So...let's talk cold...
I live in Northern BC on the Alaska Highway where the average temperature is below freezing for 4+ months a year, and we seldom have a year where we dont see temperatures below -40•C, often with stretches where the daily highs do not exceed -30(all temp references here are in Celcius). (when we talk about temperatures in the winter here we dispense with saying "minus" because it's a given. I am roughly 750 km from the nearest Mitsubishi dealer, the same distance as I am from my Subaru and Mazda dealers (we have a 2013 Forester and a 2007 Mazda Speed3), and hundreds of km from other dealers.
I shopped just about every Mitsu dealer in Canada (except Quebec - my French c'est terrible) before buying my 2023 Outlander PHEV from a dealer in Ottawa. Because of where I live I included questions about EV performance, block heater, etc. in every contact with sales reps. I received assurances that I "should have no problem" and n'ere a mention of the likes of which I've encountered or seen on this forum. Neither does the vehicle's documentation raise the issue in other than very casual and vague terms. Echoing comments elsewhere, on the subject of a block heater, I was variously told that it wasn't needed and in 2 instances that no such thing was available for the PHEV. Similarly it's not in the options list (also noted elsewhere). after some additional research, I took it to my nearest dealer who agreed that it was indeed a good idea to install a block heater, and did.
I took delivery of the Mitsu in early summer and was very impressed with just about everything about it. Then came the cold in mid November, late this year and more moderate than usual because of El Nino off the west coast. At -14 I began to get "Reduced Power" warnings. At -23ish I was introduced to the "battery is cold - may not restart..." and "battery too cold to start -plug in and wait" warnings. This past week at -30 I was instructed to "pull over safely, plug in..." and wait for things to warm up in the spring (I'm making the part about spring up-but not the pull over bit). After three days of -30's the latter warning appeared at any attempt to start.
I had naively thought that in the event there was no flow from the HV battery, that the ICE would kick in and I would still have mobility...uh, uh. I had a $55k brick in my driveway.
So, what to do? Well, the logical thing seemed to be to call Mitsubishi roadside assistance and have the vehicle moved to a warmup bay at a local repair facility. Not so easy...I was told they could send assistance to jump start the vehicle (keep in mind here that this was the same vehicle that told me to park it safely and wait for the season to change). I indicated that towing the vehicle for a warmup was my preference and I was told that that was indeed possible, but that it could only be towed to my "local dealer." I pointed out that, as noted above, that dealer was 750km away and it seemed more than a little extreme (I actually think I said "damned stupid") to do what was offered for a warmup. I then recieved an "oh BTW, that is outside our tow range so you'd have to pay for the additional distance beyond our limit." (roughly $1500cdn to me.)
Time for option 2...so I hopped into my 17 year old Mazda (market value < $1000 on a good day) that started first crank, and scooted around town to call in favours that I hadn't earned yet to get the Outlander (which my wife has started to refer to as "the Outlandish") towed and warmed, which happened. After warming, the machine threw a trouble light which once cleared has not returned. I drove the vehicle around a bit and returned it to my driveway and plugged in the charger and block heater, where it sits at present. Fortunately the weather has warmed and it will only drop to -27 tonight and rise to -21 tomorrow. We'll see what the day brings.
Nonetheless, this is not a tenable situation. I drive the Alaska Highway to the nearest large population centre a number of times a year for specialised medical treatment, to get supplies not available in my home community, to attend meetings for groups to which I belong, etc. Between where I live and the first such center is roughly 350km with stretches of road with no source of assistance for as long as a third of that, and often light traffic. So, I wonder, what might be the consequences of setting out on a drive at say -15 or so and having the temperature drop as it can do here, prompting my Mitsu to direct me to park it by the side of the road in one of those stretches in conditions sufficiently cold to cause it to do so, or as I am told could happen, stopping on its own? We here live with the cold and know that to disrespect it can result in stern correction.
Aside from the worst case scenario, is it unreasonable to expect that a vehicle sold for use in Canada should be able to operate reliably in conditions that constitute the norm for large parts of the country, including more southerly ones sharing similar climatic conditions? I think not. I am equally puzzled at the fact that vis a vis the cold start issue that Mitsubishi elected to remove HV battery pre-heating from 2023 (and 2022?) Outlander PHEV's. Was it to improve EV range numbers for marketing purposes, to cut production costs? If so I'd gladly sacrifice some range to ensure a reliable, safe start...after all what good is increased range if I cant get out of my driveway? If for cost, how much could that be in that the feature was incorporated in previous years (as far as I can tell) and it is a standard feature across the industry, specifically with KIA PHEV's for example.
It also astounds me that the level of information on the whole subject of cold climate use is so poor - not clearly documented - not known to sales and service reps and not available to us.
If you have stuck with my meandering long winded post to this point you have sensed my consternation over the issue and its various elements. Does what we are discussing constitute false advertising, negligence, or something other? Those in this forum, otherwise seemingly well informed, appear to have been caught off guard and I would expect have exercised reasonable due diligence before laying out the cash to make such a significant purchase..."buyer beware"...I think we have.
I appreciate the opportunity to address the group and hope what I've expressed provides at least something useful.
