Tesla Model 3/Y Battery RANGE LOSS PROBLEM? | NEW DATA REVEALED! 

I've had my Model3 for almost 6 years and the range loss was 10%. Best car ever.

I just completed a 1,247 mile road trip from Ohio to South Carolina and back in a 2019 LR RWD Model 3. Ideal EV conditions. Hot and dry, with no high winds. Generally drove 70 or 75 mph, 5 mph over the speed limit with AP engaged. I achieved 242 Wh/mi. For my car the EPA number is 234 Wh/mi. Considering I drove mostly 5 mph over the posted speed limit 242 Wh/mi is amazing efficiency. At 31,400 miles and 5 years I have about 7% degradation according to ScanMyTesla and I've Supercharged 38% of the time.

The difference between: 1. Battery retention 2. EPA range 3. Actual range for each driver is so obvious that I cannot reconcile a writer working for an AUTOMOTIVE publication who confused them. Thank you for bringing it to our attention.

We seem to be flooded with negative stories lately. Thanks for dissecting this one, John.

I had my first Tesla for 7 years and the battery only degraded about 2%. The car worked perfectly. The only reason I upgraded to a newer Tesla was to get the autopilot.

Wholeheartedly agree with your statement re: need to correct false EV articles like this. Many times authors publish false information to generate buzz & hits. I suspect that’s the MO here. Thanks for correcting this article on your channel, John.

Tesla needs to sue them for misinformation.

Note 72% to 64% would be an 11% reduction in battery capacity and not an 8% reduction. (72-64)/72 * 100 = 11.11% reduction.

My last Toyota Prius had an EPA rated range of 600 miles. Starting on day 1, I could only get 400 miles of range with it. That’s a 33% degradation in range just by driving it off of the dealer lot!

There are a few things I would check first, before "condemning" an EV battery. First, tire inflation pressure. Low tires can greatly reduce range. Second, get it on a rack, and check the tracking alignment for all four wheels. 3rd, check battery cell equalization. I would set the maximum state of charge to ~80%, then, plug into level 2 charging, or better yet, high level one charging and leave it plugged in for a day or more. That will give the battery management system time to equalize the state of charge of all the cells, to compensate for differences of self-discharge rate of individual cells, that have accumulated over time. EV's, (Tesla in particular) have excellent battery management systems, (BMS) IF they're given a chance to "work their magic". What happens, is that during driving, it bases its low state of charge on the voltage of the lowest cell. During charge, it bases full charge on the voltage of the cell that is highest. Those margins become less and less, as the states of charge of individual cells spreads out, due to self discharge rates. Fast charging doesn't give the BMS much time to try to equalize the cells. Charging at home, over night, helps a lot, giving the BMS hours, rather than minutes, to try to HOLD the individual cells at the same voltage, and allow an absorption charge on the cells with lower states of charge. That will widen the margin between low and high cutoff voltages for the whole battery, restoring usable capacity, thus, driving range. Try these things, before spending HUGE amounts of $$$$ on a new battery! It's also valuable to note, that different tires have different amounts of rolling resistance. Some winter tires have more rolling resistance, than a tire specifically designed as LRR. (low rolling resistance) Even if you replace the tires with the exact same kind, new tires will give less range, than tires that are just about worn out. The range will increase, after about 10,000 miles/ 15,000 kilometers on new tires.

Jalopnik....yeah I'm not at all shocked

I am flabbergasted that the renowned, respected, and credible Jalopnik could let such a mistake go to press 😂. Surely they will print a huge article retracting their mistake and asking for our forgiveness.

Thanks Mat, for taking on the FUD. Unbelievable that professional auto writers get it so wrong, someone needs to set them right. Though a minor error: degrading from 72.5% to 64.0% is actually a 11.7% loss from when new (not 8%). Likewise, 70% to 64% is a 9.1% loss from when new.

I can only speak for my 2021 Model 3 Performance. I bought it new in 2021 and the battery degraded below 70% capacity earlier this year (2024). I received a battery error that I my battery could no longer charge. I took it to Tesla and received a refurbished battery that doesn't even come close to the range of my original battery at full charge. I do light driving and only go into the office once a week. After my battery warranty is up, I'll be getting a new car.

Hello. I have a 2020 Model Y with 113,550 miles. Yesterday I went on a long trip and returned home with 20% so I went into service mode and ran a HV battery test. It shows that I only have 6% battery degradation after 4 years and 113,550 miles. Looking forward to many more years and miles! Love the Model Y now just as much as I did on the day we bought it, and it still drives the same!

I don't think so (about the range loss). I had my Model 3 Performance for 3 years and didn't experience any big drop in range. John, they are desparate to come up with negative Tesla stories. ICE vehicles aren't selling well.

People don't care about capacity.. They care about range..

Unfortunately, I have a problem with your math too, and since it slightly favours Tesla I am going to point it out. Based on the chart presented a new Tesla get approximately 72.5% of EPA range when new and drops to approximately 64% around the 1500 hour mark. So, we started at a base of 72.5 and dropped to 64.0 this is an 8.5 point drop on a base of 72.5 which amounts to a percentage drop of 8.5/72.5 which is approximately 11.72 % reduction in capacity and not 8% (72-64) as you suggested. This seems to be in line with what Tesla is reporting for expected degradation of batteries for the Model 3 & Y.

My Telsa Model S from 2016 had an EPA range of 294, it now gets about 280, so that's a drop of about 5% over 8 years, which is about 0.6% per year and at this rate will hit the 10-year mark (which was the original battery warranty) with a range of 276, for a total drop of about 6.3%, which is pretty darn good for lithium batteries in my opinion. I wish I could get a laptop with that kind of result.

Jalopnik = Big Oil Money

You said that "ALL EVs lose range in the cold". You should have said that "ALL vehicles, whether EVs or ICE, lose range in the cold". Good analysis, though.

I have a 2016 model S75D with 120k miles. When it was new, it could discharge 72 kwh before the car read 0%. 8 years later, it can only discharge 60 kwh before reading 0%. 16.7% degradation in 8 years and 120k miles.

65% of advertised range is concerning for reasons other than “degradation”. Tesla could choose to advertise more accurate ranges (225 vs 265 miles & 264 vs 330, etc).

If it's only starting at 72% and drops to 64%, that is not a degradation of 8%. Your degradation is 11% because 72% is your starting point for degradation, which is always 100% because your baseline is always 100% no matter what number is being represented by the 100% baseline. I'm not arguing the news article isn't propaganda and trashbait journalism, but also it's also important to understand how the math works given the terms.

My Model Y Long range is over 3 years old and I have lost less than 10%. It matters how you take care of your battery, charge at home at 80% and never let it run down below 20%.

The EPA range is the problem. German tests have shown that on the Autobahn at 80mph a Tesla model 3 with a theoretical 360 mile range will only achieve a best in class 280 mile range. Historically I used to travel to the Alps at speed in winter. I found it was best to cruise in my BMW petrol car at about 90mph. Above that and it murdered the fuel economy, simple physics.

As a longtime Tesla owner and shareholder what I find lacking in the media is the glowing praise for these amazing cars that they richly deserve. And the only consolation for that is that the FUD has served Tesla well over the years since there’s no way Tesla could have ramped up production to meet the tsunami of orders they’d have faced if people really understood how outstanding they really are. We are finally reaching a point where manufacturing capacity may exceed demand and I’m curious to see whether Tesla simply rides it out a bit longer or actually invests a small amount of money in advertising. I suspect the former approach is wiser since lots of good news should be forthcoming anyway in 2025.

Important clarification! Thanks! Tesla should clarify this themselves and sue the authors and the publishers to hell because I suggest that was not misunderstood, but is intentionally misleading.

Your argument makes sense. The range rule is the same as the MPG rule, that is your range/mileage will depend upon the way you drive. Also, most electric cars, except those with LFP batteries are to be filled up to 80%. That means that a car rated at 300 miles, I believe that is based on a 100% range would be 20% less if you filled it up to 80% so I am wondering if the EPA ratings are based on a 100% charge or an 80% charge it occurs to me that if it was based on an 80% charge that instead of a 300 mile range it would be 220 miles, right? Again, I believe your reasoning is correct and this gentleman‘s reasoning doesn’t make a whole lot of sense. Keep up the good work!😊

You've also read the data incorrectly - it's not an 8% drop. If we assume every battery starts @ 100% not 72% then we have to multiply those figures to give us the real degradation. It's actually closer to 11% degradation because 64 x 100/72 = 88.8888%.

A nEV battery loses less power than an ICE loses compression. Working on ICE cars with 150K it's not unusual to see a 30%, or more, loss of compression. That much loss of engine capacity only increases the maintenance costs of the ICE. Battery degradation does not appear to increase the running costs of EV's.

Another data point: Model 3 LR (late 2020 Freemont build) 92.8% battery capacity after 45000 miles.

6:25 The decrease from 72% of range to 64% of range is around 11% not 8%

I have a 3 year old Tesla Model 3 Long Range. 39,000 miles. I have been abusing the battery with 100% charges some of the time. The battery is currently showing 89.9% of it's original capability.

Great video, thanks. Stay safe.

My 2017 Tesla long range model 3 has only lost about 7%.

one thing I like to ask of anyone asking me these questions... Do you expect to get the EPA MPG on the window sticker when you buy a gas car? I also point out that I only charge to 75% and don't bother to charge until I get below 50%. Even given that, I only need to charge every 2 or 3 days. An NMC battery kept between 25% and 75% will last almost forever. LFP batteries are even better.

On the day of delivery I set my battery gauge to % and never changed it. When I owned gas cars I never ever looked predicted range - I just checked the fuel gauge. Drive an EV the same way and all this range nonsense goes away.

Great work. I did read the article and was thoroughly puzzled by it. So I thought it was a sponsored FUD. Thanks for pointing out that little technical detail, which I missed. I should have picked up on it since I do study EVs quite a bit.

Hate to nitpick, but a drop from 72 to 64 is not 8% it's a little over 10%, but please continue...

range is a terrible measure. just show useable kwh capacity of the battery.

The article must have been written by a Judge in New York working for Recurrent part time.

I have a '21 Model Y LR with over 93,000 miles on it and has a Recurrent degradation of only 7%. Recurrent also shows almost 1800 charging cycles. Over 80% of the charging is on my home level 2 Tesla Connector. This is my second Tesla with my opinion being Tesla is the best EV on the market, in the world.

People who have are technically inclined should not write at all. I am confident LFP batteries last a very long time.

Great video THANK YOU. 🙏. I for sure will share this to educate others.

Love my 2019 model 3. Range is still great 👍

I’ve had two Tesla’s (a Model 3 RWD and a Model Y LR) for two years and seen virtually no degradation.

They're not misunderstanding the data; they're deliberately misusing it. I stopped paying attention to jalopnik years ago because of their data anti-EV agenda. The problem is, as you make clear, one of many people being uninformed about EV performance and longevity. I still encounter that, with people who still call EV's 'milk floats', 'golf carts' and 'toy cars'. Some start listening when I tell them how long we've owned the car for, and what the total cost of ownership has been, in comparison to their Diesel or gasoline cars. Even then, many still say that hybrid 'frankencars' are the future. 🤦🏼‍♂

Ads for ice vehicles turns my stomach

My 2020 model 3 performance has 83k miles with 257mi limit

I have 85,000 miles on my model Y LR and the range is 245 miles at 80% That's a loss of only 5% roughly. QUITE HAPPY with the longevity.

I’m a little concern my 2024 model Y PERFORMANCE has lost 27 miles of range in only 4 months of ownership, on a recent road trip it only charged to 252miles at 100% should I be worried about the the degradation of over 10% so soon?

As long as you are going downhill with the air conditioner off you might get close to the EPA range.

Why that up-slope after which the graph seems to recover back to what would have been the extrapolation of the first, more regular, slope?

I do not for a moment believe the author "misunderstands" the data, rather they are misrepresenting the data to make Tesla vehicles appear to have a problem which, as you clearly explain, they do not. Part of a long-running program to spread FUD against Tesla and EVs in general.

Had a Tesla for over 6 years. I'm sure the capacity has reduced a bit but it can't be much because I can't tell. It still seems to go as far on a charge as it always did. I supercharge it most of the time.

VERY good content, thank you so much for your work!

If a new battery gets 70% of the EPA range, and after 3 years it drops to below 64%, that is a drop of 9% from the new battery figure. I must admit this highlights exactly how constrained the Tesla's are in their real world range. Consider a claimed 330 mile optimum range then factor in that you only want to use 80% to 10% SOC, then 9% degradation over 3 years, you are looking is 211 miles, and even that may be optimistic given weather and driving conditions.

I’ve had the 2024 LR AWD 19in for a month now and my max is 280 at 100% is there something I can change about that?

I get 400 miles a tank in My 2008 Toyota Yaris. Best Car ever under 11,000 new

Degradation is not the scary part of $10-20k batteries. The batteries have thousands of cells and it only takes one to go resistive and cause the whole pack to fail. You bought an EV thinking less moving parts = less things to fail. Plus the pack is full of electronics that can fail and you’re going to get a huge and very scary bill. EV companies want you to keep arguing about degradation while they hide the number of pack failures. Don’t own one out of warranty, but expect to lose gas savings in depreciation.

Mine is 2yrs old and I'm not sure how the previous owner charged it but 8% so far.

Not all batteries are in the same operating conditions. I would say a 15-20% degradation on MY LR AWD. Problem is Tesla EPA range is not true to start with.

Does this data regard LFP or NMC batteries? They are relative new to Tesla models and are supposed to degrade less.

My 2021 Model Y Long Range 320miles max range, after 3years and 70,000 miles lost 21miles range and that is about 7miles per year lost in the past 3years. It is driven almost 5 times a week around 100miles per day on regular days charged max to 80% every day before regular use. And it is almost taken to many long roadtrips charging at superchargers during holidays or family vacation trips.

It does sound ridiculous when even Edmunds says their before and after for 4 years of rough 0-100 charging is degradation of 9%.

Just ordered a MY RWD Quicksilver in Australia. Waiting time is 7 to 9 weeks, and today I read a MSM article suggesting that Tesla is having trouble selling their cars. More fake news, I guess. Now, I need to get an electric motorcycle with a decent range and my life is complete.

If the warranty is based on the battery capacity Tesla should disclose the batter capacity. There is no official information on battery capacity. How can Tesla warrant based o something they don't disclose?

Thanks for the information

What about difference of EPA and real world range for ICE vehicles. Do they have similar significant % differences?

There's no way I'd buy a car that loses that much range in just three years.

My new 24 Model Y LR out of Fremont had a 304 mile EPA range at pickup and this value is very common from comments and posts I've seen on TMC and on Model Y FB groups. This displayed value has no relation to driving habits or temperature per the manual. It's a mystery, but they actually come new with 3% less displayed range than rated. My efficiencies on TeslaFi show high 90s across most speed ranges.

I don't think it's an issue of a lack of understanding on the author's part. I think it's very deliberate misrepresentation of facts and a case of the author taking their readers for idiots. Glad to see people calling them out

Mis-understand, or intentionally mis representing? The story discussed, appears to be an attempt at spreading FUD 100% Good job on exposing it!.

You should have emphasised that the range loss due to temperature, wind, slope etc also applies to dinosaur-juice cars albeit in slightly different ways. It’s just that they don’t have anything as accurate juice meters or projection software. Luddites will jump on anything that can be bent to their arguments.

If the battery degraded that badly you would qualify for a battery replacement under warranty.

Jalopnik is a terrible source of truthful info.

Deception is the goal

My battery has apparently gained capacity in its first year, according to the Tessie app! Not too sure how accurate that is though

If this was true, Tesla would have to replace all the batteries during warranty period... which means they would never offer 8 year warranty on batteries. Which they do. Problem is more that EPA range estimate is shit... which the video later shows

This isn't really a big deal if you try to find out how the battery ages before you buy. The real problem is that after 8 years or 150,000 miles you are stranded and if you use the car a lot you can fall outside the warranty in 1 to 2 years. This warranty absolutely kills the secondhand value as it implies the battery will go bad after either 8 year or 150,000 mils, even if it won't for the majority of Tesla cars as they are used with level 2 chargers that don't degrade the battery like fast chargers will. If Tesla were smart they would change the warranty so secondhand owners can take par in it for a longer time. As it is now no one will take a chance on an 8-year-old Tesla. I say buy your Tesla new then drive it like it's your baby and keep it as long as it lasts.

What all these BEV makers leave out is Li-Ion battery range declines with not just charge cycles. Li-Ion batteries lose 2%-6%/ year of capacity if just left in storage. Tesla with their warranty 70% in 8 years. That is a loss of up to 3.75%/ year at that rate a 20 year old Tesla could have only 25% of capacity. I have had numerous ICE that have had no major repairs in over 20years.

“This author completely misunderstood the data in the report.” You’re being overly generous. At this point, my DEFAULT assumption is these people are knowingly and willfully lying rather than being merely ignorant.

Great content ... very clear ...m well done.

I have a Model S 2016 (8 Years) and have lost 11%!

Driving (coasting) downhill from Eisenhower Junction to Kansas City my revivifier’s car gets great mileage.❤

Ryan Erik King and Jalopnik need to be sued. 20% overshoot isn't just "skewing" the data.

What's funny is if it did indeed fail to charge to 70% original capacity in the 8 years, it's covered anyway.

Good to see you clearing up the fake news being put out there and putting people off going the Ev route. Glad they have changed the EPA test as the test conditions mean the cars in reality get much less range, the test needs to become more real world conditions with 70mph at less than 10 degrees celsius ambient being 50% of the test which will make the figures closer to real world for many of people.

How about you look into how much buffer tesla batteries have when new as compared to 3 years later. Are they decreasing the buffer to hide and cover up degradation ?

My 2021 Model 3 is still at 96% @49k miles

Buy an ICE vehicle and not have to worry about it. Cost less and with hybrid you get great fuel economy

My 2018 model 3 lr averages 180-240 miles real world miles the wide variety is weather dependent but in the winter I’ll be lucky to hit 200 miles it averages low/mid 100’s

Is it like advertising that this animal can have a range of 300 miles from a single meal but it neglects how that animal might perform in water vs land, like in water it might only get 200 but they advertised 300 it's not that they were lying just that they are not being clear about all the scenarios and how it might actually effect range.

My Model 3 is five years old and has 97,733 miles. My range has increased in the last six months. Love my car and how it gets better with age.

It amazes me how many EV owners are willing to spend time worrying about battery capacity, range anxiety, charging issues, charging networks, temperature, etc. Who cares about capacity ratings, real, EPA or manufacturer claims. Range is a unique worry for EV owners and reliability is now another. How many people need to get fixated on the size of the gas tank on their ICE vehicle and if it is shrinking? Dude you just spent an entire video trying to reduce this anxiety by denying it exists?

It’ll be a warranty claim

TL:DW; They don't understand that vehicles don't start a 100% EPA Range and do manufacturer guarantees a percentage of EPA Range.

Well done John. The automotive journal space is fortunate to have you as an active participant and educator. Appreciate your efforts in exposing the nonsense put out by Jalopnik. 👍And thank you. 🙏

If it's within 10 years and 100k miles, it's covered by manufacturer warranty anyway. After that, just buy a new battery - it's only $8k. You'd think people had never owned a car - they always need to be fixed after a certain age.