Winter Commute

Hello all,
I am thinking of buying an EV and was originally looking at the Leaf but after doing research and talking to the guys on the Leaf fourm I realized that the Leaf would not provide enough range in the winter for my commute. How has everyone's winter rage been? My commute is 23 miles one way (26 miles round trip) mostly flat highway. There are two L2 chargers on my way home that I could use in a pinch but do not want to be stopping everyday during the winter. I live in Rhode island so our winters usually have temps in the low 20 and a few days in the low teens. What do you guys think? Would the Soul EV be right for me our does it suffer from the same either range problem as the Leaf??

I'd purchase the model with the heat pump option. The other day here in Toronto at -15C (5F), the heater was drawing around 1.5-2kw of power, set at around 20C (68F). A resistance heater would have drawn significantly more power.

Anyway, I've been seeing figures anywhere from 20kw/100km to 21.5kw/100km, depending on the temperature and how fast the car is being driven. In the summer, the same type of driving consumes 15kw/100km to 18kw/100km... so there is certainly some increase in power consumption and loss in range during the cold months.

I'm a little confused about your trip length though:

"My commute is 23 miles one way (26 miles round trip) mostly flat highway"

Do you mean 46 miles return? If so, the Soul would have NO DIFFICULTY with this distance in the temps you mentioned. I'd err on the high side of energy use (at 60mph on the highway), so maybe 21.5-22kw with heat blasting and heavy headwinds, worst case. Given that, you'd still get well over 60 miles of range and then some. FYI, if you can plug in L2 at home, set the pre-heater to warm the cabin up in advance. Two benefits are a nice warm car to start off your commute, and less power used to initially heat the car up.

I've had the Kia since October, and even with the loss in range during the winter, I have to say this is the most enjoyable to drive vehicle I've ever owned.

Agree, 46 miles will never be a problem in the Kia. Ever!

My wife commutes 80 miles (one way) with hers, she made it even the one day we had sub-zero temperatures (farenheit). No highway driving here, though, so don't expect that milage if your commute is done at 65mph . But 50 miles is always safe, guarantee.

My wife drives on the highway, 46 miles round trip.
It was a mild winter this year, it got to the lower 30s (Seattle, WA).

She said the lowest she saw the SOC in the morning was 69 miles

She has never worried about her commute, except one time when the L2 did not charge over night for some reason. She was able to make it to work, and we keep the L1 charger in the trunk.