Outlander PHEV Sub-Zero Operation Question

[Arian]

Arian, mitsu's are built tough. It will last. But my question is this. You live in a Nordic country as I do. How many - 30c days have you experienced in the last 5 years? That will tell the tale if you can't charge it at night

hmm its -20 to -30 for about 2-3 months of the year here usually. Time will tell. Ofcourse My Outlander isnt new to begin with, i wouldnt be able to afford one new. i definitely notice it getting finicky at those temps and the battery has noticably deteriorated since i have had it. By alot. Cold or age, hard to say. But compared to my old volvo XC70 or V70 i cant say the outlander is the dream car in this winter wonderland. The old Volvo could sit out in a pile of snow for 3 weeks and just start right up and force its way out trough terrain it was never meant for. My outlander simply has to be rescued after a few days like that.

none of that directly relates to the battery heating tho. Twice i have come out in the morning on a day when your breath turns to snow (thats a thing) to find my car plugged in but entirely unresponsive, almost like it just refuses to keep charging and just lets itself die when it gets too cold too fast

 

[PHEV07]

hmm its -20 to -30 for about 2-3 months of the year here usually. Time will tell. Ofcourse My Outlander isnt new to begin with, i wouldnt be able to afford one new. i definitely notice it getting finicky at those temps and the battery has noticably deteriorated since i have had it. By alot. Cold or age, hard to say. But compared to my old volvo XC70 or V70 i cant say the outlander is the dream car in this winter wonderland. The old Volvo could sit out in a pile of snow for 3 weeks and just start right up and force its way out trough terrain it was never meant for. My outlander simply has to be rescued after a few days like that.

none of that directly relates to the battery heating tho. Twice i have come out in the morning on a day when your breath turns to snow (thats a thing) to find my car plugged in but entirely unresponsive, almost like it just refuses to keep charging and just lets itself die when it gets too cold too fast

Arian

What Year us your PHEV?

 

[Arian]

Arian

What Year us your PHEV?

2014. So not the newest. Unless you compare it to my old volvo wich went strong since 2001 with only a few timing belts and some filter changes while running on red diesel and old fryer oil half the time.

The PHEV is almost entirely tax free here wich was the argument that convinced me to sell that 1000p/m tax demon.

 

[ronnieracoon]

2014. So not the newest. Unless you compare it to my old volvo wich went strong since 2001 with only a few timing belts and some filter changes while running on red diesel and old fryer oil half the time.

The PHEV is almost entirely tax free here wich was the argument that convinced me to sell that 1000p/m tax demon.

2014? That 11 years old.

 

[Arian]

2014? That 11 years old.

yes it is. Wich is not a very long lifespan for any car i have owned before. I would expect to get at least 2 decades out of any car with some basic maintenance

 

[AndyInOz]

Good reply-good, relevant real world experience . I can imagine it's hard for AndyInOz to imagine on the ground conditions in our part of the world as it is for me to imagine living somewhere that doesn't go below zero... heck, for 5 months of the year we dispense with the "minus" reference and just go with the number and if the temp. gets to zero here it's shockingly warm.

Thoughts Andy?

Absolutely.

I probably wouldn't last five minutes in a remote, cold area.

Similarly, the life expectancy of strangers lost in Australian deserts is pretty short.

I've been seeing stuff about plug-in block heaters for cars in cold areas, as long as I can remember, plus winterised diesel, hence being confused why there are no provisions made for protecting electric cars in cold winters.

I have seen a youtuber explaining the steps he takes at the end of each day in winter to protect his car overnight
(plastic bags over the mirrors, plastic sheet over the front and rear windscreens, tarp over the hood) and
he commented, that he didn't understand why everyone didn't do that when snow was expected.

As a result of his prep, he takes less than five minutes to get going in the morning, then driving past hoards of people who are trying to chip ice off their windscreens...

... I'll never understand cold weather stuff, I just get to sit back and watch in amazement.

 

[Arian]

Absolutely.

I probably wouldn't last five minutes in a remote, cold area.

Similarly, the life expectancy of strangers lost in Australian deserts is pretty short.

I've been seeing stuff about plug-in block heaters for cars in cold areas, as long as I can remember, plus winterised diesel, hence being confused why there are no provisions made for protecting electric cars in cold winters.

I have seen a youtuber explaining the steps he takes at the end of each day in winter to protect his car overnight
(plastic bags over the mirrors, plastic sheet over the front and rear windscreens, tarp over the hood) and
he commented, that he didn't understand why everyone didn't do that when snow was expected.

As a result of his prep, he takes less than five minutes to get going in the morning, then driving past hoards of people who are trying to chip ice off their windscreens...

... I'll never understand cold weather stuff, I just get to sit back and watch in amazement.

Yea some of that stuff just makes sense for any car in this climate. My old diesels could run on anything from frying oil mixed with ethanol from the still to heating petroleum sold for a euro a liter to be burned in the cottage. The way those cars have always worked for me is that they have a preheat Button that burns some of the fuel to preheat the fuel and engine. It might take a while when the fuel is gel but it always worked without fail for over 20 years so long as i had some 12v power to ignite it and for emergencies i had a little gas generator in the trunk that could charge the 12v.

All to avoid getting stuck in the woods. The PHEV might surprise me yet as i have only had it for one winter so far but it just hasnt won my trust yet by completely dying out in the snow and not allowing a charge once i got the generator running to try and charge it. That was after 48 hours in -30 and lower wich i fear may have permanently damaged the car altho i havent noticed yet. Worse would be my phone not working in that situation so i cant call for help.

Its really not too different from down under, just a different challenge with the same stakes. Altho i imagine cel reception will be better here

 

[drwho]

Arian, mitsu's are built tough. It will last. But my question is this. You live in a Nordic country as I do. How many - 30c days have you experienced in the last 5 years? That will tell the tale if you can't charge it at night

We have a 2024 Outlander GT Premium.
We've had a coupla weeks of cold, with one or two more to go and it's been getting down to -13 or so at night. Next week will see about -18 at night. I don't really think I have to do anything special at these temps, but we plug the car in anyway, so I charge it daily in the last few hours before the wife leaves for work to supposedly warm the battery.
It's at about 60 to 70% when she gets home from work, so I am just topping it up to about 90%.
We park it outside, but I fairly sure that this method would handle a -25 degree drop, maybe -30.
I'm just glad it doesn't get down to minus 30 and 40 here anymore. It used to.
We do have a secondary 2008 gas Subaru vehicle which always starts, so we're never stuck.

 

[Arian]

We have a 2024 Outlander GT Premium.
We've had a coupla weeks of cold, with one or two more to go and it's been getting down to -13 or so at night. Next week will see about -18 at night. I don't really think I have to do anything special at these temps, but we plug the car in anyway, so I charge it daily in the last few hours before the wife leaves for work to supposedly warm the battery.
It's at about 60 to 70% when she gets home from work, so I am just topping it up to about 90%.
We park it outside, but I fairly sure that this method would handle a -25 degree drop, maybe -30.
I'm just glad it doesn't get down to minus 30 and 40 here anymore. It used to.
We do have a secondary 2008 gas Subaru vehicle which always starts, so we're never stuck.

Yea actually considering getting an old pajeero or something on the side The tax system is just really weird here, EV is practically free, Hybrid is like 90, then gasoline jumps to 400 or more and doesel 1000 or more. But we can decommision a car temporarily wich frees it from taxes and insurence for the duration but makes it illegal to use. Thinking i might cycle the cars between november and februari.

Iam a bit of an odball here with my outlander anyway, all ny neighbours drive hilux or pajeero out here. My wife wanted a hybrid and got tired of the smell of my old volvo so i gave in, decades of random waste oil mixed with red diesel does give an old car some peculiar aromas over time.

 

[drwho]

Yea actually considering getting an old pajeero or something on the side The tax system is just really weird here, EV is practically free, Hybrid is like 90, then gasoline jumps to 400 or more and doesel 1000 or more. But we can decommision a car temporarily wich frees it from taxes and insurence for the duration but makes it illegal to use. Thinking i might cycle the cars between november and februari.

Iam a bit of an odball here with my outlander anyway, all ny neighbours drive hilux or pajeero out here. My wife wanted a hybrid and got tired of the smell of my old volvo so i gave in, decades of random waste oil mixed with red diesel does give an old car some peculiar aromas over time.

That sounds like a good idea Arian. We have to get insurance for the entire year here whether we use it or not, but if you can just have a gas burning vehicle commissioned for 4 months of the year that would be fairly little expense except for the money tied up in the cost of the vehicle. But like you say it would be an old one.
This is the first time in many years that I've bought a new car. I always buy used vehicles, but the second of our Subarus had the transmission die and we wanted to go hybrid into our retirement. It's more difficult to buy a used vehicle these days as the technology can change a lot in just a year or two.
Anyway, best of luck.

 

[Arian]

That sounds like a good idea Arian. We have to get insurance for the entire year here whether we use it or not, but if you can just have a gas burning vehicle commissioned for 4 months of the year that would be fairly little expense except for the money tied up in the cost of the vehicle. But like you say it would be an old one.
This is the first time in many years that I've bought a new car. I always buy used vehicles, but the second of our Subarus had the transmission die and we wanted to go hybrid into our retirement. It's more difficult to buy a used vehicle these days as the technology can change a lot in just a year or two.
Anyway, best of luck.

So far i have not found that actual reliability/quality has improved since the late 90s, just performance, economy and features. And hybrids/EV seem to be pretty far below combustion in terms of long term reliability still. Iam sure that will change with advances in battery technology ofcourse. Financially a used hybrid makes some good sense as our fuel and tax combined easily reach 2000-3000 a year out here for the old cars iam used to. But il eat my beard if i see a 2014 outlander stil driving around on basic maintenance in 2034. The old volvo manual diesels on the other hand.... they are Immortal if taken care of, especially those red engines from the 90s. They drink fuel like they where twice their weight class and bellow out black smog, rattling and growling their way down the road in 2025 but still starting up every morning.