How low can (will) you go with your charge level?

ensmith007

ensmith007

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I'm curious if anyone is braver than me and tested out the MG5 range towards the bottom end of the charge levels?

I drive across country regularly on a 195 mile route, and have always erred on the side of caution and filled up halfway.
With the summer, I have been trying out driving further between charges. I reckon I might get home in one go if careful (E mode, Aircon off) but I don't have the balls to try it.

I get wound up at 25% as the meter goes scary red.
I get concerned at 16% (as I read on the forum about someone whose MG5 just stopped at this level just a balancing fault I think)
Around 13-10% get the message "warning, battery level low please use charging" or something like that in badly translated english.
Then at about 10% a warning about low charge so power may be restricted.
And of course, at these lower levels the software in the GOM obviously has trouble guessing so reduces the number faster.

So, there must be a few braver soles than me out there on this forum who have gone further than 10%.
Should I plod on towards 5% or 3% or even 0% on the M5, what will happen when it runs out?
Does it literally just stop or will it limp? I don't want to test that in the middle lane either.

Thanks in advance for any real world advice. Loving the car by the way.

Nigel
 
Lowest we normally go with the 5 and the ZS is usually when the orange warning comes on, but we're, all local journeys, have a home charger and a free Tescos 7kW 3 miles away, so no anxiety at all.
 
I've done a commute in winter, got down to 3% when I got home. I had 40 miles of range more than the journey, driving at 60 all the way home, so my buffer is always have 40 miles range more than your journey.

I think 195 is cutting it too close for round trip
 
If you never take it below 10% then you're not actually utilising your full range. You can always slow down a bit if you're getting close.
 
Got home on 4% one time, I always use a min. 10 mile buffer on my journey GOM v Sat nav miles. My home is 10 miles from the motorway, if I can keep it to 10 on the m’way then the slower last 10 miles will be slower and more economical.
 
This question also intrigues me. I would like to know how the car ascertains the level of charge left in the battery. It's particularly important if you consider that the 7yr battery warranty will provide for the battery to be replaced in this 7yr period if the charge drops below 70%. Does that mean that the battery will only be replaced if the charging display won't go above 70%. My cynical view is that, when fully charged, the display will always show 100% because no more charge will go into the battery, regardless of how much actual charge exists in the battery. And so the GOM will use this to calculate the range (i.e.it will always be around 214miles when fully charged). What is more important to the owner is how many real miles you get on average from a "full tank" not how much charge or predicted range the car tells you it's got??
 
Adee said:
This question also intrigues me. I would like to know how the car ascertains the level of charge left in the battery. It's particularly important if you consider that the 7yr battery warranty will provide for the battery to be replaced in this 7yr period if the charge drops below 70%. Does that mean that the battery will only be replaced if the charging display won't go above 70%. My cynical view is that, when fully charged, the display will always show 100% because no more charge will go into the battery, regardless of how much actual charge exists in the battery. And so the GOM will use this to calculate the range (i.e.it will always be around 214miles when fully charged). What is more important to the owner is how many real miles you get on average from a "full tank" not how much charge or predicted range the car tells you it's got??
Click to expand...
Or, putting it another way, it's going to be very difficult to prove that the car's range has reduced by 30% when the condition of the battery is in question because we don't know how meaningful the battery charge indicator and GOM are.
 
I would work on the assumption that, when you reset the accumulated total trip and charge your battery to full and balance, you get the WLTP 163 miles showing on the GOM.
70% of 163 is 114 so if the GOM says 144 miles or less within 7 years (after resetting the trip) then it's time for a warranty claim.
Alternatively you can use the app to check the SOH.
Edit: forgot I was in the MG5 forum, these figures are for the ZS.
 
Last edited:
Kithmo said:
I would work on the assumption that, when you reset the accumulated total trip and charge your battery to full and balance, you get the WLTP 163 miles showing on the GOM.
70% of 163 is 114 so if the GOM says 144 miles or less within 7 years (after resetting the trip) then it's time for a warranty claim.
Alternatively you can use the app to check the SOH.
Click to expand...
I hope it'll be as straightforward as that but I somehow doubt it. I wonder if any owner so far, after fully charging the car, can report a battery charge level showing less than 100% or a GOM value less than the maximum range (e.g.214miles for the MG5)? MG isn't going to make a battery warranty claim easy IMHO. Let's hope I'm wrong!
 
Adee said:
I hope it'll be as straightforward as that but I somehow doubt it. I wonder if any owner so far, after fully charging the car, can report a battery charge level showing less than 100% or a GOM value less than the maximum range (e.g.214miles for the MG5)? MG isn't going to make a battery warranty claim easy IMHO. Let's hope I'm wrong!
Click to expand...
Let's hope that no-one has a battery showing less than 100% in a car that will be less than a year old! Although it's tempting to assume that the ZS and 5 have the same management system, it would seem unlikely given different sizes, motors, controllers etc.
It's an interesting question as to how the user will know that the capacity has dropped, but the controller certainly will as the voltage drop for current draw over a given time will increase, indicating the battery's true capacity.
I think I'd expect both the indicator to show less than 100% and the GOM to read less than 214 after a full and balanced charge.

Hopefully not for a few years yet though!
 
JohnB said:
Let's hope that no-one has a battery showing less than 100% in a car that will be less than a year old! Although it's tempting to assume that the ZS and 5 have the same management system, it would seem unlikely given different sizes, motors, controllers etc.
It's an interesting question as to how the user will know that the capacity has dropped, but the controller certainly will as the voltage drop for current draw over a given time will increase, indicating the battery's true capacity.
I think I'd expect both the indicator to show less than 100% and the GOM to read less than 214 after a full and balanced charge.

Hopefully not for a few years yet though!
Click to expand...
Actually, I am pretty optimistic about the battery technology (otherwise I wouldn't have bought the car!!). I was just wondering what criteria would ultimately be used to invoke the warranty. As you say, we aren't expecting any scare stories for some time to come - if at all.
 
ensmith007 said:
I'm curious if anyone is braver than me and tested out the MG5 range towards the bottom end of the charge levels?

I drive across country regularly on a 195 mile route, and have always erred on the side of caution and filled up halfway.
With the summer, I have been trying out driving further between charges. I reckon I might get home in one go if careful (E mode, Aircon off) but I don't have the balls to try it.

I get wound up at 25% as the meter goes scary red.
I get concerned at 16% (as I read on the forum about someone whose MG5 just stopped at this level just a balancing fault I think)
Around 13-10% get the message "warning, battery level low please use charging" or something like that in badly translated english.
Then at about 10% a warning about low charge so power may be restricted.
And of course, at these lower levels the software in the GOM obviously has trouble guessing so reduces the number faster.

So, there must be a few braver soles than me out there on this forum who have gone further than 10%.
Should I plod on towards 5% or 3% or even 0% on the M5, what will happen when it runs out?
Does it literally just stop or will it limp? I don't want to test that in the middle lane either.

Thanks in advance for any real world advice. Loving the car by the way.

Nigel
Click to expand...
We unintentionally hit 3% on the way back from our first long journey. The GOM dashed out, bleeps at 10%, and I got a warning not to drive aggressively with low battery charge (doing 60mph on A1(M)!). Never again.

That was a result of me trying to do 153 miles on 87% charge, driving clear roads at 70mph. On the outbound journey I was on track for 240 miles range, hence my overconfidence on the way home! I got some helpful answers about the differences on this thread.
 
ensmith007 said:
Pretty good/brave stuff. Still waiting to find out what happens at 0 energy!
Click to expand...
Me too, although I'd appreciate it if someone else could demonstrate please! I still drive around for a few miles in my diesel S-Max on 0 miles, I'm too chicken to try on the MG5!
 
Wow, that is an old episode! Amazing how much Fully Charged has changed over the years.

In the USA when the Leaf was first sold, Nissan offered guaranteed free towing service if you ran out of battery. My brother bought a 2nd hand one and actually tested this service. Sure enough, a tow truck arrived within a half hour and got him off the busy highway. My brother is a bit mad...

I've only gotten my MG EP down to 25% in my 4500km of driving so far. I am a bit of a pansy and will likely never push the car to anywhere near flat battery. In fairness though, I live in Thailand and services are, compared to USA or UK... well... lacking shall we say? :)
 
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