Changes to Models S and X allow them to travel longer without larger batteries

Re:Changes to Models S and X allow them to travel longer wit... by alkonaut on Wednesday April 24, 2019 @08:21AM (#19737628)

It depends on the relative cost of "N hours of heating in the form of more batteries" vs "cost of a burner heater capable of N hours of heating". If the costs are even nearly comparable (if they aren't 10x apart) then I agree with you there is no point.

The heater also can't be as complex as a plug-in-hybrid, requiring expensive serveice etc. It needs to be cheap, dumb, optional (so you only waste the cargo space on extreme long journeys and in cold weather) etc.

What I'm picturing isn't a complex system. It's a camping burner with a hose to the car's ventilation system. Think < 1cubic feet and sub $1k.

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Re:Changes to Models S and X allow them to travel longer wit... by Retric on Wednesday April 24, 2019 @08:36AM (#19737718)

1,000$ of batteries = 1kw of resistance heating for ~8 hours and that’s improving over time.

Now, I am not sure how much reserve heating you want, but it’s much closer than 10x cost wise.

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Re:Changes to Models S and X allow them to travel longer wit... by alkonaut on Wednesday April 24, 2019 @09:10AM (#19737939)

3-4h 1kW heat sounds reasonable. If that's less than say 3% of total range, or less than $1k extra battery then I'm confident it's a sufficient solution.

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Re:Changes to Models S and X allow them to travel longer wit... by codeulike on Wednesday April 24, 2019 @09:26AM (#19738070)

Model 3 users report using about 240 to 300 watt-hours per mile. So I think that means a 1KW heater for an hour is equivalent to about 3 or 4 miles of range.

So a 1KW heaster for 4 hours would lose you 16 miles of range.

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