Cold Weather No-Start Work Around - Scheduled Warm Ups

[PHEV07]

Well, I had to get rid of my '23 bacause of the cold no-start problem but this has occurred to me last winter. A couple things discouraged me from going with it:
• the remote start/run cycle was time limited as I recall (10 minutes?) and the climate system, aside from the climate system not warming below -15C without starting the ICE, the fans were effectively low power and the warmth generated from the current flow from the battery even with the charger plugged in to add a replacement charge and the heat created by that seemed so minimal from what I could tell, that the effect wouldn't justify the effort.
• as noted by many, the remote start is less than reliable, particularly in areas where a failure to start would be critical (in my case even at home reliability ran at 50-60%)
• the number of times the vehicle could be remotely started was also restricted so even if the remote start drained enough to generate a bit of heat (a degree or 2) it wouldn't be able to make it through the long cold nights experienced without running out of restarts and getting cold a at any rate.

The same applied to a similar idea proposed by the dealer, that being to plug the unit in last thing at night (if power is available) and set the charger to cycle on/off through the night. Essentially the heat generated by that process was again minimal, and when the battery reached full charge or its temp dropped below -25C it would either not charge at all, or charge so slowly as to ot make any never mind.

The software "enhancement" did/does nothing of significance to change the situation b y simply slowing the rate of cooling but adding no heat to the system. Mitsu all but admits that outright in the circular that accompanying the "upgrade" to owners using wording indicating that this "may" help but "does not guarantee" better cold weather performance, etc., etc., etc.

The real root of the problem traces back to the company's deletion of the battery heater in the '23 and '24 models (although promotional material continued to indicate that such units for "cold weather operation" were "standard" in the '23 model. The sales of these not fit for purpose in the locations in which they were sold was, and continues to be aided by the almost universally positive reviews in the automotive media.

The fix should not rest with the victims of such marketing and faulty engineering to work around, having paid a premium for a PHEV ($10k+). Such is the basis of the pending class action suits in Canada and the US.

It will be interesting to see how Mitsu will handle the issue when the '25 models go to market. If they release a re-engineered system with technology to warm the battery, it will amount to an admission of responsibility for the problem, if not they will have to have a big, red, CYA warning label on the vehicles they continue to sell with engineering deficiencies.

Unfortunately the 2025 Models do not have a Battery Heater, either.

Not good for Mitsubishi future sales as more and more ppl realize how badly Mitsubishi has been addressing the Cold Weather issue. In fact they have corrected their huge mistake.

My next PHEV will not be a Mitsubishi since I live in the r9th Parallel where Winter Temps do go lower than -25'C/F

 

[tikan]

Unfortunately the 2025 Models do not have a Battery Heater, either.

Not good for Mitsubishi future sales as more and more ppl realize how badly Mitsubishi has been addressing the Cold Weather issue. In fact they have corrected their huge mistake.

My next PHEV will not be a Mitsubishi since I live in the r9th Parallel where Winter Temps do go lower than -25'C/F

I was waiting to hear if the 25s had them or not but hadn't seen a detailed breakdown yet. Very disappointing. Unless they've retrofitted the heat pump to try cycling air or fluid through the batteries these vehicles are virtually useless in Northern Canada during the cold months. Far too much of a risk when the temperature can change so quickly.

 

[ronnieracoon]

I'm not sure about the tech details of the cold weather problem. But, we did have some very cold weather here (-20c to -28c) and I had no problems with mine. I keep my '23 in a car port which is totally exposed to the outside cold, but does keep some of the wind off. My car is always plugged in when it's sitting there ... and, since we are both old codgers without jobs, it'll sit for many days without any use.

I was at the dealer last month and I asked the service manager (a bit of a friend) and asked if they'd had any "dead" cars over the cold period. Had a bit of a conversation and, yes, they had some they had to tow and warm up. However, every one of these had been street parked and NOT plugged in (to the charger! Not to a mostly useless engine block heater).

If you keep the car plugged in during cold you "should" have no problems. Mind you, we don't get real cold like they do up north where -35c to -40c is common

Good points Melo.very similar profile to yours. But would add that even in Montreal, Canada - 35 or 40 c are extremely rare. I haven't seen - 40 in many years and experienced -30 a few times over the last 3 years.

 

[ronnieracoon]

Good to raise the concern. The commentary in this forum and elsewhere (mine included) on the "software enhancement" has been generally unfavourable. What the software tweek supposedly does is only to slow the cooling rate of the battery - it does not add heat and relies on the battery being warm tom begin with. Your dealer was right to tell you it's untested but it will be in a few months. IMO Mitsu has not demonstrated good faith in addressing the critical engineering flaw inherent in the '23 and '24 models and the software move merely muddies the waters further.

I bought my 24 in June of this year. The contract had a clause ,requiring initialing,that car had to be plugged in at -30C and more to ensure starting. Well see soon.