New energy vehicle owners can't sit still! New energy vehicles ushered in the cold wave test, and the results are shocking!
The cold wave is coming, and the "shortcomings" of new energy vehicles are all exposed. Charging is difficult and battery life is short, and owners who were originally looking forward to buying new energy vehicles are "restless" everywhere. What is the reason for the "original form" of new energy vehicles, and where is the solution?
"I really regret buying a new energy car in the first place!" While stomping his feet anxiously in the cold wind, Mr. Li looked at the more than 10 new energy vehicles lined up in front of him, methodically "charging up" in front of the public charging pile. It was close to 2 a.m., but Mr. Li's car was still not charged.
There are still many new energy vehicle owners who "regret it" like Mr. Li, and their "heart-wrenching records" are everywhere recently - charging is difficult, mileage shrinks seriously, and operating costs are high...... These "soft underbelly", which is not obvious in ordinary weather, are all exposed when the cold snap hits.
Problem 1: Endurance plummets at low temperatures
Ms. Wang drove a new energy vehicle to attend a wedding in another place, and under normal circumstances, the power in the car could support her to drive 800 kilometers back and forth. Ms. Wang hurriedly found a charging point in the high-speed service area, but there were already more than 10 cars lined up in front of her, and she waited for more than an hour to charge it.
This is the common problem faced by new energy vehicles in low temperature environments - the battery discharge rate is greatly increased, and the cruising range is "cut in half". According to incomplete statistics, in severe cold weather, the endurance of Thai new energy vehicles will drop by more than 30%. This has directly led to the fact that many new energy vehicle owners have been forced to cancel their travel plans or run to "recharge" halfway.
Problem 2: The phenomenon of running on charging facilities is serious
While reducing the cruising range at low temperatures, all new energy vehicle owners have invariably increased the frequency of "charging". The sight of a long queue in front of a charging pile has become commonplace. At the same time, the soaring charging costs have also caught many new energy vehicle owners off guard – especially in the north, where the electricity price of public charging piles is close to 1.3 yuan/kWh, far exceeding the price of residential electricity.
What's worse is that since most taxis also choose to charge in the early hours of the morning, many new energy private cars have no choice but to accept the peak price of charging during the day. It is estimated that if calculated according to the current price, if the residents of a northern city want to meet the charging demand for 3 months through public charging piles, the cost will be about the same as driving a fuel vehicle!
Problem 3: Severe cold weather greatly increases the difficulty of daily operation
Mr. Wang recently vomited a string of grievances in the circle of friends - he had to get up 1 hour earlier every day in order to recharge, because it took a long time to queue up at the charging pile in front of his house. Sometimes, in order to charge the battery, he will even shiver in the freezing weather!
In fact, driving a new energy vehicle in severe cold weather requires not only time and money, but also huge energy and physical exertion. This is in stark contrast to driving a gasoline car, which only needs to be refueled 1-2 times a month.
All of the above problems plague many new energy vehicle owners today, and they are experiencing a transformation from the greatest expectation to the greatest disappointment. So, what's the crux of it all?
The crux of the problem: the cold-proof design of the system is not in place
To put it simply, the core reason why new energy vehicles "perform unsatisfactorily" in severe cold weather is that the design of the cold-proof system is not in place. This is mainly reflected in two aspects:
First, the cold-proof and thermal insulation technology of power batteries is not yet mature. As the "heart" of new energy vehicles, the working environment temperature of the battery is very important for its normal function. At present, the commonly used ternary batteries and lithium iron phosphate batteries perform poorly under low temperature conditions, far from meeting the requirements of commercial operation.
Second, the vehicle heating system requires too much electricity. In order to quickly form a comfortable temperature in the cabin, the existing new energy vehicles generally have high requirements for the power of electric heating fans, which seriously "shakes" the battery OHNE capacity. This directly weakens the already attenuated range at low temperatures.
The solution: improve the cold and freeze protection performance of the whole vehicle
In view of the above reasons, if we want to fundamentally improve the cold and freeze performance of new energy vehicles and solve the urgent needs of car owners, we need to start from the "source" - that is, to enhance the cold and freeze resistance of the whole vehicle.
In the short term, existing models can be optimized and transformed through software and hardware upgrades, such as changing to a new thermal management system and optimizing battery charging and discharging strategies. This not only quickly improves the user experience of some of the models in use, but also lays a solid foundation for subsequent models.
In the long term, we will need to continue to work on the following two levels:
First, develop new high-performance power batteries. This is the top priority to improve the low-temperature adaptability of new energy vehicles. Industry experts pointed out that the current capacity attenuation of lithium batteries under low temperature conditions is mainly related to the reduction of the electrochemical reaction rate. Therefore, the research and development of a new generation of batteries should break through the boundaries of materials and achieve high reactivity in ultra-low temperature environments.
Second, establish a sound charging network. Charging facilities are the premise of "second charging" of electric vehicles, and their supporting and convenience will directly affect the operating costs and reputation of electric vehicles. Relevant departments need to plan and layout charging stations according to local conditions to achieve comprehensive coverage of fast charging resources. At the same time, it is also necessary to promote the reduction of charging and swapping prices, and gradually reach a level comparable to the refueling price of fuel vehicles.