Battery Preconditioning

[mldrieling]

Is there a way to turn on battery preconditioning when plugged in but no departure time set? At work I have a level 2 charger available but don’t always leave at the same time. If i know that I’m leaving in 30 minutes I’d like to have the battery preconditioning on. In the winter I get terrible efficiency any other way.

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[mdwinther35]

No, but you can still use departure times:

"Biggest Misconception: “I don’t have a set schedule so I can’t use Departure Times.”

https://www.macheforum.com/mach-lees-cold-weather-charging-strategies/

Yes you can! The battery stays warm for a long time after preconditioning, for 3-10 hours. Therefore you don’t need to worry about leaving exactly at a departure time if you don’t have a set schedule. Just set one for sometime in the morning or afternoon. It’s okay to not leave at a departure time, you’re still benefiting yourself later on."

 

[Mach-Lee]

Yeah, set a departure time the earliest you’d typically leave, and then do a remote start later right before you actually leave.

 

[Billyk24]

No, but you can still use departure times:

"Biggest Misconception: “I don’t have a set schedule so I can’t use Departure Times.”

https://www.macheforum.com/mach-lees-cold-weather-charging-strategies/

Yes you can! The battery stays warm for a long time after preconditioning, for 3-10 hours. Therefore you don’t need to worry about leaving exactly at a departure time if you don’t have a set schedule. Just set one for sometime in the morning or afternoon. It’s okay to not leave at a departure time, you’re still benefiting yourself later on."

"the battery stays warm for a long time after pre conditioning for 3 to 10 hours".......... In true cold winter conditions sitting outside in the driveway or parking lot yhat statement is not accurate. Sitting inside your insulated garage pre conditioning might heat your battery to the 50's (never seen more than 59f) and then it will drop. How fast depends upon variety of factors.

 

[E90alex]

Do you have enough charge to make it home even if not preconditioned? If yes then you don’t really need to. Efficiency doesn’t matter if you’re able to charge at both home and work.

 

[dan_meh]

Is there a way to turn on battery preconditioning when plugged in but no departure time set? At work I have a level 2 charger available but don’t always leave at the same time. If i know that I’m leaving in 30 minutes I’d like to have the battery preconditioning on. In the winter I get terrible efficiency any other way.

I tend to set a time 30 minutes to a hour before I leave. My schedule isn’t consistent, but I know “I’m outta here in 45 minutes.” So I set a 1 time departure “schedule.” It only takes me a minute.

Example: I have one more meeting from 3-4 PM, on Monday, then I need to get out of there and take some evening meetings. Just before my 3 PM meeting, I set a 4:15 PM departure time.

On Tuesday, I need to leave at 5:30 PM. At lunch, I set the “Monday 4:15 PM” schedule to 5:30. Then, on Wednesday, I change it to my Wednesday time, and so on.

Yes, it would be nice to set a “timer” (interaction metaphor) as opposed to an “alarm,” but it works.

 

[LucasWAcoast]

Related question, when I am plugged in at home, however only using 120v & realizing the precondition would likely draw more power than the 120v supplies (charge rate 1.4kW), does that still utilize the plug power during precondition and draw from the battery for the difference, or does that only work when using level 2 home charger?

 

[RickMachE]

Yes, it uses the plug power also, but it's woefully short of the need as you noted.

And it's closer to 1.1kW to the vehicle after loss.

 

[dtkindler]

I, too, have only 120v at home because upgrading the service was prohibitively expensive. I have learned from this forum that the heater that preconditions the battery draws much more power than the Level 1 service can provide. I tried a destination time once, and all I got was a charging fault.

 

[music_cities]

Is there a way to turn on battery preconditioning when plugged in but no departure time set? At work I have a level 2 charger available but don’t always leave at the same time. If i know that I’m leaving in 30 minutes I’d like to have the battery preconditioning on. In the winter I get terrible efficiency any other way.

If it's less than about 30 minutes and you're pretty sure of it, just use remote start. If it's more than about 30 minutes, or you aren't sure, set a departure time. And then try to remember to unset it before next week. As others have said, don't worry if your departure time is a little earlier than when you actually get out the door.

One thing I've gotten confused about is, if you can still remote start if a departure time has come and gone? I think you can. So, say it's 4:30PM and you think you can leave at 5PM. Set 5Pm as a departure time. Then, if 6PM rolls around and you find you are still at work because your work colleagues or clients or bosses are losers, you can still do a remote start.

 

[RickMachE]

If it's less than about 30 minutes and you're pretty sure of it, just use remote start. If it's more than about 30 minutes, or you aren't sure, set a departure time. And then try to remember to unset it before next week. As others have said, don't worry if your departure time is a little earlier than when you actually get out the door.

One thing I've gotten confused about is, if you can still remote start if a departure time has come and gone? I think you can. So, say it's 4:30PM and you think you can leave at 5PM. Set 5Pm as a departure time. Then, if 6PM rolls around and you find you are still at work because your work colleagues or clients or bosses are losers, you can still do a remote start.

Correct, you can.

But, keep in mind that the battery and cabin were already warmed with your departure time an hour ago, so it won't take long for the remote start to warm the cabin again.

 

[Rick65]

point of clarification: the climate button in the app conditions the battery only if the car is on a charger, otherwise it just does the cabin climate - correct?

 

[Maquis]

point of clarification: the climate button in the app conditions the battery only if the car is on a charger, otherwise it just does the cabin climate - correct?

No. The climate button conditions the cabin only. Regardless of whether or not it’s plugged in.

 

[music_cities]

No. The climate button conditions the cabin only. Regardless of whether or not it’s plugged in.

So even if you're leaving in half an hour (or less) it still might be useful to set a departure time for half an hour hence, if you're plugged in.

 

[Maquis]

So even if you're leaving in half an hour (or less) it still might be useful to set a departure time for half an hour hence, if you're plugged in.

Only if you need to maximize range for that trip. Otherwise, you’re just wasting energy.

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