New study challenges common myth about electric cars: 'These insights are critical'

Ever believe something you heard without checking if it's true? It's OK — we've all been there.
For example, take electric vehicles. You may have heard claims that they stop working in cold weather or any number of other EV myths.
While the battery performance of EVs does dip a bit in the cold, by no means do they break or stop working. That belief has prevailed for some time, but it's been disproven by the Canadian Automobile Association, according to CleanTechnica.
As the group found in a series of sub-zero temperature tests, no EVs were rendered unusable. The best performers — including the Silverado EV and the Polestar 2 — only lost 14% of their range, while the most impacted lost 39%. Yet many vehicles could quickly regain significant range with just 15 minutes of charging, the report explained.
So, it is true that the cold is a factor for EV drivers. But the actual impact varies from car to car, and overall, it's not as bleak as many believe. The CAA suggests Canadian automakers share winter range estimates on top of year-round averages so that drivers can make the most informed decisions, CleanTechnica reported.
Plus, the association recommends some simple ways to lower EV exposure in the cold: clear snow and ice while charging, use heated seats instead of vents, and park indoors if possible, per CleanTechnica.
All told, an EV can still be a smart choice even in winter climates like Canada. Slight range discrepancies pale in comparison to being free from planet-heating gasoline bills. Meanwhile, maintaining internal combustion engine cars, which also struggle in the cold, can get expensive.
As for the environmental costs of EV manufacturing, there's more good news. When compared to a gas-burning Toyota Corolla, a Tesla Model 3 only needs 13,500 miles under its belt before breaking even on those impacts, according to a Reuters report.
Plus, EV battery technologies are being refined all the time, which means it's getting easier and easier to save money — and further warming of the planet — with your choice of car.
"CAA is responding to a top concern of Canadians when it comes to EVs," said Ian Jack, vice president for public affairs at CAA National, per the outlet. "These insights are critical for both current EV owners and those considering making the switch."
If you were going to purchase an EV, which of these factors would be most important to you?
Cost
Battery range
Power and speed
The way it looks
Click your choice to see results and speak your mind.
"In Saskatchewan this last week temperatures have been -30's C with windchill -40s," one commenter wrote. "Range loss is significant but no performance issues for 2024 [Chevrolet Blazer EV]."
"For local driving, range loss [is] not a problem," another added.
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Hamilton Spectator

5 hours ago

• Hamilton Spectator

Canada's EV market was already in trouble. Tariffs made it worse, Ontario workers say

INGERSOLL - Bob Pulham recalls the optimism in the air when General Motors began producing electric vans in Ingersoll, Ont., in late 2022. As the first BrightDrop commercial van rolled off the line at the CAMI Assembly plant, GM executives, union leaders and former prime minister Justin Trudeau touted it as a major milestone for electric vehicle production in Canada. Pulham, a Unifor representative at the plant, remembers talk of increasing shifts and hiring more people to produce 50,000 such delivery vans annually by 2025. But the sales never picked up, the plant kept slowing down the production line amid sluggish demand and the optimism slowly faded. This April, GM announced it would idle the plant for several months and resume production in October with just one shift. Union members say about half of 1,200 workers at the plant will be gone as a result. 'I feel bad for all 600 that are being laid off. It's a horrible position to be put in,' Pulham said in an interview. 'It's a crazy amount of uncertainty and I think that hurts people.' The announcement came shortly after U.S. President Donald Trump imposed tariffs on Canadian-made vehicles, but a GM Canada spokesperson said the halt was directly related to lower-than-expected demand for the BrightDrop vans. Pulham, who began working at the CAMI plant more than three decades ago, said his wife has also been laid off and is now pondering whether to go back to school or search for a new job. Several other companies, including Honda, Stellantis, Umicore and Ford have also delayed or scrapped their EV projects amid the slow sales growth and the ongoing trade war. GM Canada said reducing production in Ingersoll was necessary to adjust to market demand and balance inventory. But workers at the CAMI plant say Trump's tariffs made things even worse. They've experienced the industry's ups and downs over the decades, but say this challenge is especially difficult at a time of great economic uncertainty. 'There's a push to build (vehicles) in the U.S., and that has caused a lot of issues over here,' Pulham said. 'So, it's not a good situation.' Mike Van Boekel, the Unifor Local 88 CAMI plant chairperson, said even though workers knew layoffs were on the horizon, the news was still shocking for many. 'It was terrible,' he said. 'I thought we were going to lose a shift. I was worried in the back of my mind … and now it has come true.' GM's ambitious plan to be at the 'forefront of a big wave' of electric delivery van production didn't materialize because the timing was not right, Boekel said. He felt the company was gaining some momentum before the imposition of 25 per cent tariffs on Canadian-made vehicles. GM had just received an order of a thousand delivery vans from the U.S. grocery chain giant Kroger, he said. 'So, it looked like we were just getting to go and all of a sudden, the tariffs came on,' he said, adding that CAMI workers will still produce Kroger's vans when they return to the factory this fall. Workers aren't the only ones feeling the pain. The ripple effects of layoffs are a source of concern for Ingersoll Mayor Brian Petrie. The CAMI plant, which spans two million square feet, is the largest employer in the southwestern Ontario town of about 14,000 people. Petrie said Ingersoll expects to receive $1.8 million in municipal taxes from the company this year, which is around 10 per cent of the total levies the town is expected to collect. 'It is devastating because we're not talking about new employees here, either, these are long serving employees and ... they've had a tough road going up to that point,' Petrie said in a recent interview at his office. The federal government under Trudeau set a target of 100 per cent zero-emission sales of light duty vehicles by 2035. Environment Minister Julie Dabrusin indicated this week that mandate won't be changing. But that goal seems hard to achieve, Petrie said. 'It's honest to say that I think everybody may have misunderstood the scale of the problem that we're facing to do the EV switch,' he said. 'I think all of them will admit that it's been a bigger problem than they once thought.' Still, he thinks the more than $50 billion in investments that Canada has pledged since 2020 to incentivize the EV supply chain will pay off in the long term. Some provinces, including Manitoba and Quebec, are offering rebates for electric vehicle purchases. B.C.'s rebate program, which was the longest running in the country, was paused last month. Ontario scrapped its rebate program after Premier Doug Ford's Progressive Conservatives won the election in 2018. The federal government also halted in January its Incentives for Zero-Emission Vehicles program, which offered up to $5,000 off the cost of a new electric vehicle. Dabrusin said Ottawa intends to bring back consumer rebates for EVs, but doesn't yet know what they'll look like. Zero-emissions vehicles represented only 8.7 per cent of all new vehicle sales in Canada in the first quarter of 2025 — a drop from 16.5 per cent in the fourth quarter of 2024, according to data from Statistics Canada. The sales of EVs and plug-in hybrids had steadily increased from below one per cent in 2017 to 14.6 in 2024, but experts say the growth hasn't been nearly as fast as many expected. Dan Park, CEO of online used car retailer Clutch, said EV adoption has been slower in Canada because people normally drive long distances in colder temperatures, which reduces battery life by 20 to 40 per cent and slows down the charging speed. 'Canada is just a fundamentally harder market to have,' he said. 'Until technology and battery life is improved to be able to handle colder conditions, I think Canadians will just shy away from it.' Park said EVs make up only five per cent of Clutch's inventory, which is tied to consumer demand. He said consumer rebates and production subsidies 'artificially propped up the market,' and provincial and federal governments should instead invest in a stronger charging infrastructure to encourage more Canadians to adopt EVs. A recent survey by consumer insights firm J.D. Power shows that only 28 per cent of nearly 4,000 respondents said they were 'very likely' or 'somewhat likely' to consider an EV for their next vehicle purchase, down from 29 per cent last year and 34 per cent in 2023. The survey also found that 75 per cent of new vehicle purchasers aren't confident Canada can reach its 2035 zero-emission vehicle sales goal. Manufacturers took note of the lacklustre interest. Honda Canada announced in May that it's postponing a $15-billion EV project in Ontario, citing the 'unexpected slowdown' in the market. Stellantis is postponing the production of an EV model of 2026 Dodge Charger Daytona R/T at its Windsor, Ont., plant as it assesses the effects of U.S. tariffs. And Ford Motor Co. said it will assemble F-Series Super Duty pickup trucks at its Oakville, Ont., plant beginning in 2026 instead of planned electric vehicle production at the site. Despite the setbacks, Environment and Climate Change Canada said it will continue to support investments and innovations in the EV supply chain. Canada's zero-emissions vehicle sales mandates ensure 'Canadians have access to electric vehicles, which offer long-term savings for consumers,' department spokesperson Hermine Landry said in a statement. 'Transportation emissions have declined to levels not seen in decades, demonstrating that we can grow our economy while also fighting climate change,' Landry said. 'It is important to remain focused on the fact that the real threat to the Canadian auto industry right now are the unjustified tariffs from the United States.' Overall, Canadians buy around two million new vehicles annually and the country produces approximately 1.5 million of them, according to Unifor. Autoworkers say the federal government should push for more vehicle production in Canada from manufacturers such as Kia, Hyundai, Mitsubishi and others that don't have any production footprint in the country, to offset the impact of U.S. tariffs. 'It'd be nice, (if) the government stands up for us and you know says to these big companies, 'If you want to sell here, then you need to build here as well,'' said Paul Harvey, who works as a framing team leader at CAMI. Harvey said that although he and his wife will keep their jobs at the CAMI plant in Ingersoll, they will both have to work the same hours when production resumes on one shift. With four children at home, that means the couple will need a new child-care plan and increased costs will come with it. Harvey, who has been an autoworker for 20 years, said it would be 'kind of silly' to think that the transition to electric vehicles would happen at the flick of a switch. He said he and his wife remain optimistic about the EV market and that's why they purchased a Chevy Blazer EV just a few weeks ago. 'We're committed to moving into the future with the electrified vehicles,' he said. 'I do believe it will get there eventually.' This report by The Canadian Press was first published June 19, 2025.

Miami Herald

9 hours ago

• Miami Herald

Fiat 500e EV Could Get a New Battery as Quickly as a Gas Fill-Up

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Miami Herald

12 hours ago

• Miami Herald

Ford Recalls Its Electric Mustang Because The Doors Don't Do Their One Job

When it comes to recalls of cars sold in America, Ford, Stellantis, and Tesla led the way in 2024 with the most. This year, Ford may retake the title. It recently issued a single recall for almost 1.1 million vehicles, and now there's a new one that affects 197,432 Mustang Mach-E electric crossovers in America and another 120,000-odd from other markets. According to The Detroit News, these EVs may lock themselves with no workaround, which could trap people inside the car or prevent them from entering it. According to the recall documents filed with the NHTSA, the problem occurs when the vehicle has a low 12-volt battery, and then "the electronic door latches may remain locked once the driver or front passenger exits and shuts the door." If a child is left in the car when this happens, they may be unable to take advantage of the inner door release handles. Worse still, the car may still not unlock when the 12-V battery is jumped. One Mustang Mach-E Forum user reported that his infant was locked in the car for 40 minutes because of this same sort of problem. While Ford works on a remedy, it has issued a stop-sale recall, so there are likely still affected units at dealers. Thankfully, the fault lies in the vehicle's software, so this won't require a physical fix at the dealer. Ford will update the affected 2021-2025 EVs' powertrain control module and secondary on-board diagnostic control module C software at no cost, and owners should expect notification letters to be mailed on June 23. Once Ford has figured out exactly what to do, it will send a second letter, but unfortunately, the automaker only expects the fix to be ready on September 29. On the surface, software seems like something that shouldn't only go wrong when the car reaches users, but test engineers don't usually test new cars with old or weak 12V batteries. Ford's general quality problems will take years to fix, but the automaker is making efforts, and hopefully, it will fall a little further on the recall leaderboard when 2025 comes to a close. Copyright 2025 The Arena Group, Inc. All Rights Reserved.