To Charge to 80%... or to 100%?

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Grafight
Posts: 4
Joined: Tue Dec 22, 2020 11:23 am

Post by Grafight »

New ID3 owner here, great to find this forum - hello everyone! I was interested to hear other users thoughts on whether they charge to 80% or to 100%? I noticed that in the charging section of vehicle settings on the infotainment screen it mentions only charging to 80% to "optimise" the batteries.

What damage does it cause charging to 100%?

hwhbev
Posts: 124
Joined: Sat Oct 17, 2020 6:48 pm

Post by hwhbev »

Charging to 100% won't do any damage. It's just that the Lithium-ion batteries don't like sitting fully charged for any length of time – it degrades their life. So for normal daily usage where you don't need the range, VW say charge it to 80%. If you are about do a long journey then charge it to 100% just before you set off.
Deleted User 192

Post by Deleted User 192 »

Short-term it will not cause any issue going to 100%, and actually does the overall battery pack good every now and again as the management system performs balancing across the individual cells.

But unless you need the full range above 80%, just go to 80% for your regular charge.

Not also that the charge rate slows significantly above 80% if using a rapid charger - it will take roughly the same amount of time to go from 20-80% as it does from 80-100%.

I’m no expert on this, I’m just sharing what I’ve learned so far...
Grafight
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Joined: Tue Dec 22, 2020 11:23 am

Post by Grafight »

Thanks Scott & hwhbev
Ians
Posts: 35
Joined: Sat Dec 12, 2020 11:10 pm

Post by Ians »

watch this for your education into battery life.



From a fellow newbe.

Ian
Ians
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Joined: Sat Dec 12, 2020 11:10 pm

Post by Ians »

hungerdunger
Posts: 100
Joined: Fri Dec 11, 2020 8:28 pm
Location: Carmarthen, West Wales

Post by hungerdunger »

My sister-in-law has an electric Mini. We were discussing this topic yesterday and she sent me an extract from the mini manual which says:
To optimally operate the high-voltage battery, charge the vehicle regularly and fully on a suitable charging fixture
She also sent me a quote from someone on the Mini Electric Group who said (among other things):
All the Battery University stuff you can research is for single cells at a 1C rate of charge and discharge. ... Also cell balancing between the cells is really important. Our Mini only does that when the charge is completed. Typically at 100%.
I have no idea who is right, or whether both are right (possibly the Mini has a different battery control system).
ID.3 1st Edition - Manganese Grey - purchased 15/12/20.
RDR
Posts: 51
Joined: Fri Nov 20, 2020 7:28 pm

Post by RDR »

Our previous BMW I3s used to warn you if the charge was low not to leave them in a low state of charge for Prolonged periods. Being into radio controlled cars I always assumed it was similar to the LiPo scenario in that storing at a low state of charge is not healthy for the battery.
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