How Battery Temperature Affects Acceleration in a Tesla
I keep hearing people say “State of Charge affects acceleration in the Model 3 the most”. While State of Charge does affect acceleration. The temperature of the battery mid pack is the single most important factor for determining how fast the Model 3 Performance will accelerate. This video will show you why that is.
The absolute quickest acceleration in the Model 3 Performance is achieved when the battery pack temperature is between 125 to 137 degrees Fahrenheit, the State of Charge is 100%, and the motors are as cold as possible. That will give you a “Max Discharge Value” of 629 HP or 462 KW at the battery.
However, this video will look at the cases where those parameters are not at their optimal values.
If State of Charge drops to 87% but battery temperatures remain at 135 degrees Fahrenheit, the “Max Discharge Value” will still be 615 HP. That is only a 2% drop in performance even with less than 90% SOC. However, if we raise the SOC from 87% to 89% and drop the temperature in the battery down to 42 degrees Fahrenheit or 5.8 degrees C then the “Max Discharge Value” will drop all the way down to 365 KW or 496 HP. That would be a MASSIVE 20% decrease in performance from battery temperature alone.
In this case we have increased the SOC by 2% but lost 10 times the amount of performance because the battery is cold. I can’t stress this enough. Battery temperatures affect acceleration so much that the battery SOC becomes irrelevant if the battery is cold.
To illustrate the point even further I tested this with the SOC at 55% and the battery Temperature at 122 degrees F. The max discharge rate was 570 HP. That is almost 70 HP greater than the cold battery at 89%. Imagine keeping up with someone at 89% SOC when you only had 55% SOC.
At 76% SOC with the battery at 119.3 degrees F you still can achieve a 598 HP Max Discharge Value. That is only 5% off the absolute maximum acceleration potential with a ¼ of the battery gone. Even if we go down to 32% SOC of charge with a more normal 88.7 Degree F battery we can still have a 511 HP Max Discharge Value.
We can go as low as 16% SOC with a 118.4 Degree F battery and still have a 496 HP Max Discharge Value. That equals the 496 HP we saw in the earlier example with an 89% SOC and a 42 degree F battery. You can get a similar Max Discharge value from 16% SOC as you can with 89% SOC in this scenario.
This really is important to stress to everyone. However, I must also tell you that my testing has shown that the affects of heating the battery don’t come into play until after 40 mph. If you heat the battery hoping to see 20% or more improvement in 0-60 mph it won’t happen. Cold motors are actually more important for 0-60 mph in the Model 3 Performance.
Once you pass 40 mph and especially after you hit the peak HP at 55 mph you will see a significant increase in performance regardless of the State of Charge.
The lowest Max Discharge Value I have seen was 351 HP at 6% SOC when I drove 283 miles without charging in my 2 year old Model 3 Performance. I still had 18 miles left of range too. However, the car was EXTREMELY slow at that point.
However, there is one benefit to a low SOC. The max regen braking capabilities only occur at a lower SOC with a hot battery.
In sport mode you will only see about 116 HP of regen with a fully preconditioned battery. However, in Track Mode with a 118.4 degrees F battery and with 16% battery SOC I saw 241 HP of regen braking capabilities. That is extremely strong braking from regen alone.
It is important to also understand that the scenarios I have displayed here only apply to the Model 3 Performance. Battery temperature may not affect the Long Range car’s acceleration in exactly the same way.
Eventually I would like to test non Performance models and even the Model X and Model S to see how temperature affects those cars. I have seen several videos that indicate that the Model S Plaid is capable of achieving more than 1,100 HP at the battery if the conditions are optimal. However, that car in particular really needs cold motors and better tires for optimal performance.
Пікірлер: 76
Well done Travis. I shared this with my local Las Vegas tesla community.
Exactly on point. My Model 3 will literally feel like a prius if I do not preconditioning the battery in freezing winter temps.
Awesome Video! This will help me dominate at my drag strip 🐍😎
Amazing Video! Do a Model Y Long Range with Acceleration Boost. 👍
Fantastic explanation.
@LearningFast
Жыл бұрын
Glad it was helpful!
Please do a Model 3 LR with AB. Super interesting.
@LearningFast
Жыл бұрын
I have been trying to get access to a LR + Boost but I haven’t been able to get anyone to come out to the track with one. I could definitely help them optimize it if they came out to the track.
Great video! So why doesn't Tesla add a drag strip mode to the model 3 performance to put it in the optimum range?
@LearningFast
Жыл бұрын
Because Tesla’s only concern with the Model 3 is producing more of them for less money. The Model 3 sells in such a high volume they aren’t concerned about eeking out the last few hundredths of a second in acceleration. They just want to make the car as accessible to as many people as possible. Musk has said he will never make a Model 3 Plaid. It would just complicate the car too much was his explanation.
@teslasnek
Жыл бұрын
@@LearningFastI still wish there was a way in the software to heat up the battery without having to navigate to a nearby supercharger lol 😄
@letsgobrandon5800
Жыл бұрын
@@teslasnekyou can heat up battery by just “ navigating” to SC. You don’t need to actually go there. Alternatively, supercharging will increase the battery temp at same time as increasing SOC. My best qtr mile runs have all been right after supercharging and not necessarily with a super high SOC. I agree that it’s the heat the battery seems to love.
@teslasnek
Жыл бұрын
@@letsgobrandon5800 I know you don't have to go there. In one of my KZread videos I demonstrate how just putting the SC into the Nav starts heating it up 😀 I was saying I wish Tesla would do a software update where you can heat up the battery without having to do that
@chuckz28
Жыл бұрын
@@teslasnek how long do you have to be in "navigate to supercharger" to get to optimal temps?
This is applicable with your car configuration but not in some others. If you used higher C rate cells like the Telsa 4680 Tabless cells. The Specific energy, or gravimetric energy density, isn't much different but the internal resistance and Power density is much higher. Much more than the Power the motor uses. So much higher that you could have double or maybe even triple or more kW's to put out then the controller is set to deliver and the controller will throttle back. So what happens is even with the battery is cold or lower state of charge you can output at or very close to 100% rated power. So in many conditions of charge and heat the battery will be able to out power the draw to the motor and the controller will just limit it. This will likely be more apparent in the CyberTruck with its 800V setup. Even the Plaid S can do 41 1/4 mile runs all in the 9 second range even when the battery is down to 20% state of charge. The 2024 Rimac Nevera paired with its 117.0-kWh battery pack can output 1877HP and do 8.6 second 1/4 runs. You could take that same setup and cap the controllers max amps or total kW and limit HP to 1000HP then state of charge will have little effect on performance as the battery has extra to give. The 4680 cells is where we will see a huge jump in potential peak performance but not much in added range as they are struggling to increase energy density.
Where’s the Highland performance? Many have had them for 2 weeks now.
@LearningFast
2 ай бұрын
I got my VIN yesterday. Should be here in 1-2 weeks. I still have my old Model 3 Performance as well. Going to run both of them down the track side by side before I sell the old one.
Great info this will share with thr Chargeheads 😉⚡️🇬🇧
@LearningFast
Жыл бұрын
Awesome thank you!
What do you use to see your battery temperature? I’m looking into buying something like that so that I can see my battery temp when I’m driving.
@andrewskaterrr
Жыл бұрын
I want this as well
@Lse380
Жыл бұрын
Sexy buttons
@LearningFast
Жыл бұрын
I use both the S3XY buttons and the Teslogic Display Device. Both of those are great for monitoring power and temperatures. I have revised the Teslogic device on my channel and I will review the S3XY buttons as well.
Glad I live in Florida lol. Last two weeks when it was almost 100 degrees every day (and humid) car felt like it was on steroids or something.
@LearningFast
Жыл бұрын
Ambient temperature won’t heat it up anywhere near the optimal temperatures. You need to precondition it for supercharging for that.
whats up with the regen..my fiat 500e is listed at 111hp (83kW) with a 24kWh battery and it will do 75kW(100hp) regen after a couple minutes of driving and even at 80-90% SoC. regen is low when the battery is full
If any of you are in SoCal, I would like to test some of these examples in person for "research" purposes lol
I just purchased the s3xy knob, Im wondering if you are strictly talking about the "battery temp" and not the "battery inlet" on the s3xy buttons app?
@LearningFast
Ай бұрын
Battery temp and Battery inlet go hand in hand. Battery temp will always be trying to get to battery inlet temp.
@l5ccna879
Ай бұрын
@@LearningFast should we focus mostly on battery temp?
@LearningFast
Ай бұрын
@@l5ccna879 focus on the Max Discharge value. It will be higher if temp is high and SOC is high. Anything above 600 HP for Max Discharge will perform well. 627 HP for Max Discharge is close to optimal.
I test drove a model x plaid today. The acceleration was less intense than I expected. The battery was at 20% and I noticed the blue snowflake next to the state of charge when I started driving although it did go away. Would you agree that this is the reason for the lacklustre performance? Great video!
@LearningFast
8 ай бұрын
Yea, if the battery is cold and depleted it will affect performance in any EV. Tell them to charge it to 100% and then Precondition the battery for Supercharging or use Dragstrip mode in the Plaid vehicles.
What’s the battery temp when precondition for supercharger? Hits 130degs ?
@LearningFast
9 ай бұрын
135 degrees F or more sometimes.
@JohnD0129
9 ай бұрын
@@LearningFast what’s the normal range battery temps ?
@LearningFast
9 ай бұрын
@@JohnD0129 about 70 degrees F is optimal for efficiency. It can range from below freezing up to Supercharging temps. Just depends on what you are doing with it.
At .51-100 on your video is this on your cell phone of some kind of monitor ,. as I want to set up a system like this too. when I get my 2024 Model 3 Love more details on how this whole system is installed and used. I know the sexy buttons somehow are involved but not clear on how. Also like to know how to monitor motor temperatures.
@LearningFast
Ай бұрын
Just buy the S3XY buttons and install them. That is the S3XY buttons app.
@LearningFast
Ай бұрын
@@curtspray yes.
@curtspray
Ай бұрын
Ok I found the information on how to install them on the Tesla Model 3 Highland. kzread.info/dash/bejne/ept_2I-fY9achMY.html
Excellent information. Thank you for sharing! Do you have any other tips to preheat or precondition the battery besides routing to a supercharger in my M3P?
@LearningFast
Жыл бұрын
Honestly, preheating the battery makes such a big difference not a lot else matters. However, changing to 18” wheels does help some with acceleration too. That isn’t free like heating the battery though.
@JohnD0129
11 ай бұрын
@@LearningFast does the preheating times vary depending on outside temps ?
@LearningFast
11 ай бұрын
@@JohnD0129 not really. Ambient temps are no where near optimal temps for Supercharging. Now, if it is 30 degrees F outside and you are trying to get to 130+ degrees F it is going to take a lot longer.
Very disappointed that you haven’t run or posted the new Model 3 you’ve had over two weeks now Travis???
@LearningFast
Ай бұрын
I have been collecting data to make sure I give the most accurate and helpful information. I could just throw something out there right away to get clicks but I would rather give the most accurate information instead. It will be worth the wait.
What's the best way to cool the motors without cooling the battery?
@LearningFast
9 ай бұрын
Fans would only be your only option but it would be hard to get access to the motors.
hi i wanted to ask you what do you think is faster to 60 a long range dual motor model 3 or a z51 corvette 2015 ?
@LearningFast
5 ай бұрын
Probably the Model 3 unless the Corvette has a bunch of mods. It also depends on whether the LR has the boost upgrade or not.
@Coyote.five.0
5 ай бұрын
@@LearningFast ok thank you
Where did you buy that front lip? It looks great!
@LearningFast
10 ай бұрын
Thanks. It is the unplugged performance front lip. I just left it unpainted and polished it up.
@Rodger16
10 ай бұрын
I was also going to ask some questions about the M3P. Why is it that even when I navigate to a supercharger and preconditioned my battery until it turns off sometimes the car is still not performing at it’s best toward the top end like 40+? I notice that the car has days where you don’t even need to pre condition and it feels like crazy and other days where it feels like 200HP was just stripped from the car even with some pre-conditioning. Could this be due to the battery getting too hot? Maybe I need to use the track mode feature to cool off and then pre condition once again to get that optimal performance? I’ve had so many questions about this car because I’ve had it for about 2 years now and I notice that it’s just inconsistent sometimes. If it always gave out it’s true potential the car would never lose😂 I’ve been able to keep up with AWD cars like GTRs and M5s and even pull a big gap on them from lower rolls. I want to know what is the way that I can always have my battery at optimal temperature no matter the temperature outside. I live in Pennsylvania so performance and battery life goes down pretty good during the winter. And this is more a question toward the top end performance of the car I notice that the car stays pretty consistent in the low end range.
@Rodger16
10 ай бұрын
@@LearningFast Just sending a message to see if you got my comment question from the other day about the Tesla performance.
@LearningFast
10 ай бұрын
@@Rodger16 sorry I was in Philly at the Eagles 🦅 game the last few days so I couldn’t respond. You really need to monitor temperatures with something like the S3XY buttons to know what is going on. Motors could be overheating or something like that. You can’t tell unless you are monitoring the numeric values for temperature of all of the components.
@Rodger16
10 ай бұрын
@@LearningFast okay sounds good. Should I purchase the new S3XY knob they just released or the buttons that you have? Also will this affect the warranty on my Tesla at all?
I'm wondering with the app "Tessie" we can trigger precondition and if not do it via an API call?
@LearningFast
Жыл бұрын
I don’t think it will work with anything but the S3XY buttons right now.
@l5ccna879
Жыл бұрын
@LearningFast I wonder what exactly the S3XY buttons are doing that we can't mimic with an App or software?
@LearningFast
Жыл бұрын
@@l5ccna879 someone may be able to copy it. I just don’t think anyone else has done it yet.
Hey Travis. If you set navigation to a Supercharger to pre condition but don’t drive but stay in park will it still pre condition the battery and eventually turn off pre conditioning when battery temp is reached ?
@LearningFast
11 ай бұрын
Yes, it will still precondition if you are in Park. However, there is a trick to it. You really need to have your foot on the brake and be seated in the seat or it can turn itself off early sometimes. I usually just roll the windows down and sit in the pits for 10-15 minutes before I do my run.
@JohnD0129
11 ай бұрын
@@LearningFast sweet. Imma give it a try. Do you set your Schedule Departure ? Does that also pre-heat / pre condition the battery as well ? I set mine for 7am departure climate/pre heat before heading to work. Seems a bit more peppy. Maybe it’s all in my hand. I charge to 80% not sure of that is enough
@LearningFast
11 ай бұрын
@@JohnD0129 scheduled departure preconditions for optimal efficiency. It won’t really help performance unless it is extremely cold out.
@JohnD0129
11 ай бұрын
@@LearningFast ahhh I see. Ok