Not just another EV-bashing diatribe

I came across another article about electric vehicles, and I confess I feared another EV-bashing diatribe. The very title - "In northern Norway's bitter cold, the durability of electric vehicles is put to the test" - gave that impression. But I read it anyway. You have to look at all sides, right?

It didn't look good from the start. The first section recounted the results from a testing facility in northern Finland, where five new electric vehicle models were kept in a special cold chamber and subjected to temperatures of -40°C overnight. In the morning, three of the five cars being tested would not start. This may well be the case, but then neither would most ICE vehicles in those circumstances, the problem being not the main drive battery, but the small 12v battery that most electric cars use for peripherals like lights and, oh yes, starting, just like ICE cars do. 

Plus, quite frankly, it's not that often that even northern Norway or Canada dips down to -40°C (-25°C / -30°C, maybe), so I'm not sure how practical a test it was. I guess if you live in such a place, you make sure you buy one of the two cars that DID start in -40°C.

After a few more negative anecdotal quotes from northern Norwegians complaining about how electric vehicles are not up to the task of an Arctic Norwegian winter ("The effectiveness of the battery is not so good in this cold" - well, duh!), the tone of the article changed somewhat. For the minority of people who persisted with the article to this point, though (and I have seen at least one version of this same article on an anti-EV website that deliberately deletes the second half!), a rather different impression would have been gained. 

The upshot of the article is, as one seasoned vehicle tester summarizes, that electric cars "are quite able to cope with winter if you know what you are doing", and indeed that they are "perfect for this area". Yes, winter battery range is only around 70% of the summer range, and charging times tend to be longer. But, with newer longer-range vehicles, better batteries, and many more public charging stations, there is no reason that EVs should not do well in even the most challenging environment. Which is just as well because Norway has committed to phasing out ICE vehicles by 2025, well ahead of Canada's target of 2035.

The moral of the story? Read the full article. And keep the faith.