MG4 Range

[Kithmo]

Dropped another 7 miles on my 6 mile trip today no AC on, GOM now on 274 miles.
So it looks like the GOM is configuring for no AC which is what most of my last few weeks of driving have been.

 

[Rolfe]

I've noticed that if I have the AC off, and then turn it on, the GOM drops by up to ten miles immediately - ten miles if the battery is full, pro rata otherwise. It's probably just a nominal adjustment though.

 

[NickHeynes]

I've noticed that if I have the AC off, and then turn it on, the GOM drops by up to ten miles immediately - ten miles if the battery is full, pro rata otherwise. It's probably just a nominal adjustment though.

I find that it does drop it initially by that sort of amount but as it "warms up" so to speak the amount lessens .
Ending up at around around a 4 mile difference when driving in the eco setting .
The eco mode on the HVAC screen seems to turn the a/c off but the GOM reading stays the same .It's as if the fan takes most of the power whether or not you've got the a/c on .
Of course this just on my car we all know that these cars are full of their own quirks and idiosyncrasies!!

 

[Rolfe]

General reporting seems to suggest the amount of range lost to the heating/aircon is not all that great. Although in the middle of winter than might change a bit.

 

[Deleted member 10041]

General reporting seems to suggest the amount of range lost to the heating/aircon is not all that great. Although in the middle of winter than might change a bit.

It does, massively, I'm getting over 70 miles more from my car now, compared to the coldest part of winter

 

[Kithmo]

It does, massively, I'm getting over 70 miles more from my car now, compared to the coldest part of winter

That's not only due to using the heating, it's also due to the temperature of the battery and the use of the battery heater.

 

[Diggsy]

It does, massively, I'm getting over 70 miles more from my car now, compared to the coldest part of winter

That’s likely more to do with the affect the cold has on the battery, rather than the AC

 

[Rolfe]

That seems to be the case. Use of the heater on its own isn't nearly so draining.

 

[Deleted member 10041]

That's not only due to using the heating, it's also due to the temperature of the battery and the use of the battery heater.

Yes I appreciate that, the point is the range suffers badly in winter, there were some low figures getting posted by SR owners last winter

 

[Rolfe]

Yes, I know that. I was specifically talking about what you lost by turning on the heating (versus driving in a warm coat, frozen stiff) and wondering if the need to warm the car from a colder starting point and using colder air would make a lot of difference.

How low was low, for the SR last winter? (Not so worried now that I know there are type 2 chargers in the car park in Glasgow though.)

 

[Deleted member 10041]

The consensus on short journeys with the SR (who's battery seemed to suffer more in the cold than the LR/Trophy) was that preheat used about 2% battery and people were averaging about 2.7/2.8 miles kw. Less on dual carriageway/motorways.
As I said the LR batteries seemed to fair better.

 

[Rolfe]

I was wondering what actual range they were getting (in practical terms), but I can probably work it out from that.

 

[Deleted member 10041]

135-140miles ish

It's incredible that European specs of most cars come with heat pumps as standard and UK don't.

I know people say the UK don't need them but they do make a difference to journeys longer than 20-25 minutes.

 

[Rolfe]

That'll do me fine in winter. Mainly I want to be able to do a 100-mile round trip without charging. Although as I said the car park type 2 chargers make this possible if necessary. I'd just have to forego a pre-theatre meal, or leave the theatre at the interval to run back to the car park, due to the stupid overstay fines.

 

[Kithmo]

Yes I appreciate that, the point is the range suffers badly in winter, there were some low figures getting posted by SR owners last winter

And my point was that it's not the heater that "massively" affects the range in Winter.

 

[tsedge]

135-140miles ish

It's incredible that European specs of most cars come with heat pumps as standard and UK don't.

I know people say the UK don't need them but they do make a difference to journeys longer than 20-25 minutes.

It isn't "don't need", it is the tradeoff of price vs performance and for a lot of the UK the weather means the case for a heatpump is weaker than many climates. They do indeed make a difference and are needed for some in the UK.

For better or worse, MGUK wanted a low price and said "no" to heatpumps, they haven't reverted on that which suggests it isn't harming sales - quite possibly because the average person does know their heatpump from their elbow.

 

[Rolfe]

Count me in on that. What's a heatpump and why should I want it?

 

[tsedge]

Count me in on that. What's a heatpump and why should I want it?

A heatpump is a bidirectional heat exchanger which is much more efficient than the PTC heater currently fitted to MG4s. Typically the heatpump uses half the electrical energy to deliver the same heating or cooling effect, in part because they can harness waste heat from elsewhere in the system.

However, they are expensive, can typically add £1,000 to the price of the car and can take longer to provide the initial burst of heat or cooling (slower start), with some implementations.

Many more expensive EVs come with heatpumps as standard.

 

[Rolfe]

Thank you. I think I'm happy enough with the heater I have, especially with the way it comes on almost instantly. And the car's economy isn't bad even with the heater on. So I don't mind, really.

 

[Deleted member 10041]

It isn't "don't need", it is the tradeoff of price vs performance and for a lot of the UK the weather means the case for a heatpump is weaker than many climates. They do indeed make a difference and are needed for some in the UK.

For better or worse, MGUK wanted a low price and said "no" to heatpumps, they haven't reverted on that which suggests it isn't harming sales - quite possibly because the average person does know their heatpump from their elbow.

I agree to an extent the UK market for most manufacturers has a heat pump as an optional extra.
The European countries that's have the heat pumps on 4's as standard haven't been impacted with high prices because of it.

With regards the UK climate last winter proved they can make a big difference, it's incredible that Spanish 4's have the heat pump as standard, because it's EU spec, but probably doesn't need it.

They had a big impact on Tesla's winter range when they became standard on them on 2021.

It is another case of the UK market getting the shaft again