Tesla’s heat pump in its newer vehicles such as the Model 3 and Model Y isn’t always plagued with problems some owners are seeing, with lack of heat (a software update is coming to fix a current problem).
One Tesla Model Y Long Range owner in the United States recently shared their experience using Camp Mode in their compact crossover that has a heat pump.
According to u/Coolaidstyle on Reddit, they were “blown away by Camp Mode in -40F degree windchill.” When it’s that cold, -40F is also -40C.
The Model Y owner shared a screenshot of their electric vehicle in Camp Mode, showing an interior temperature of 77F (25C), while the exterior temperature was at -12F (-24C).
The owner said this was in Dickinson, North Dakota, which has been experiencing quite the cold snap. “I’m road tripping from Minnesota to Seattle after being home for the holidays,” said the owner, as part of a four-day road trip.
As for the experience of using the heat pump in extreme cold? “If you’re heating the cabin from cold it’s kinda noisy but it’s very quiet once it’s at temp. I car camped 20 feet from some friends in a tent and they couldn’t hear it at all,” said the owner.
In terms of battery efficiency during the cold weather road trip, u/Coolaidstyle was “getting around 550 Wh/Mi going 75 on the interstate. I’d estimate range is just under 150 miles,” they said.
The Model Y Long Range was in Camp Mode for roughly 10 hours, while plugged into a regular outlet with the Tesla mobile connector, charging at 1.4kW. The battery consumed more energy than what the regular wall outlet could offer, as the battery went from 88% to 58% through the night to morning, a 30% loss.
“Car was warm and comfortable all night!” said the owner, noting they took delivery of their Model Y Long Range in April of this year.
