![]() How much does running the heat really affect the Tesla's range? To find out, we went to the five-mile oval at the Chrysler Proving Grounds, which allows us to gather data without interference from things like elevation change and traffic–the real world obstacles to testing. Any energy used for comfort can't be used for propulsion. The second reason is that, unlike in a gasoline-fueled car, where waste heat from the engine is used to heat the cabin with little impact on efficiency, an EV's heat or A/C is also drawing directly from the battery. That's more than six times what our Model 3 carries fully charged. For example, a 15-gallon gas tank holds the equivalent of 505.5 kilowatt-hours (kWh) of energy. Every bit of energy used has a more noticeable impact on range. Heating or air conditioning is a big deal in an electric vehicle, for two reasons: First, the total amount of energy onboard is dramatically less than what's available in a typical gasoline car. However, in electric vehicles, such as our long-term Model 3 Long Range, turning on the heat can't be an afterthought, because it dramatically impacts efficiency and range. Naturally, our first instinct when we climb into a cold car is to crank up the heat. In Michigan, winter hasn't quite loosened its grip yet, holding on to the cold and cloudy skies like a curmudgeonly old man. With the seat warmers on and the heat on full blast, the Tesla lost over 60 miles of range compared to the figure we recorded with no HVAC use. ![]() We took our long-term Tesla Model 3 to the Chrysler Proving Grounds' five-mile oval track to test energy consumption with various levels of HVAC usage.How much does climate control, specifically heat, affect range?.
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