Is Battery Preconditioning Really Necessary?

[IrishCVG]

Just took my first road trip in my new 2025 Taycan 4S CT. Cincinnati to Deep Creek Lake, MD. Only a 350 mile drive, so really just needed 1 charge stop somewhere in the middle. Driving through the Appalachians does cut the range a bit.

I was very insistent to use the Porsche PCM nav since it preconditions the battery. So on the way there I did, STRUGGLING to get the trip planner to actually use Electrify America instead of other garbage options. I also very much disliked the nav interface, directions and poor traffic info. Made it no problem in the end.

On the way back, I used Apple Maps which I have linked to my Taycan. That provides current and estimated arrival SoC to improve routing. You lose the gauge map route but keep directions in the HUD. The map and data are 300% better than Porsche, but it does not precondition.

So I stopped at the same Electrify America at 7% and plugged into the 350 kW charger. The battery was not to optimal temp (in the 70s F) and the max charge was below 100 kW when I plugged in according to the PCM.

By the time I walked to the Walmart to grab a snack, it was already at 17% SoC. It was no more than 3 minutes. It was already charging over 220 kW and later got to about 310 at its best. I got to 80% at under 20 min. I topped to 90% (just to be safe) in another 6 min for a total time of 26 min.

So I honestly don’t see a real need for preconditioning. Certainly it’s not worth the substandard nav interface of Porsche or ongoing data costs for Porsche Connect.

(Public Service announcement: PLEASE don’t be that guy that charges to 100% at a public charger! It’s bad for your car and just plain rude to those waiting. Just route to an extra stop if you need that much range. 2 charges will be WAY faster than 1 long charge to 100%. I felt bad even charging to 90% and would have unplugged at 80, but I was in the car and nobody else was there with 3 other chargers open.)

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[gtm]

I deliberately do not precondition. Preconditioning usually takes a fair number of kWh. Does the higher charge rate offset the extra time necessary to replace what is used by preconditioning? Your session shows that the charge rate ramps up pretty quickly without preconditioning. EA historically was probably not going to give you a charge rate anywhere near what the car would be capable of accepting so why bother preconditioning? In addition I find that by the time I walk to wherever, have a bio break, buy some water and walk back the car is usually at, or close, to being at the charge level I need. I'm not sure preconditioning helps much at all.

 

[FredC057]

In a 2025 model, maybe not.
In an older model, if like me you want to keep your stops at a max of 18min, then yes.
I still wonder why we can’t use both nav at the same time.
I would pay to have Waze working in CarPlay at the same time as the Porsche nav to know at which % I will arrive. it did work for a while and I can’t reproduce it.

 

[pio]

Check this excellent post comparing charging session temperatures, speed, and energy wasted during pre-conditioning:

https://www.taycanforum.com/forum/t...anner-charging-stops.22826/page-2#post-347754

I agree that the Taycan often tries "too hard" to heat up the battery, for instance when driving to a Tesla charger which has a (practical) limit of 140 kW.

 

[Tucson_Jim]

I've done both pre and non conditioning on my 2021. I agree with pio that the Porsche NAV app is too rigid when it comes to picking charging locations. If I want to pick a stop that the NAV won't recognize, I find myself playing "destination roulette" to fake it into selecting a site. Pretty sad functionality from the premier sports car manufacturer.

 

[Stan]

I have a 2022 Taycan and did a 5300km road trip last month through northern BC and into Yukon from Vancouver. I mostly use the Porsche nav. A subscription to Porsche Connect isn't needed. Because charge stations are sparse up north and not always reliable, I would charge more frequently than the Porsche nav called for. I would usually add these additional stops into the nav. Although the nav is pretty lame in that it only recognizes addresses (i.e. it won't find 'blue parrot coffee house vancouver' for example), if I started typing 'Fort Nelson', it would give lots of suggestions including charge stations in Fort Nelson. So, adding charge stops was pretty straightforward.

There were also times when I would just pull up to a charge station that the nav wasn't expecting.

For this trip, pre-conditioning wasn't useful in that most of my chargers were under 150kW, with several only 50kW. It would just quickly ramp up to that max charge rate.

If I were going to charge first thing in the morning, I would try to punch the stop into the nav to get some pre-conditioning happening given the cold battery temp. Again, subjectively, it didn't seem to make much of a difference when I didn't do this.

Stan

 

[Shug]

When you are on a drive, the battery runs at about 32C in my car which is warm enough to accept a decent charge in a short space of time.

Not seen the need to use the Porsche nav since it is rubbish compared to Waze.

Zapmap is way easier to use, to find a high power charger at the correct distance, than Porsche. Then put the charger into Waze.

TBH the whole charging thing frustrates me though since it is way more complicated than it should be.

 

[Stan]

Harry, it is too complicated. Prior to the road trip, I needed to download apps and put money into accounts from multiple charge providers.

I've previously owned two Teslas and used them on road trips. Really easy to roadtrip and charge on the road. Unless that is, you penny-pinch like me and over-ride the Tesla nav to pick cheaper Superchargers.

Stan

When you are on a drive, the battery runs at about 32C in my car which is warm enough to accept a decent charge in a short space of time.

Not seen the need to use the Porsche nav since it is rubbish compared to Waze.

Zapmap is way easier to use, to find a high power charger at the correct distance, than Porsche. Then put the charger into Waze.

TBH the whole charging thing frustrates me though since it is way more complicated than it should be.

 

[SergeyIndy]

This is the answer. See Min HV temp for Max charge directly from the source.

 

[Mizzle51]

(Public Service announcement: PLEASE don’t be that guy that charges to 100% at a public charger! It’s bad for your car and just plain rude to those waiting. Just route to an extra stop if you need that much range. 2 charges will be WAY faster than 1 long charge to 100%. I felt bad even charging to 90% and would have unplugged at 80, but I was in the car and nobody else was there with 3 other chargers open.)

Decent rule, but when I do autocross, I do end up doing a 95 or 100% DC fast charge nearby so I end up with as much battery as I can for the event to avoid derating / have max power at the ready. Usually I'm doing this at 7am so there is not charger space contention. Just pointing out the blanket "never do 100%" is a little rough for some use cases with a performance car.

 

[anonymouse]

I let it precondition if it wants, but rarely pay any attention. There are a few times when it makes a big difference - you've just set off from your hotel and shortly after that you want to pull into an Ionity and charge at 314 kW -- it takes a few minutes to warm up if not preconditioned.

Prior to the road trip, I needed to download apps and put money into accounts from multiple charge providers.

I think this is getting significantly better. The latest Porsche Charging Service Plus contract has quite a good range of charging networks included, especially in continental Europe, at reasonable prices. I am finding that there are fewer and fewer times I need to go through the whole app hassle. A bit of preplanning (with A Better Route Planner) helps. The exception is little local chargers in city council car parks, where I might want to top up while there for a while -- these seem to love unusual apps with terrible user interfaces.

Plus, in some countries (eg UK) it is mandatory for new networks that they accept contactless credit cards (although the rates may not be quite as good as with the app).

 

[configurator]

I tried doing it yesterday on a drive through Columbus (I’m from SW Ohio too 🫡).

The PCM nav is so terrible though. It was recommending places behind me in the other direction. Just idiotic and actually dangerous to deal with while driving.

I’ll take the extra 1-2 min to heat the battery to get it to fast charge temp. Better than getting hurt, damaging the car, or getting frustrated by that embarrassingly bad Porsche nav.

 

[Boss Hogg]

The latest PCM navigation software is much better, just tap the charge stop and there is now an option to select alternate chargers nearby. It also lets you search for chargers along the route and you can filter on power capability of the charger. I use the PCM navigation on longer trips and trust it to figure out the quickest journey time including using some energy to precondition the battery to allow faster charging speed (I assume it calculates the energy used to precondition is replaced quicker via fast charging speed than not preconditioning). Only downside is if the charger does not deliver the advertised speed like happened to me last week.

 

[chun]

The latest PCM navigation software is much better, just tap the charge stop and there is now an option to select alternate chargers nearby. It also lets you search for chargers along the route and you can filter on power capability of the charger. I use the PCM navigation on longer trips and trust it to figure out the quickest journey time including using some energy to precondition the battery to allow faster charging speed (I assume it calculates the energy used to precondition is replaced quicker via fast charging speed than not preconditioning). Only downside is if the charger does not deliver the advertised speed like happened to me last week.

If only porsche wouldn’t restrict new software versions to new cars, even though it’s same hardware

 

[satchurator]

Just took my first road trip in my new 2025 Taycan 4S CT. Cincinnati to Deep Creek Lake, MD. Only a 350 mile drive, so really just needed 1 charge stop somewhere in the middle. Driving through the Appalachians does cut the range a bit.

I was very insistent to use the Porsche PCM nav since it preconditions the battery. So on the way there I did, STRUGGLING to get the trip planner to actually use Electrify America instead of other garbage options. I also very much disliked the nav interface, directions and poor traffic info. Made it no problem in the end.

On the way back, I used Apple Maps which I have linked to my Taycan. That provides current and estimated arrival SoC to improve routing. You lose the gauge map route but keep directions in the HUD. The map and data are 300% better than Porsche, but it does not precondition.

So I stopped at the same Electrify America at 7% and plugged into the 350 kW charger. The battery was not to optimal temp (in the 70s F) and the max charge was below 100 kW when I plugged in according to the PCM.

By the time I walked to the Walmart to grab a snack, it was already at 17% SoC. It was no more than 3 minutes. It was already charging over 220 kW and later got to about 310 at its best. I got to 80% at under 20 min. I topped to 90% (just to be safe) in another 6 min for a total time of 26 min.

So I honestly don’t see a real need for preconditioning. Certainly it’s not worth the substandard nav interface of Porsche or ongoing data costs for Porsche Connect.

(Public Service announcement: PLEASE don’t be that guy that charges to 100% at a public charger! It’s bad for your car and just plain rude to those waiting. Just route to an extra stop if you need that much range. 2 charges will be WAY faster than 1 long charge to 100%. I felt bad even charging to 90% and would have unplugged at 80, but I was in the car and nobody else was there with 3 other chargers open.)

I agree on the user experience aspects of Apple Maps vs the PCM Nav. I think that preconditioning helps to minimize the duration of a 'splash and dash' stop. In the US I've found that this benefit is often lost due to derated chargers (EA 350kW hardware limited to 150kW) or just having to wait in line for access to a dispenser.

I used to fastidiously hand-add specific chargers as waypoints on a multi-stop navigation in the PCS Nav. Now I just add them as multi-stops in Apple Maps and don't bother with the PCS, so foregoing preconditioning.

From the temperature stats above it sounds like the J1.2 needs preconditioning less than the J1.1. It would be nice if the car supported some kind of awareness of 3rd party navigation such that it could influence preconditioning. Apple Maps connected EV support is perhaps a step in that direction.

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