Do I Need a Heat Pump? | I Speak ELECTRIC

[@VWIDMark]

Great Video. I'm the EV sales manager for a VW dealer in Vancouver Canada. I'm getting asked a lot about heat pumps and if it's worth the extra cost. I send them a link to your video as you explain it far better than I ever could. I appreciate it.

[@BestElectricVehicle]

Wow, that's amazing feedback Mark! Hope you're selling loads of the iD. range! Thanks!

[@gregandkaruna6674]

300% efficient at the temperature that will give maximum efficiency which is 7 degrees C, at -7 that efficiency will drop like a rock!

[@michaelgoode9555]

There is another reason to choose a heat pump option even in milder climates like the south of the UK. If like me you are looking to keep your vehicle for a number of years as oppose to move it on every two or three, then over say ten years with some range loss due to battery degradation the impact on heating the interior of the car in winter will be minimised. Given the efficiency of heat pumps it is my opinion that some manufacturers are literally using them as an option to price gouge the customer. Not a great look imo.

[@BestElectricVehicle]

Thanks for adding that Michael. Yeah, we'd like to see heat pumps as standard on every EV...not having one just doesn't make sense!

[@mdmuntasiralam774]

Thank you for such a wonderful video. What could be some possible ways to improve heating efficiency and capacity in the heat pump technology for EVs?

[@borhanamini]

I’m living in Finland, and I wish I would see this video before ordering my Mach-e which doesn’t have heat pump. 😢

[@paulaxford6754]

On my Kona EV the PTC heater will kick-in for the first few minutes when the temp is under 6°C. Once the HP has finished it's initialisation it takes over and power use drops to well under 1kW.

[@PurpleDotDesign]

I live in Canada (one hour north of Toronto). It sounds like I would want a heat pump if I bought an EV. But I'm looking at ordering a Plug-in Hybrid (PHEV). My husband will buy a full EV in about 4 years. We want to have one hybrid vehicle that can drive farther without stopping to charge. Sometimes we drive to Florida. Question: Do I really need a heat pump in a PHEV? Most of my trips are short. Small battery in a PHEV would be enough for 95% of my driving. But in winter, it sounds like it can't be in full EV mode while heating the cabin; or in summer when air conditioning (I'm assuming). If I use the heated seat instead of cabin heating, I'm guessing it still wouldn't be in full EV mode. Remember I'm just doing short trips. I could just wear a big coat and hat. I would easily be in full EV mode half the year (when not using heat or A/C). Am I correct about this? Is a heat pump much benefit in a PHEV? I wish someone would explain the pre-heating method. Would I start the car while it's plugged in on my driveway and leave it warm up for 5 minutes? Or do I need a heated garage? Any suggestions?

[@just4therecord]

Does the heat pump also works as an air conditioner for cooling?

[@VacouverCanucks]

Intro song?

[@rontanzi1809]

Nice video but it doesn't really cover how you turn the heat pump on. Does it come on automatically when you turn on the car's heater? I've also heard that it heats up the batteries before charging to make charging more efficient and consistent but that's not mentioned here.

[@BestElectricVehicle]

Good questions Ron! There's so much to go through it could have been an hour long video easily! They would be automatic, just as you say. Think you're also referring to preconditioning the battery for charging which really helps get the best speeds when you plug in. (See Nissan Rapidgate!) Some will also keep the battery at the best temperature for optimal efficiency, but any energy used there would be offset by the better driving efficiency. Thanks for the comment Ron!

[@ChrisdyMD]

I think even in the UK a heat pump can still improve the efficiency of an EV. I have always used auto climate control on my vehicles 365 days a year because I prefer a constant temp. My new IONIQ 5 P45 comes with a heat pump as standard so it will be interesting to see if it improves the efficiency compared to the majority of IONIQ 5s which won’t have a heat pump (as it’s an optional extra which I suspect a lot of people won’t select).

[@BestElectricVehicle]

Pity the heat pump isn't standard across the board. It definitely helps with efficiency so would be great to have it on all versions. Thanks for the comment Chris!

[@ChrisdyMD]

@@BestElectricVehicle - if you think about air-con, a decade or so ago only top spec models had air-con, now pretty much all cars do. I suspect in a few years we will see the majority of EVs will have heat pumps as standard too.

[@MILKYBAR1969]

I think it's one of those that is a nice to have in the UK. But it's terrible on your wallet. One day it might pay for itself if the car lives that long.

[@otm205]

Easy choice for me as all the ID.3's sold in Finland are equipped with a heat pump. Where it is an optional extra I believe it costs north of 1K€. Not sure if I would have clicked that box myself if I had had the chance. It takes a whole lot of mileage to break even with the energy savings. It's also a really noisy beast!

[@臺灣是國家臺灣是國家]

Clarification? You are not sure if you would tick the heat pump box if it was an option? The heat pump is noisy? Clarification please. Thank you. 🙏🏻

[@otm205]

@@臺灣是國家臺灣是國家 Well, if the heat pump had been optional, I may have left it out because it would have been quite expensive and so it would have taken a very long time to save that much money with the energy it saves. Someone calculated that it takes abt. 100 000 km to get even and as I only drive abt. 10 000 km per year it would take 10 years. I'll change the car before that. And yes, the pump is noisy, not inside the car but outside. My friend thougt that it was a petrol car when he saw it for the first time and the pump was running.

[@臺灣是國家臺灣是國家]

@@otm205 thank you for the detailed answers.

[@BestElectricVehicle]

Great that you got it as standard Olli. I suppose it might take a while financially speaking, but the added range when in use certainly gives a lot of benefit, even if not financially. Thanks for the comment!

[@roygre]

Great video 👍🏻 glad I scrolled in to this video. Do I need a heatpump in the polestar 2 single motor longe range. I live in Belgium , the average temperature is about 18degrees Celsius in the summer and average 3 degrees celsius in the winter. Is it really necessary? Will I win a lot km of range ?

[@BestElectricVehicle]

Thanks Roy, delighted you enjoyed it! Necessary in Belgium?, probably not. But it will help with an added bit of range for longer trips. Hard to say how much it will save you...maybe 5 or 10% depending on what type of driving you're doing. But if anyone else here has stats on that we'd love to see them! Thanks for the comment!

[@TonyPalermolifecoach]

I'm in the US and I noticed that the ID4 does not have a heat pump. I'm in California so it's not that cold very often. Does this mean the ID4 is a bad choice?

[@BestElectricVehicle]

Good question Tony! If you don't need the heat pump then it's not an issue for you we suppose. If you were up north in colder climates then it might be more important. Maybe try talking to other EV drivers in your area that have a heat pump and see what they think.Thanks for the comment!

[@Carfan678]

I’m in New Jersey it’s cold here and it’s snows but I have seen a lot of id4s so idk

[@thomaschilds8781]

Imagine its 1°C, peeing with rain, your battery's percentage is somewhere in the teens. You now find yourself stuck on a closed motorway due to an accident some way ahead of you. No way of knowing how long you'll be there. How much would you be willing to pay for peace of mind in that moment?

[@BestElectricVehicle]

Imagine it's 1 degree outside, your fuel tank warning light is on, but you've no idea how much is actually left in the tank. You find yourself stuck on a closed road due to some issue ahead. No way of knowing how long you'll be there. How much would you be willing to pay for the peace of mind of an EV with a heat pump? It goes both ways Thomas! But thanks for the comment, great to get different points of view!

[@thomaschilds8781]

@Best Electric Vehicle my point exactly. The £900ish extra to get the heat pump option on an EV is money well spent IMO. Think of it as ~£450 in depreciation over 3 years. The EV was a given in my head.

[@lawrencepll76]

Heat pump seems like a good idea for cold climate, but is it necessary for areas with warmer climate, such as Australia?

[@TrainsFerriesFeet]

I assume it's like my heat pump at home, which powers both my heat and air conditioning.

[@iariag1]

Yet another brilliant video👍👍👍

[@BestElectricVehicle]

Huge thanks Gerry! Hopefully we can turn a few more out for you!

[@iariag1]

Can you tell me, as can't find it anywhere, cars with regen breaking, when you lift the foot off the accelerator, do the brake lights come on to warm drivers behind that you're showing down?

[@ChrisdyMD]

@@iariag1 - early electric and Hybrid models didn’t always have this feature, but I believe the EU bought in a regulation that means all cars in the last 5(?) years will have this capability.

[@iariag1]

@@ChrisdyMD That's a relief, I don't have an electric car yet, and this has been on my mind for a while, thank you for your reply👍

[@catherinegrimes2308]

I live in the East Midlands and even though I have a garage, I will probably buy an EV with a heat pump to improve the range and to keep me warm in the car. It comes as standard on the BYD Dolphin.

[@Reddylion]

Nice heat pump ⚡️👍

[@BestElectricVehicle]

Thanks Reddy! Hope you like the video!

[@contra_plano]

And if i live in a hot country?

[@matjazkranjc]

Not what I was looking for. I hoped for some specs, like range with or without heat pump for certain vehicles. But other than that, good explanation. Cheers

[@BestElectricVehicle]

Thanks for the feedback. Very hard to give those kind of figures as will depend on type of driving, etc. But it would be a fascinating test...get two identical cars, but one has had the optional heat pump fitted, then do a range test.

[@matjazkranjc]

@@BestElectricVehicle yeah, I know it is hard to do. Anyways I chose heat pump at the end based on the temperatures that we have and am in a process of buying new Enyaq atm. Cheers

[@rand49er]

Isn't sayin it's "300% efficient" like saying we have a perpetual motion machine?

[@catherinegrimes2308]

It doesn't create heat, but it moves it. Heat naturally goes from a hot place to a colder place. You need energy to do the opposite and in the case of a fridge, it moves the heat from the inside to the outside. You can get heat pumps for warming houses and they pump the heat from the soil outside of the house to the inside of the house. Because it is efficient it costs less to heat a house this way than having electric heaters. The problem is that when it is really cold outside, there is less heat to be pumped into the house.

[@joel7279]

No heat pumps in EVs suck heat from the outside air which warmer than the refrigerant in liquid form so in very cold climates like Norway they will loose efficiently and possibly not even work. Ever tried putting a fridge in an outbuilding? When it’s the winter and that garage/outbuilding is very cold the fridge stops working because the refrigerant is unable to suck any heat from the inside of the fridge out as the ambient temperature is colder and there is no heat inside the fridge to suck out. Hope that makes sense. Basically a heat pump will be more efficient in a mild climate and perhaps stop working all together in a very cold climate like Norway in the winter

[@BestElectricVehicle]

That's not entirely accurate Joel, EVs will also scavenge waste heat from other parts of the EV. You are right in saying that they will be more efficient in milder weather. Thanks for the comment!

[@caedgewo2]

Enjoyed the video, keep it up.

[@stephenclay6852]

Watch Johnathan porefield he has done a back to back test with two 64kw e Niros and the conclusion was based on 10,000 miles a year and 30p per kw and the heat pump costing £900 you would have to do 135,000 or ten years of driving to get that £900 back. I currently have a kia e niro 4 64kw the pump was a standard fit. I have a kia EV6 on order but didn’t bother with that option my thoughts before watching Jonathan’s channel was I can buy a lot of electricity for £900and his video just confirmed my initial thoughts.

[@Gemjack]

I'm in exactly the same situation currently have an e-Niro 4+, so. heat pump as standard, just ordered a EV6 GT S Line, no heat pump very difficult to justify the cost in the UK, we just don't get extended periods of really cold weather.

[@jonathanburford]

@@Gemjack doesn’t need to be really cold. In fact if it’s too cold HPs are less effective. UK is ideal for them and I certainly have a call for cabin heat for at least half of the year.

[@jonathanburford]

Not seem the eniro test / calcs you refer to, however done calcs for an EV6 and break even is around 60k miles.

[@Gemjack]

@jonathanburford suggest you watch the test might change your mind. I've done loads of research really hard to justify... even at 60k most ( well I would) have sold the car before I reached that millage

[@jonathanburford]

@@Gemjack I doubt it’ll change my mind. For the EV6 it’s 60k, I’ve done the math as have others, with the same results. Probably find it being a less efficient car changes the figures significantly. While you make have changed the car by 60k, plenty of others keep their cars longer. As with any optional extra it’ll just be down to personal choice and circumstances really.

[@robertoguerra5375]

Heat pump is more efficient THAN resistive heating. But is less efficient than non-pumped, isobaric gas heat exchanging.

[@chada472]

Since AC systems are known to leak the refrigerant then you loose the heat and AC.

[@Lewis_Standing]

They all have heat pumps They all have aircon Some are sold with a reversing valve so they can do both, AC or heating. I'm led to believe that valve is cheap as chips. If manufacturers are selling us a "heat pump" but actually only adding a a cheapo valve, and charging £1000 it's criminal. Not sure if this is the case, maybe it's a much more powerful heatpump too (as well as having the reversing valve ability). OH and people keep mentioning pre heating, whilst plugged in so it doesn't affect your range. Fair enough. But you're still using more electricity than a heat pump would, and therefore more emissions at the power plant etc etc. Great video!

[@BestElectricVehicle]

Thanks Lewis! Good point about the reversing valve, will have to look into that more in some EVs. Thanks for watching and for the comment!

[@ngshinong9812]

sorry heat pump is better than what again? what is the conventional way of heating the cabin in an EV?

[@MILKYBAR1969]

Have I heard this voice before? Voice-over, radio? Anybody else or is it just me

[@BestElectricVehicle]

Certainly not just you Michael! Martyn has spent a lot of time in radio and podcasts!

[@MILKYBAR1969]

@@BestElectricVehicle yes it's a great voice unlike my potteries mumble.