EVs with long winter range

June2025

Hello.

Would really love to move to EV for fuel savings.

I have a weekly weekend one way drive of 300km and back again two days later. Approx 30,000 km per year. Home charging available both ends. Other trips are short/city and not of much consequence.

80% of this is motorway cruising (230km) and the rest a mix of mostly 100km/80 national primary roads (70km). I do this journey non stop and don't fancy charging en route.

My biggest fear is winter range. I have no doubt there are plenty of options in summer. I've read some US forums in cold States and reported drops of up to 45% on summer range. I know their temperatures are a bit more extreme but are there any cars that will easily do my drive at full motorway speed with no stops, in the real world of Ireland? And considering battery degrading over 5-10 years. (I tend to hold on to cars a long time).

Ideal car would be the likes of the VW ID7 saloon/tourer in terms of size and shape.

• Budget €45k ish. Some flex.
• New or second hand
• Family car with decent boot space. Not a fan of SUV shape. Prefer saloon with hatchback type boot opening but not a deal breaker.

Thinking of changing next year (2026), so open to cars that are either new in 2025 or 2024, say, depending on pricing.

Thanks very much.

sept09baby

Check out evdatabase for real world ranges - they do combined range, motorway only etc. They also do cold weather ranges but that's at -10 I think so in Ireland you'd get more than stated. This is for a Tesla Model 3 long range which should be under your budget. Am sure there's a good few more

Cyrus

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/2058420115/evs-with-long-winter-range

i would wager that you will

a) be able to afford an ID7 used for that budget in 2026 and

b) it will do that trip easily in winter

Redfox25

Tesla M3 SR or a M3 LR RWD.

First one is 39k and second is 45k.

If you want a saloon then that is my suggestion. Not a match on the boot though but it is deep.

You will see a decrease in range due to the cold, doubt its 45% as we dont get the same level of cold here, plus you can precondition the car to be ready, warmed up with a warm battery from your home charger on both sides of your journey which will help reduce the loss of range.

Another option might be a polestar 2 but some find them a bit cramped in the cockpit.

BYD Seal is another option and would have more than enough range. Not sure about the boot opening.

BrianD3

ID7 seems near ideal if you need a big hatchback. The alternatives (e.g. Model 3, BYD, Ioniq 6) are mostly saloons with much less practical boot openings

I don't know anything about the different models of ID7, the best place to look for range tests of VWs is Battery Life's channel on YT. He tests at a target of 130 and 110 km/h. here's an ID7 at an average speed of 126 km/h with weather -1 degrees. Range was 305 km. If you obey the speed limit, your average will be considerably slower than 126 km/h which, all else being equal, will mean higher range than Battery Life achieved. That should give you headroom for terrible weather and battery degradation.

The only other thing i can think of is if your 300 km trip involves a major elevation change (unlikely in Ireland) that will impact on range. Not much use in your case having 250 km range on one leg and 350 km on the other if you want to avoid charging en route.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pk-EckmQplI

User1998

Definitely not possible without stopping to charge. Especially not in Winter, and especially not for €45k

joe1303l

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/2058420115/evs-with-long-winter-range

A used Mercedes EQE should tick most of the boxes other than not being a hatchback.

con747

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/123657219#Comment_123657219

How is a 300km trip not possible on a full charge? The OP stated "Home charging available both ends." So they will have a full battery for the return trip.

...Ghost...

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/123657219#Comment_123657219

Has some mad lad hacked this account? 😋

User1998

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/123657288#Comment_123657288

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/123657431#Comment_123657431

Sorry, I completely missed the home charging part and skipped right to the don’t want to charge on route part🤦🏻‍♂️

User1998

In that case I’d get a Model 3 or a used EQE

slave1

Tesla Model 3 Long Range Rear Wheel Drive will do this easily in Winter with lots to spare

September1

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/2058420115/evs-with-long-winter-range

Model 3 RWD with LFP battery can do it even after 100kkm.

Buddy Bubs

EV6 for the long warranty, Ioniq 5 with larger battery, ID7 and model 3 tesla as many have said. All non SUV at least visually, although they are borderline to be honest except fpr maybe!

Larger battery Cupra Born, ID3, Renault Megane although quite rare, would be a little bit smaller and cheaper alternatives if they suit. The more common small battery versions may struggle to do the 300 reliably at certain times and conditions.

yermanthere

VW id.3 gtx. Should have no problem with that run. There's a boardsie with one, Cork-Dublin-Cork took only 130%. If I remember correctly.

Ioniq 6 is another good bet.

Theres quite a few options depending on what size car you need.

JohnySwan

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/123658341#Comment_123658341

Not while doing 120 on a motorway in the worst conditions. I know because I only got about 240km to a full charge going Cork to Dublin before. At 100 kph it should manage it.

crl84

Anything with 70kw+ battery should be OK. Might have to drop the speed a little on very cold days if you don't want a 5min charging stop en route...

witchgirl26

I have a 2 year old Enyaq (so range isn't quite as good as the newer ones) & honestly while I wouldn't get the 300km range necessarily in winter, it wouldn't be far off. And that's an older model with a 60kw battery & normal summer range of about 380km (give or take). I'd say if the normal charge range of the car is more than 400km, with a little bit of speed management on the drive, it shouldn't drop that dramatically during winter.