Mountain Driving

[Kdriceman]

I live in Durango, CO and have had my Mach E for a little over 2 years. With the torque and linear power curve it's a fabulous car to drive in the mountains. The regen makes it quite efficient. However, there are more considerations in driving an EV in the mountains than with an ICE. Case in point - I had a round trip from Durango to Grand Junction last weekend. This is a trip I've done several times in the Mach E and it always handles it easily.

The outbound trip was uneventful, a 180 mile drive over 3 11,000 foot mountain passes, starting at 6,700' elevation and ending at about 4,500'. The Mach E started at 100% - 280mi range... about 100 mi of range 'headroom'. I arrived in Grand Junction at right at 110 miles of range, essentially gaining 10 miles of range headroom. My experience with the Mach E has been that the range estimates on most trips are quite accurate, if a bit conservative, and, although this trip included 3 mountain climbs of 3,000', 1,000' and 2,000' respectively (with similar descents in between), the initial range estimate was within 10 miles over a 180 mile trip.

The return trip was a little more complicated as a winter storm moved through Colorado the night before our return, dropping temps and dumping snow along our return route. The Mach E handles snow pretty well with its AWD, weight and outstanding traction control, but as you may know, range suffers with colder temperatures. Generally, this is manageable because, again the Mach E (mostly) accurately adjusts range for predicted local temperatures.

So for my return trip I was looking at a reduced range(because of temperature), and because I was using a DC Fast charger in Grand Junction I stayed with the recommended 80% max charge with a Fast charger. So, I left on my 180 mi return with a range of 200 mi on the car. Based on previous experience on this exact route it would be enough. BUT before we left - I checked the temperature forecast in Silverton, CO (situated at 9,700' elevation, 2/3 of the way home). It was projected to be mid 20s at the time we would be passing through. So, with only 20 mi of range headroom and one 8 mi 2000' climb to Molas Pass after Silverton I became concerned that we may not make to the top of Molas Pass (make it to the top of Molas with almost any charge left and you can make it to Durango - a 4,000' descent, 40 miles away. But, failure to make it to Molas Pass means retreating to Silverton with no easy out - Silverton has no fast charging options and sits in a valley with a 2,000' climb out all directions.

I decided to add charge in Montrose, 105 miles from Durango. I arrived in Montrose with 120 miles of range and added 60 miles. From Montrose to Molas Pass it is about 65 miles, but you must go over 11,000' Red Mountain Pass, descend into Silverton and climb 2,000' to Molas. Doing that with only 20 miles of range headroom with questions about temperature was pretty risky. It was a good decision. Temperatures on Red Mountain Pass were 10 degrees F and my range/headroom dropped dramatically. Had I not added the 60 miles we would have fallen well short of Molas Pass (we had 20 miles of range when we hit Molas pass - thus would have been 40 miles short had we not added the 60 miles), and probably would not have made to Red Mountain.

So, bottom line, while the Mach E is an outstanding vehicle for mountain driving, winter driving in the mountains adds additional challenges. Be very conservative with range and charge levels in cold weather, especially if charging options aren't going to be readily available. The top of mountain passes can be much colder than the closest available weather reporting site.

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[21st Century Pony]

I live in Durango, CO and have had my Mach E for a little over 2 years. With the torque and linear power curve it's a fabulous car to drive in the mountains. The regen makes it quite efficient. However, there are more considerations in driving an EV in the mountains than with an ICE. Case in point - I had a round trip from Durango to Grand Junction last weekend. This is a trip I've done several times in the Mach E and it always handles it easily.

The outbound trip was uneventful, a 180 mile drive over 3 11,000 foot mountain passes, starting at 6,700' elevation and ending at about 4,500'. The Mach E started at 100% - 280mi range... about 100 mi of range 'headroom'. I arrived in Grand Junction at right at 110 miles of range, essentially gaining 10 miles of range headroom. My experience with the Mach E has been that the range estimates on most trips are quite accurate, if a bit conservative, and, although this trip included 3 mountain climbs of 3,000', 1,000' and 2,000' respectively (with similar descents in between), the initial range estimate was within 10 miles over a 180 mile trip.

The return trip was a little more complicated as a winter storm moved through Colorado the night before our return, dropping temps and dumping snow along our return route. The Mach E handles snow pretty well with its AWD, weight and outstanding traction control, but as you may know, range suffers with colder temperatures. Generally, this is manageable because, again the Mach E (mostly) accurately adjusts range for predicted local temperatures.

So for my return trip I was looking at a reduced range(because of temperature), and because I was using a DC Fast charger in Grand Junction I stayed with the recommended 80% max charge with a Fast charger. So, I left on my 180 mi return with a range of 200 mi on the car. Based on previous experience on this exact route it would be enough. BUT before we left - I checked the temperature forecast in Silverton, CO (situated at 9,700' elevation, 2/3 of the way home). It was projected to be mid 20s at the time we would be passing through. So, with only 20 mi of range headroom and one 8 mi 2000' climb to Molas Pass after Silverton I became concerned that we may not make to the top of Molas Pass (make it to the top of Molas with almost any charge left and you can make it to Durango - a 4,000' descent, 40 miles away. But, failure to make it to Molas Pass means retreating to Silverton with no easy out - Silverton has no fast charging options and sits in a valley with a 2,000' climb out all directions.

I decided to add charge in Montrose, 105 miles from Durango. I arrived in Montrose with 120 miles of range and added 60 miles. From Montrose to Molas Pass it is about 65 miles, but you must go over 11,000' Red Mountain Pass, descend into Silverton and climb 2,000' to Molas. Doing that with only 20 miles of range headroom with questions about temperature was pretty risky. It was a good decision. Temperatures on Red Mountain Pass were 10 degrees F and my range/headroom dropped dramatically. Had I not added the 60 miles we would have fallen well short of Molas Pass (we had 20 miles of range when we hit Molas pass - thus would have been 40 miles short had we not added the 60 miles), and probably would not have made to Red Mountain.

So, bottom line, while the Mach E is an outstanding vehicle for mountain driving, winter driving in the mountains adds additional challenges. Be very conservative with range and charge levels in cold weather, especially if charging options aren't going to be readily available. The top of mountain passes can be much colder than the closest available weather reporting site.

Yes this tracks with my experiences in Winter and with high elevation climbing.

I found that using the "ends" of the Ford Navigation bottom bar greatly helps - either of the bottom bar's ends are touch-settable to display various parameters, and one of them is "elevation" which adjusts dynamically as the car moves. I use this to alert me in the mountains when I am climbing rapidly, and to sometimes adjust my speed accordingly.

Many times, the central display's blue range ring, coupled with "elevation" and "distance to" settings chosen at both ends of the bottom bar, ended up to be very reliable and allowed me to reach my charging point without added anxiety.

 

[Fremont Kid]

I now live in Colorado Springs so your narrative is helpful. Even living in Illinois I found both cold and wind reduced range significantly. Two items:
First, the MME trip information includes something called 'outside temperature' for which I've not found a coherent description, but I think it is a measurement of energy used to maintain the battery at an optimal temperature. I have found that if the battery is preconditioned, i.e. warmed/cooled to an optimum operating temperature the vehicle range increases substantially, even in cold weather. Have you tried preconditioning your MME to determine if this helps increase range?
Second and partially related, have you noticed whether energy regeneration traveling downhill is better if the MME battery is at an optimum operating temperature? The difference may not be significant enough to reach the next town with a charging station

 

[Flint302]

Great write-up. Thank you for taking the time to post this.

 

[ReverendPete]

I got stressed just reading your description of the trip! I'm in Denver, and this is my first winter with the MME, so this is a useful write up! But I had already decided to use my Highlander Hybrid as my ski car. (Better tires, and a nice ski rack on top, as well as less range anxiety).

 

[Phil-Springs]

I live in Durango, CO and have had my Mach E for a little over 2 years. With the torque and linear power curve it's a fabulous car to drive in the mountains. The regen makes it quite efficient. However, there are more considerations in driving an EV in the mountains than with an ICE. Case in point - I had a round trip from Durango to Grand Junction last weekend. This is a trip I've done several times in the Mach E and it always handles it easily.

The outbound trip was uneventful, a 180 mile drive over 3 11,000 foot mountain passes, starting at 6,700' elevation and ending at about 4,500'. The Mach E started at 100% - 280mi range... about 100 mi of range 'headroom'. I arrived in Grand Junction at right at 110 miles of range, essentially gaining 10 miles of range headroom. My experience with the Mach E has been that the range estimates on most trips are quite accurate, if a bit conservative, and, although this trip included 3 mountain climbs of 3,000', 1,000' and 2,000' respectively (with similar descents in between), the initial range estimate was within 10 miles over a 180 mile trip.

The return trip was a little more complicated as a winter storm moved through Colorado the night before our return, dropping temps and dumping snow along our return route. The Mach E handles snow pretty well with its AWD, weight and outstanding traction control, but as you may know, range suffers with colder temperatures. Generally, this is manageable because, again the Mach E (mostly) accurately adjusts range for predicted local temperatures.

So for my return trip I was looking at a reduced range(because of temperature), and because I was using a DC Fast charger in Grand Junction I stayed with the recommended 80% max charge with a Fast charger. So, I left on my 180 mi return with a range of 200 mi on the car. Based on previous experience on this exact route it would be enough. BUT before we left - I checked the temperature forecast in Silverton, CO (situated at 9,700' elevation, 2/3 of the way home). It was projected to be mid 20s at the time we would be passing through. So, with only 20 mi of range headroom and one 8 mi 2000' climb to Molas Pass after Silverton I became concerned that we may not make to the top of Molas Pass (make it to the top of Molas with almost any charge left and you can make it to Durango - a 4,000' descent, 40 miles away. But, failure to make it to Molas Pass means retreating to Silverton with no easy out - Silverton has no fast charging options and sits in a valley with a 2,000' climb out all directions.

I decided to add charge in Montrose, 105 miles from Durango. I arrived in Montrose with 120 miles of range and added 60 miles. From Montrose to Molas Pass it is about 65 miles, but you must go over 11,000' Red Mountain Pass, descend into Silverton and climb 2,000' to Molas. Doing that with only 20 miles of range headroom with questions about temperature was pretty risky. It was a good decision. Temperatures on Red Mountain Pass were 10 degrees F and my range/headroom dropped dramatically. Had I not added the 60 miles we would have fallen well short of Molas Pass (we had 20 miles of range when we hit Molas pass - thus would have been 40 miles short had we not added the 60 miles), and probably would not have made to Red Mountain.

So, bottom line, while the Mach E is an outstanding vehicle for mountain driving, winter driving in the mountains adds additional challenges. Be very conservative with range and charge levels in cold weather, especially if charging options aren't going to be readily available. The top of mountain passes can be much colder than the closest available weather reporting site.

I take my MME from Colorado Springs to the I70 resorts and definitely track with watching out for the cold weather / storm and being conservative with the charging. There are plenty of charging options (maybe not cheap), so it really is a great car for this area. My experience doesn't track with your experience wrt to the range estimate. I'd caution using it blindly. Case in point, yesterday I go from the Springs to Keystone on a relatively warm day with zero traffic and a 100% charge pre-conditioned battery. Ford nav starts with a prediction of arriving with 46%. My experience is that in the worst conditions I will arrive with about 30%. Half way there, the estimate is down to 40% and of course I arrive with 36% (it was warm). So that is a 10% miss in the exact wrong way and could get you in trouble. On the return trip, after charging up to 75% the prediction is 26%. Actually arrived with 35%. While not an exhaustive experiment, there is an indication the nav is not taking into account the 3000 ft elevation change correctly.

 

[RickMachE]

I take my MME from Colorado Springs to the I70 resorts and definitely track with watching out for the cold weather / storm and being conservative with the charging. There are plenty of charging options (maybe not cheap), so it really is a great car for this area. My experience doesn't track with your experience wrt to the range estimate. I'd caution using it blindly. Case in point, yesterday I go from the Springs to Keystone on a relatively warm day with zero traffic and a 100% charge pre-conditioned battery. Ford nav starts with a prediction of arriving with 46%. My experience is that in the worst conditions I will arrive with about 30%. Half way there, the estimate is down to 40% and of course I arrive with 36% (it was warm). So that is a 10% miss in the exact wrong way and could get you in trouble. On the return trip, after charging up to 75% the prediction is 26%. Actually arrived with 35%. While not an exhaustive experiment, there is an indication the nav is not taking into account the 3000 ft elevation change correctly.

Do you drive the speed limit? Or, when you're climbing the mountains, are you driving faster?

 

[Phil-Springs]

Do you drive the speed limit? Or, when you're climbing the mountains, are you driving faster?

same speeds on both legs. If it was just speed I'd expect the error to be in the same direction on both legs.

 

[RickMachE]

same speeds on both legs. If it was just speed I'd expect the error to be in the same direction on both legs.

Didn't answer the question.

I believe that the Navigation won't take into account driving too fast, i.e. it's a 65 zone and you do 80. Or, I'm on a long incline and I push it, vs. the cruise control that wouldn't.

Nor can it take into account huge regeneration, like coming downhill there. We just did that route last month, and coming down from the mountains the projection was way off, we gained charge for a long time.

 

[Phil-Springs]

Didn't answer the question.

I believe that the Navigation won't take into account driving too fast, i.e. it's a 65 zone and you do 80. Or, I'm on a long incline and I push it, vs. the cruise control that wouldn't.

Nor can it take into account huge regeneration, like coming downhill there. We just did that route last month, and coming down from the mountains the projection was way off, we gained charge for a long time.

well okay i am usually 5 over the speed limit (allegedly) to answer the question. Again same speed in both direction of the same rout tend to isolate the issue to lack of elevation change. I've done the uphill trip as slower speeds too because of traffic too. while the estimate was lower (it was colder), the errors was about the same and in that same bad direction.

 

[Arsenic17]

I take my MME from Colorado Springs to the I70 resorts and definitely track with watching out for the cold weather / storm and being conservative with the charging. There are plenty of charging options (maybe not cheap), so it really is a great car for this area. My experience doesn't track with your experience wrt to the range estimate. I'd caution using it blindly. Case in point, yesterday I go from the Springs to Keystone on a relatively warm day with zero traffic and a 100% charge pre-conditioned battery. Ford nav starts with a prediction of arriving with 46%. My experience is that in the worst conditions I will arrive with about 30%. Half way there, the estimate is down to 40% and of course I arrive with 36% (it was warm). So that is a 10% miss in the exact wrong way and could get you in trouble. On the return trip, after charging up to 75% the prediction is 26%. Actually arrived with 35%. While not an exhaustive experiment, there is an indication the nav is not taking into account the 3000 ft elevation change correctly.

Yeah see this same behavior on my side. It seems like it tries to take into account the elevation change, but never gets it anywhere near right. Going up to the Mountains it will eat battery more than it says, but coming back down to town it uses way less than expected. The net result is less battery usage than a similar distance over totally flat terrain would consume. The regen from coming down always more than makes up for the added burn going up.

 

[Kdriceman]

Do you drive the speed limit? Or, when you're climbing the mountains, are you driving faster?

I'm almost always driving faster than the speed limit, but most of the mountain driving in the San Juans, especially on the winding parts, is still 50mph and below.

 

[Jeremy stones 121]

Do you have some pics to share from that trip ?

192.168.100.1 192.168.1.1​

 

[Kdriceman]

Here are a couple pics that my wife took in Ouray and on the Million $$ Hwy north of Ouray going toward Red Mtn.

 

[Kdriceman]

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