EV Battery Life

  • P962c's Avatar
    Level 8
    Attached some info on EV battery life and charging. Hope it is of interest

    The life of an electric vehicle (EV) battery is commonly measured in charge cycles. A charge cycle refers to the number of times the battery is fully charged and discharged. Similar to other devices powered by Lithium-ion cells the amount of charge the battery can hold will decrease as the battery degrades over time
    Here are some key factors that determine how long lithium car batteries last:


    1. Age: The age of the battery plays a significant role. As a rough guide EV batteries start to after 10 t0 20 years of use.


    1. Temperature: Extreme temperatures can impact battery performance and longevity. It’s best to avoid exposing your EV to very hot or very cold conditions.


    1. Operating State of Charge: Keeping the charge level between around 20% and 80% is optimal for prolonging battery life. Car manufacturers often recommend charging to 80% rather than fully charging the battery.


    1. Charging Method: The frequent use of DC rapid chargers can have a detrimental effect on battery life. Rapid charging is the quickest way to refill an EV battery, but it’s better to avoid it too frequently.
    2. Usage (Energy Cycles): The number of charge cycles and mileage covered impact battery.


    1. health. However, most EVs can expect upwards of 10yera or 100,000 miles of use, with some reports of even longer distances


    Remember that battery degradation won’t significantly affect an EV’s performance in terms of acceleration, refinement, or cruising ability. While it may reduce the range, even an 8 year old Nissan Leaf may only see losses of around 20% compared to a new battery. To maximize your EV battery’s lifespan, follow these tips:

    • Avoid fully charging or fully depleting the battery: Keep the charge level between 20% and 80%.
    • Minimize rapid charging: Rapid chargers can impact battery health.
    • Use the car soon after charging: Don’t let it sit fully charged for extended periods.
    • Avoid aggressive acceleration and hard use: Take things slow and steady.
    • Avoid extreme temperatures: Hot or cold conditions can reduce range and battery performance.


    This would indicate the scheduled charging would be of benefit in keeping the battery in optimum charge level

  • 4 Replies

  • geoffers's Avatar
    Level 33
    Good advice 👍

    Lithium batteries in EV vehicles are no different from any other battery using lithium chemistry (power tools; e-bikes; phones; r/c model aircraft etc) so the rules are valid for all Li batteries - particularly not leaving them fully charged for any length of time (and NOT letting them get too hot in this state)

    This is an excellent writeup of Li e-bike use & care from a battery engineer...
    https://www.som-ev.com/blog/everything-about-e-bike-batteries-from-a-battery-engineer#:~:text=The%20most%20commonly%20used%20fo rm,good%20as%20it's%20weakest%20cell
    Last edited by geoffers; 26-05-24 at 08:49.
  • Connor_EONNext's Avatar
    Community Team
    @P962c Some great information, thank you for sharing 😀
    🌳Together we can work to achieve a more sustainable Future 🌳
  • ANN8619's Avatar
    Level 6
    Has anyone caught wind of the latest development in solid-state batteries? I'm curious how long it'll be before China or another nation starts churning them out for use in cars. They're meant to be a huge step up in safety, being far less prone to catching fire than the usual lithium batteries. I'm not an expert, though, just wondering if it's true 🤔


    https://technode.com/2024/04/16/chin...y-development/
  • Andy65's Avatar
    Level 46
    I think they'll get there eventually @ANN8619 but I'd take the forecast timelines with a pinch of salt. There's been several of these stories over the last few years on solid state batteries, Toyota announced in the late 2010s that they'd be in mass production by now.