Ford wants to increase EV range with heated floor mats

To heat the interior of an electric car, you can of course use the usual climate control. Ford techs are unsurprisingly of the opinion that you can increase the electric range of an electric car by using the air conditioning as little as possible, but that doesn’t mean you have to die from the cold. By electrically heating various surfaces in the interior, the climate control system can be spared, resulting in less power consumption.

Of course, electricity must also come from the battery to electrically heat various surfaces, but according to Ford, electrical heating of interior parts requires 13 percent less energy than if you used the air conditioning. In practice, according to Ford, this results in a 5 percent higher range. Important here: the tests were not carried out with an electric passenger car.

Nice and warm huh?

So how did Ford test its concept? With an electric E-Transit it has heated armrests, floor mats, door panels, sun visors and a heated panel under the steering wheel. In and around Cologne, Ford simulated a work shift by delivering fictitious packages and driving a 350-kilometer drive. This working day was promoted in both winter and summer and on dry and wet roads and in rain and wind.

The experience that Ford has gained during the tests will be taken into account in the development of future electric models, according to the brand. Ford aims to sell 600,000 EVs annually in Europe by 2026. From 2030, Ford wants to introduce only electric passenger cars in Europe. The Mustang Mach-E is currently the brand’s only electric passenger car. There will soon be two EVs based on Volkswagen’s MEB platform, but there is also an electric version of the Puma and a set of electric commercial vehicles in the pipeline.