Poll: How full do you plan on charging your Mach E on a regular basis?

To what % full (of usable battery) do you plan on charging on a regular basis?


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MachE2021

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How full do you plan on charging your Mach E on a regular basis?
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DaveQ

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85% normally. 100% for occasional trips to Disney or the beach, but not too often.
 

FPLiptak

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I selected 100% but I'm not sure if that is the correct selection. On my 2018 Bolt I charge until it is "Full" but that always ends up at either 87% or 88%. I assume that is the max capacity with the "Reserve"

There is also the issue of "Hill Top Reserve" on the Bolt. I have it turned "ON" and no I don't know why.

I've been doing it since I bought the vehicle. Always charge to the max.
 

hybrid2bev

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During the summer months I think I’ll be starting my commute out at 65-60% and get back home around 45-40%. Trying to hover around 50%. During winter I may bump up to 75% to start.
 

JamieGeek

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Hopefully by next summer I'll be commuting again.

If so: Charge to 100% when it is below 50% and drive it until below 50% again. On my Bolt this methodology gets me about 1.5 charges a week to full. Since the Mach-E will have larger range I'll likely have fewer than 1.5 charges a week.

During the pandemic: I charge the Bolt up about once a month...
 


JamieGeek

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I selected 100% but I'm not sure if that is the correct selection. On my 2018 Bolt I charge until it is "Full" but that always ends up at either 87% or 88%. I assume that is the max capacity with the "Reserve"

There is also the issue of "Hill Top Reserve" on the Bolt. I have it turned "ON" and no I don't know why.

I've been doing it since I bought the vehicle. Always charge to the max.
All Hill Top Reserve does is to reduce the top charge: Its like saying "only charge to 99%". I usually turn it on in the winter because I was charging to full nightly due to my use of the heater. In summer I turn it off and only charge once or twice a week.
 

dbsb3233

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If they keep the usable battery at 88 kWh, I'll probably charge to 90% for day-to-day use (100% before trips, of course). But if we ever get that hoped range increase from a shrunken reserve, I'll probably back that off to 85%.
 

SoriceConsulting

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With battery longevity in mind, not sure what proper charge level should be (comments by knowledgeable battery folks welcome!).

I work from home (even before Covid) 95% of the time - I have a 2014 Nissan Murano with 43k miles on it.

So, for me, I'm wondering if it would be better for the battery to charge it, say, once per week up to about 80%, then let it run down to about 20% before charging again (unless I know I'll have to take an extended trip).

Is that better for the battery or does it not matter (i.e., should I 'top it off' every night)?
 

ChasingCoral

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I plan to spend my time bouncing between about 40-80%. I think we could probably charge to 100% considering the buffer but it seems that staying in mid-charge is best.
 

c max

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I plan to spend my time bouncing between about 40-80%. I think we could probably charge to 100% considering the buffer but it seems that staying in mid-charge is best.
well with my c max, I drive what I need to, come home and charge until the charge ring goes out (blue light goes out).....I'm retired so not a lot of miles go on the car and not many 45+mph.....so i think I'll wait until I see what Ford says to do in the owners manual, I think they know better than me.....
 

DaveRuns

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85% normally. 100% for occasional trips to Disney or the beach, but not too often.
My question is since Ford regulates the charging capacity by default, do we have to further limit the charging capacity? For example, should we set charging limits to 85%....on top of what Ford already limits?
 

dbsb3233

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My question is since Ford regulates the charging capacity by default, do we have to further limit the charging capacity? For example, should we set charging limits to 85%....on top of what Ford already limits?
Ask 10 people and you'll get 10 different answers (as we're seeing in the poll).

Do we "have to" stop short of charging to 100% all the time? No.

But might it help slow battery degradation over time just a bit? Probably.

Batteries have gotten a lot better in recent years, and it appears battery degradation is becoming less of a thing in newer EVs. But it's not non-existent either. Heat can cause degradation, and charging causes heat. But slow charging doesn't cause nearly as much, so charging on 240V L2 is of much less concern. Charging at home to 100% should be fine, even though stopping a little short of 100% is probably slightly better. Constantly charging on high power though (L3) is likely to degrade the battery faster.

So it's really a matter of degree. If you want to be extra cautious to maximize battery life, stop a little short of 100% when not needed. But the difference is probably minor at this point.
 

DaveRuns

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Charging at home to 100% should be fine, even though stopping a little short of 100% is probably slightly better. Constantly charging on high power though (L3) is likely to degrade the battery faster.
I fully expect to be charging at home (L2) 99% of the time. I hardly take road trips, and if I do, I'll probably take our Grand Cherokee. L3 charging for me will be very slim. Still, I'll probably just charge to 90% I guess....unless I learn differently from the folks on this board.
 

dbsb3233

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I fully expect to be charging at home (L2) 99% of the time. I hardly take road trips, and if I do, I'll probably take our Grand Cherokee. L3 charging for me will be very slim. Still, I'll probably just charge to 90% I guess....unless I learn differently from the folks on this board.
To me it also depends a lot on usage. We're retired are rarely put many miles on in a day, so stopping charging at 200 miles is no compromise at all most days. But if we had a daily work commute, and kids that might need rides, and did other stuff where an unexpected need to drive across town were more likely, I wouldn't hesitate to just home charge to 100% all the time.

Also, there will be times we'll forget to plug in when getting home, thus skipping a day. So always having an extra day or two in the battery is wise.

Really depends a lot on each person's situation.
 

ChasingCoral

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I fully expect to be charging at home (L2) 99% of the time. I hardly take road trips, and if I do, I'll probably take our Grand Cherokee. L3 charging for me will be very slim. Still, I'll probably just charge to 90% I guess....unless I learn differently from the folks on this board.
I'm with you. We don't charge the Leaf every night with only a 30 kWh battery. Best information so far is frequent shallow charges are better than infrequent deep charges. Charging to 80-90% is better than 100%. Staying away from low SOC is very good. So I'll try to keep it in that mid-range. Knowing the Mach E has a big buffer means I won't worry when I do charge it to 100% but normally won't need that much range.

I do plan a lot more road trips with the Mach E than we did with the Leaf. I'll probably keep DCFC between 20-80% as much as I can but won't sweat it if I need to go farther.
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