How To Ruin Your Electric Car's Battery - LFP Edition!

Four Tips To Keep Your Electric Car's Battery From Degrading Too Fast

Electric cars are becoming increasingly popular, but a common concern remains for many owners - what about the battery? Most batteries used in electric cars today come with one of two major chemistries: Nickel Manganese Cobalt (NMC) or Lithium Iron Phosphate (LFP). LFP batteries are rising in popularity as they're cheaper to manufacturer, and more sustainable since they use more common materials. Each chemistry has unique properties, and benefits from specific best practices, as it relates to making the battery last for a long time. This video will look at the latest research and discuss four major best practices for LFP batteries when it comes to capacity retention and longevity.

Related Videos:

References:

Engineering Explained is a participant in the Amazon Influencer Program.

Don't forget to check out my other pages below!

[EngineeringExplained]

The challenge with this kind of video is always that people will translate this to: EVs aren't ready, EVs are too complicated, etc. The purpose of this channel is education at a deeper level than you'd get from an owner's manual. Cars, whether ICE or EV, are extraordinarily complicated. Most people don't think about their ICE car's best practices, and yet they can still last a very long time. The exact same is true for EVs. As mentioned, cycle life of LFP is very good, even under challenging conditions. You don't *have* to think about it. You can just drive it, and it will last a really, really long time. EVs have much less regular maintenance, you really don't have to think at all to drive these cars. But if you're a dork that's way too curious about cars (that's me), then this is the kinda content that satisfies my curiosity. There are ways to make something that's already going to last a long time, last even longer. There are practices that can dramatically decrease life as well (same with a gas engine, don't hold it at redline, change the oil regularly, etc). My '18 M3P is six years old at this point, still under warranty, and still has great capacity remaining. I also have a new 6-speed coming to the garage soon - stoked to have a manual back in my life! 😎

[emoney]

I love how the graphics on screen are either really technical details or just some joke. I never know what to expect.

[blurglide]

There should be a sticker in the door jam with all the battery specs.

[andrewgilman]

"You should never let your battery get down to 0%. Period." Someone should tell Kyle from Out of Spec Reviews. 😅

[WillProwse]

Really need to cover actual degradation curves of LFP versus NMC and NCA. Because LFP degradation rate is much lower than the cobalt based lithium ion variants.

The thermal stability and overall strength of an iron phosphate lattice is on a totally different level. This difference is extreme and needs to be covered in this video. Charge to 100% daily and forget about it.

People stressed about solar lfp battery cycling years ago and we realized that calendar aging will kill your battery before cycling or cycling thresholds ever will. These batteries will last MUCH longer than the car will. There is zero logic in being nice to these batteries. They are designed to be abused.

[just.jose.youtube]

The honesty and simplicity in your videos is remarkable. I wish more people "worked" this way instead of shooting "the all mighty truth" off of their mouths.
"We're learning"
"This is what we know, so far"
"Things can change"
🙏💪

[TheBlackstarrt]

It's funny, I've also been taught to never let you gas tank be too low. As it will hurt you fuel pump operating at that amount. How things change but stay the same. Lol.

[faresadayleh]

At the end I couldn't draw any conclusion, especially when he said "Nobody knows anything except sometimes we do" 😅😅😅

[stcredzero]

I keep my Tesla Model 3 between 25%-70% as much as possible. Even on long road trips, I try to stay in this range, maybe with a bigger range of 20-80% when needed. This is convenient, because that amounts to about 2 hours of driving, with 15-20 minute stops. 2 hour stints are great for leisurely trips, and I'll be damned if I can get my wife back in the car faster than 15 minutes! On road trips with friends, the stop time is even worse!

[dylanwhite]

So this is my take away from this for home charging:
So my take away is this: BOTH types prefer lower SOC, but we can’t calculate LFP as accurately without frequent 100% charges, so manufacturers have chosen the BMS accuracy over the lifespan of the battery. Personally, if I ever get a car with LFP, I’m still setting my charge limit to less than 70%, plugging in daily, and just adding in a 100% charge like once a month or whenever I feel the BMS is noticeably out of sync. Not using the charge limit function purely because the BMS needs more frequent calibration is asinine.

[aplit-fritz]

F stands for Fe which is the chemical symbol for iron.

[microbuilder]

That is an absolutely adorable white board lol

[jovand]

If im not mistaken quality LFP cells have such a high cycle life that you don't really have to worry about now you charge and discharge (only for long term storage), the calendar life is going to go out first unless the vehicle is a city bus or a taxi that is being driven 24/7.

[spectremarty]

Can you do a DCS batteries edition please? 70% is the new 80% apparently. 😉

[kenklak]

"not often words correct also" made me laugh out loud. Thanks for your content.

[ThiagoRomano]

If you have a Tesla and can charge at home, disregard "LFP Best Practice #4 - Only plug in your car when you need to."

When the car is plugged in and reaches the chosen SOC, the car will stop charging but still draw power from the wall for basic functions, reducing battery usage and in turn increasing the battery longevity.

I've personally tested this by noticing the SOC decrease even with some power drawn from the wall outlet over long periods of inactivity.

[pratn]

F stands for Ferro- just like in Ferrari

[ryankassel]

I really wish they also included a mid range SOC discharge too, like 75-25%

[Leo]

Generally: don't let your lithium batteries get hot. Definitely try not to use them whilst they're hot. Charge them slow because that keeps them cool. Don't discharge them too fast or they'll get hot. Don't fully charge them. Don't fully discharge them.

From what I saw a few years ago LFP was king for cycle life but lacked the power and energy density. And that was improved by cycling from 40% up to 60% ideally. 80% worst case. Only charge up to >95% when you are going to need that extra capacity. Keep the SoC middling, in general.

You should be able to leave your car plugged in all the time and the BMS manage your SoC to maintain optimal long term health. But in reality most systems aren't smart enough for this.

[teslasnek]

You forgot to mention that LFP batteries last longer than NMC batteries overall 🤔