The recommendation is double normal range in very cold weather. So if you have a vehicle with 250km of range, in the winter you can expect 125km. That's also built in with a safety margin, as while the vehicle is ignition on there's a battery heater. Yes, that consumes some electricity, but it also makes the battery work much more efficiently (to an extent where heating the battery itself from battery power is worthwhile, and generally leads to a range >50% of ideal, unless the drive is very short). It also doesn't account for areas for which the person has access to an EV charger (in which case plugged into the charger, the car will automatically keep the batteries at appropriate minimum heat).
Canadians are pretty used to this in the colder climates in terms of using an engine block heater on internal combustion engine cars like the BS...
I will say that I don't think that EVs are an absolute grand solution to everything, and there are some key advantages and disadvantages. When gas was $6/gal+ in Cali a few years ago, my brother was able to put 120 miles of range on a Tesla Model 3 for less than $4. The charging networks are improving, but there are still reliability issues with some charging stations (I've heard Tesla is better than some other networks, and pretty much all automakers selling to North America have agreed to adopt their connector and are working on access to their supercharger network).
I did consider an EV as an alternative to getting my BS, a few factors stopped me:
- I don't have a location where I can park the car with an EV charger at the moment. Not having access to EV charging at home severely reduces the value of an EV.
- Not having access to the supercharger network severely diminishes the value of an EV. The BS isn't electrified yet, but in considering PHEV and fully electric vehicles, that's a big consideration too in terms of time/length of detour.
- Overall access of EV chargers at work/lodging/etc. locations - this is continuing to improve.
- Long range drives where gas fueling can be done in <5 min. EV charging can add 200 miles in about 15 minutes on the fastest chargers (if compatible) but can be slower, or substantially slower. More hotels and workplaces are adding EV chargers, so this will likely improve over time.
In the area they were in (well developed suburbia), a TON of people had more than one vehicle. The lease was stupid cheap to have a second (or third or fourth) vehicle that commuted to an office four to five days a week. There wasn't even a gas bill at a time where gas was $4/gallon in that area, just free charging.
Obviously a lot has changed in a decade. I am not in the "EVs will never work" camp, nor am I a believer in "all passenger cars will be EVs by 2030, these mandates will work". But everyday, the charging infrastructure and vehicle improvements and aspects continue to make these vehicles more appealing to a broader set of people with broader needs.
I'll end my diatribe by saying that people should do their homework and consider their needs and the out the door cost. Out the door won't just be that an EV can cost more, but the cost of fuel vs. charging. Vehicle location and use case, driving patterns, all are considerations. The ease of fueling for long trips right now is often a factor for people to consider an EV as a second vehicle, but not their only one.
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