Tesla's vehicles are well-equipped for winter temperatures.
@lovemesomemusk
Teslas are among the most efficient electric vehicles in cold weather, according to a Recurrent study.
Cold weather often affects the range of electric vehicles due to two reasons. The colder weather alters the battery’s chemistry slightly; therefore, the range is decreased. The decreased range could mean some owners may have to modify their trips in the winter months when compared to warmer seasons.
Electric Vehicle Heaters
However, the biggest contributor to the decreased range for electric vehicles is due to heat production. Since electric vehicles are much more efficient than their internal combustion counterparts, they produce very little excess heat. Whereas heat is a byproduct of gasoline engines and can be funneled into the cabin to heat the passengers, electric vehicles need to produce additional heat to keep their passengers comfortable.
Resistive Heaters
This is typically done in two ways, either through electric resistance heating or through a heat pump. A resistive heater is like a space heater you may use at home. Electric current passes through wires causing them to heat up and the heat is then blown into the room.
Heat Pumps
Heat pumps are more complicated and work much differently than resistive heaters, however, they're also more efficient in most cases. They work by using outside air to warm up a refrigerant that is then pressurized to increase the temperature of the refrigerant. The refrigerant then flows to the inside of the cabin where the vehicle air passes through it, causing it to warm up and flow into the cabin. While heat pumps are much more efficient when compared to electric heaters, that efficiency is reduced the colder it is outside.
Which Teslas Have Heat Pumps
All newer Teslas use heat pumps instead of resistive heaters due to their increased efficiency. All redesigned Model S and Model X vehicles use heat pumps, as well as all Model Ys. However, some Model 3 vehicles between 2017-2020 use resistive heaters to warm the cabin, which makes them less efficient in colder months.
Find Out Your Type of Heater
If you don't know whether your Tesla has a heat pump or a resistive heater, you can find out by simply looking at your car's software. Your vehicle's heater type will be listed if you navigate to Controls > Software and then tap on Additional Vehicle Information.
Due to Tesla's unique heating system and its efficiencies, Recurrent found that Tesla vehicles hold some of the best range among electric cars. So, Tesla owners may not have to make as many modifications to their commutes. They're able to manage this because of their state-of-the-art battery technology, as well as using localized heating through heated seats, steering wheel, and cabin, as well as their advanced heat pumps.
Tesla's vehicles are well-equipped for winter temperatures.
RecurrentAuto
A new study published by Recurrent pulled data from 7,000 electric vehicles from the 14 most popular brands, including Audi, BMW, Hyundai, and Tesla. The data for each vehicle was gathered via the onboard telemetry and real-time usage. The vehicles were used in freezing (20-30 degrees F) temperatures and warm 70° F. As temperatures drop below 50° F, heat pumps start becoming less efficient.
Recurrent’s findings concluded that Tesla’s Long Range AWD Model Y and Model X 75D lost 15%, while the Long Range Model 3 with 75kWh battery lost 17%, and Model S P100D lost 19%. Compared to the Chevy Bolt, which lost 32%, and Ford’s Mustang Mach-E, which lost 30%, Tesla’s vehicles appear to be better equipped for cold weather. Unfortunately, Recurrent tested older Teslas that did not contain heat pumps, which means that Teslas numbers would have been even better if Recurrent used newer models. Even so, Tesla had some of the best performing vehicles.
Comparing Heat Pumps vs Resistive Heaters in Teslas
Tesla has now enabled 325kW charging at its V4 Superchargers. Right now, this is exclusive to the Cybertruck, which is the first vehicle to charge above 250kW at Tesla’s Superchargers. This new charging speed was initially being tested by Tesla in early December 2024 at select Supercharger sites in the United States, but this speed upgrade is now rolling out across North America.
V4 Superchargers
The new 325kW peak charging speed has been enabled at V4 Supercharger posts across North America - in both Canada and the United States. V4 Supercharger posts also bring longer cables - a great boon for the Cybertruck in particular, which can sometimes be hampered by the short V2 cables.
While V3 posts are still the most common, Tesla’s Supercharging team is working on upgrading older sites with V4 hardware, including pull-through tow-friendly Supercharging stalls. Tesla’s V4 stalls currently make up approximately 14% of the Supercharger network today - which is a massive improvement since Q4 2023, where they made up just 2%.
Faster Charging
The new 325kW peak speed will bring about a 5-minute improvement in charge times, as per some initial testing by Cybertruck owners. That brings the current 0-80% charge speed from 40 minutes down to just 35 minutes. This is mostly due to the vehicle not being able to sustain the higher charge speeds for a significant length of time.
And the best part? This new feature was enabled with an OTA update to the Superchargers. Max de Zegher, Tesla’s Director of Charging, pointed out that this overnight change was delivered quickly, efficiently, and quietly - all without on-site visits.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">Being able to push software updates to Superchargers, without requiring on-site visits, is incredibly efficient & powerful. <a href="https://t.co/SXaeKfhKes">https://t.co/SXaeKfhKes</a></p>— Max de Zegher (@MdeZegher) <a href="https://twitter.com/MdeZegher/status/1884068305885094067?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 28, 2025</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
Finding a V4 Post
Your Cybertruck’s touchscreen will display the location of 325kW chargers and automatically prefer navigating to these faster chargers, depending on stall availability. This is similar to how enabling Tow Mode will make your vehicle prioritize Supercharger sites with tow-friendly stalls.
Faster Charging Coming
Tesla also confirmed that it is working on its V4 cabinets, which will further upgrade the peak charging speed of the Cybertruck to a staggering 500kW. That’ll be double what other Teslas can do today - due to the massive improvements brought forward by the new 800V architecture.
We expect the arrival of the new V4 cabinets and their 500kW charge speeds to even further boost just how fast Cybertruck can charge. We expect that 35-minute charge time to drop to 30 minutes or less, depending on the Cybertruck’s updated charge curve.
Other Vehicles Next?
Currently, the Cybertruck is unique with its 800V high voltage and 48V low voltage architectures. While we expected Tesla to bring these two big changes to their first mass-market refresh - the Refreshed Model Y Juniper, that didn’t come true. As such, we don’t expect the new 325kW speed to open up to older vehicles - at least - not yet.
However, there is still room for Tesla to continue improving vehicle charge speeds, features, and curves. They recently enabled a new battery-heating feature for RWD Standard Range vehicles with LFP battery packs, allowing them to Supercharge even faster in cold environments.
Competition is Speedy
Some competitors have exceeded Tesla’s Supercharger speeds - and not just speeds - but overall charge curves. This is especially true with some Chinese competitors - who are pushing LFP battery packs to charge at a stable 150kW across the entire 30-80% range.
Tesla vehicles currently struggle to maintain the charge rate over a longer period of time, which means that while they start fast, they peter out more quickly than other vehicles. The time difference between faster-charging vehicles like the Porche Taycan and the Model 3 was about 60 minutes across an 800-mile distance.
That’s not a huge difference in time overall, especially considering the difference in price points between a Taycan ($101,000 USD - starting) versus a Model 3 ($47,490 USD - LR AWD). It sounds like Tesla is looking for good charging speeds while maintaining battery health and keeping prices low.
While charge speeds may not be the best in the industry, the number of locations and reliability of Superchargers currently more than makeup for it.
Tesla’s newly completed Cybertunnel, designed exclusively for transporting Cybertrucks out of Giga Texas, is now fully operational. While its construction briefly delayed Cybertruck production, causing a short three-day pause, the long-term benefits far outweigh the short setback.
With the tunnel now open and operational, Tesla can seamlessly move Cybertrucks from the production floor to the transport area.
Creating the Cybertunnel
This tunnel is anything but boring. Excavated by Elon Musk’s Boring Company, which specializes in cutting-edge tunneling technology, this 1,355-foot passage was built explicitly for the Cybertruck—and that’s exactly what’s rolling through it.
The Boring Co. completed the entire tunnel in just nine weeks—a testament to Prufrock 3’s capabilities.
With a major highway in the way, we needed a faster & safer way to connect production with our end of line shop & outbound lot
This Cybertunnel isn’t just for the sake of making a grand appearance. It’s responsible for bringing completed Cybertrucks directly from the Giga Texas production line to the outbound shipping lot - which happens to be located on the other side of a major highway. This allows Tesla to quickly load vehicles going anywhere in North America.
By building the underground tunnel, Tesla connects its loading lot to the factory and avoids using public roads or having to load up Cybertrucks at the factory, where space is constrained. Crossing the highway on a level crossing would also mean the trucks would need to be registered and plated, as they’re no longer on private property.
New Cybertruck Route
The Cybertunnel in red, the old route in blue
Not a Tesla App
The Cybertunnel has interior and exterior lighting. The external face on the outbound lot side looks like a Cybertruck, complete with a Cybertruck lightbar in the front. After Cybertrucks make their way through the tunnel, they take a right turn at the exit of the tunnel and make their way to the outbound lot, all prepped and ready for loading.
The map above shows the Cybertunnel in red and the previous route that Cybertrucks would have to take in blue. The highway is highlighted in yellow.
The Cybertunnel drastically reduces the time and effort it takes to get the Cybertruck to the loading lot. Tesla is all about efficiencies and vertical integration, and this is just one more example of how Tesla is able to reduce vehicle costs by making vehicles more efficiently.
![Police React to Trying Tesla Patrol Vehicles [VIDEO]](https://www.notateslaapp.com/img/containers/article_images/2025/upfit-cybertruck-defense.webp/45b4df6681a888faba03d8b2fbd9ca6f/upfit-cybertruck-defense.jpg)
