes the triplets of the Volkswagen group, the SEAT Mii electric (226.6 km), Volkswagen e-up! (226 km) and Skoda CITIGOe iV (220 km). In penultimate position we find the standard Nissan LEAF, which achieves 208.9 km, while the list is closed by the veteran Volkswagen e-Golf with 198 km (this year it will be replaced by the Volkswagen ID.3, which should achieve about very superior results thanks to its superior efficiency and its larger capacity batteries).

EV Model	Specified WLTP range (Kilometres)	Range passed in test (Kilometres)	WLTP Spec Vs. Practical (%)
Tesla Model S	610	469.8	77%
Tesla Model 3	560	404.4	72%
Tesla Model X	507	419.6	83%
Jaguar I-Pace	470	333.8	71%
Kia e-Niro	455	360.2	79%
Kia e-Soul	452	352	78%
Hyundai Kona	449	404.5	90%
Opel Ampera-e	423	296.9	70%
Mercedes EQC	417	307	74%
Audi e-tron Quattro 55	415	341.1	82%
Renault Zoe	395	313.8	79%
Nissan Leaf 62 kWt	385	298.6	78%
Audi e-tron Quattro 50	332	259	78%
Hyundai Ioniq	311	269.3	87%
BMW i3	310	245.8	79%
Nissan Leaf 40 kWt	270	208.9	77%
Volkswagen e-Golf	222	198.1	89%
Volkswagen e-Up!	251	226	90%
Seat Mii Electric	260	226.6	87%
Skoda Citigo-e	260	220	85%

If you ever wonder which electric vehicle performs better in Norway during winter, you know the answers now. When it comes to range, Tesla seems to be the King, Model S has the highest range, at least till now.

Why EVs drain more quickly in Cold Weather?

P.C: elbil.no

Cold weather and winter driving conditions can significantly reduce the range in every car (including ICEs), yet it can be a bit higher with electric vehicles. Like humans, EV also perform the best only at the normal room temperatures😊.

You may want to read too: Does Winter weather reduce an electric vehicle's range?, This article explains, Why EV batteries drain more quickly in cold weather and suggests a few tips for the EV drivers to keep up the range during winter conditions.