my 2016 Model S with resistive heating pulled 6-7 kW so it is not unreasonable that the larger vehicles we are discussing would pull a little more. It’s been a while since having that vehicle but I recall it would cycle between that peak and a lower mode which was around 3 kW. I do not know anything about the resistive heating in the Gen1.
Or maybe running that compressor and the valves year round on the heat pump versus summer only means those heat pumps could be an Achilles heal and be $5k repair bills just out of warranty for all G2 owners?
good point. Heat pumps are pretty simple overall and are doing the work of two different systems.
All good points but definitely speculation without some data. I could argue that perhaps being used consistently improves reliability in some ways but who knows.
I understand what you’re saying and partly agree but the AC compressor runs nearly year round also. Whenever you use windshield defrost the AC compressor kicks on to dehumidify the air. You’re heating and cooling the same air (double whammy).
I get what you are saying too.
There was a chart showing winter range reduction on the top 25 EVs just today.What's interesting with Rivians is that the battery capacity is so large and the power required to move the vehicle is so much higher than typical EVs (especially compared to something like a model 3), that the overall % spent on heating is much smaller.
On the model 3, the switch to heat pump will have a much more dramatic impact than on the Rivian.
For instance, let's say I'm driving at 70mph, and I'm getting 1.8mi/kWh with my winter tires. That means I'm using about 39 kW.
A 1.5kW space heater can get a small room REALLY toasty. You really only need about 750W to maintain a comfy temp. And the R1T cab is not huge.
But let's be conservative and assume we are using 1kW for resistive heat, and I save half of that with a heat pump, then 0.5/39 is only about 1% of actual saving.
I would give up that 1% to have the resistive heater blast us with hot air very soon after turning it on (no waiting like in a ICE car). In fact this is one aspect my kids and family love about the Rivian. We just use the heater indiscriminately because it's such a small percentage of overall usage.
For a model 3, that is getting 3.5 mi/kWh in the winter, the saving of 0.5kW is more like 2.5%. And if you have less range to start with, then that 2.5% could be more important too. My guess is the Rivian is probably much better insulated than the Model 3 as well ;-).
But for the Rivian, especially with Large or Max battery packs, I like the luxury of a resistive heater that is quiet.
One thing I've always wondered is if recirculating air vs. bringing in fresh air makes a big difference to how much energy is spent on heating over a long trip. I like using fresh air in general, but I'm not sure how much harder that is causing the heater to work.
The evinsulate looks cool. Why no love for the R1T? Anyone know if the glass is the same on R1S and R1T?
Are you sure about that? I haven't dug into it for the Rivian, but my Leaf had a back-up resistive heater for when it was too cold for the heat pump.
Fair enough, heat pumps usually do have resistive backups. Maybe there are the same number of components to break.
Ok so the savings, if regular driving is ~40kW, could be about 10% with the heat pump. That is actually pretty material. I would still prefer the resistive heater but 10% range is not nothing.Can we just look at the power draw in ABRP to compare?
Gen 1 R1T Large pack with the heat cranked to max.
