What's the problem of charging your truck to 100% instead of 80% once in a while?

[rudedawg78]

Hey CTers,

So, I have been here for a long time and noticed that most everyone charges to 80% to ensure maximum longevity of the battery. It makes sense and even watched YouTube videos to understand the science of it. However, to the best of my knowledge, it is okay to charge to 100% if you just don't let your truck sit that long before you drive.

Is it okay or not okay to charge to 100% periodically? I would like the maximum charge possible if I go to concerts/tailgating/camping/etc. The family and I go to concerts a lot and we want to be able to tailgate with no worry about battery drain due to the fridge/freezer/electric grill/coffee pot/fans/etc.

I feel that some people on this forum go stir crazy when someone charges their Cybertruck past the 80% mark.

What say you? This will be my first EV and my Cybertruck should be delivered next week!

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[CyberTW]

Hey CTers,

So, I have been here for a long time and noticed that most everyone charges to 80% to ensure maximum longevity of the battery. It makes sense and even watched YouTube videos to understand the science of it. However, to the best of my knowledge, it is okay to charge to 100% if you just don't let your truck sit that long before you drive.

Is it okay or not okay to charge to 100% periodically? I would like the maximum charge possible if I go to concerts/tailgating/camping/etc. The family and I go to concerts a lot and we want to be able to tailgate with no worry about battery drain due to the fridge/freezer/electric grill/coffee pot/fans/etc.

I feel that some people on this forum go stir crazy when someone charges their Cybertruck past the 80% mark.

What say you? This will be my first EV and my Cybertruck should be delivered next week!

As I understand it, going to 100 occasionally for such occasions is perfectly fine but should not be the default charge percentage daily

 

[Outdoors]

Yep no problem with occasional full charge. On my S I have 173 charges at 95% or above. 11% degradation after 290k. Enjoy the car/truck.

 

[rudedawg78]

Yep no problem with occasional full charge. On my S I have 173 charges at 95% or above. 11% degradation after 290k. Enjoy the car/truck.

Those metrics make me happy and less worrisome. Thanks for the response.

 

[carsly]

On my prior Model S I'd overnight charge to 80-85% and then top off a few hours before departure so pretty much as soon as it's full I'm ready to go and burn off some of that energy. In a year+ with my Model S Plaid there was no measurable degradation with this approach. Daily charge limit was 80%.

 

[jf64k]

OP, don’t worry about it.

Just charge to what you need and be done with it.

I’ve got two 2020 MYLR’s and now a FS AWD and I’ve never looked at the charge screens, haha!!

I now charge to 80% for daily driving (per Tesla recommendation, which was 90% for the first three years or so) and to 95-100% as needed.

They all work great.

 

[CTSoFL]

OP, don’t worry about it.

Just charge to what you need and be done with it.

I’ve got two 2020 MYLR’s and now a FS AWD and I’ve never looked at the charge screens, haha!!

I now charge to 80% for daily driving (per Tesla recommendation, which was 90% for the first three years or so) and to 95-100% as needed.

They all work great.

You bring up a great point.

I get the "not 100% unless you really need it", but would daily charging to 85% be diffferent to battery pack longevity than 80%? 75%? Is 80% an arbitrary "we gotta pick some standard so y let's go with that" benchmark?

 

[jf64k]

You bring up a great point.

I get the "not 100% unless you really need it", but would daily charging to 85% be diffferent to battery pack longevity than 80%? 75%? Is 80% an arbitrary "we gotta pick some standard so y let's go with that" benchmark?

In 2020 the Tesla app recommended 90% for daily driving, then a few years later they changed to 80%.

I’m assuming they made the change as the Model 3/Y sold in the millions and they got tons more data back?

All I know is I go with what Tesla says when it comes to batteries. They seem to know what they’re doing, haha!!

 

[Zorro]

I charge my CT to 100% just before any trip longer than 80 miles. By the time I get to my destination I’m between 65% to 70%. The battery would sit at 100% no more than a few hours engaging on my trip.

I’m no Tesla or battery expert as this is my first EV, however this is what I feel that works for me.

 

[Pops]

The precise reason its bad is because charging to 100% can cause the growth of lithium metal dendrites. Which are like microscopic icicles. If they grow long enough they reach the the other side of the cathode and cause a short. This degrades or kills individual cells. But if you only do it rarely, the growth of the dendrites will be limited and not an issue.

 

[SeattleTom]

Daily charging to 80% or 85% is preferred for battery health and longevity (i.e, it will minimize degradation). Note this is different for some Model 3 batteries where 100% daily charging is fine.

And charging to 100% is okay when you are taking trips. What is most important is not charging to 100% and LEAVING it at that high state of charge for a long time. You ideally want to charge to 100% (or close) and start your trip as soon as possible after the Tesla hits that mark.

Enjoy the CT!!!

 

[CyberGus]

Is it okay or not okay to charge to 100% periodically? I would like the maximum charge possible if I go to concerts/tailgating/camping/etc.

If you really want to get educated on the subject, there’s a thread over on TMC “Range Loss Over Time, What Can Be Expected, Efficiency, How to Maintain Battery Health” but brace yourself, it’s 322 pages over 4 years lol.

The TL;DR is that cells age with cycles, but far more by just sitting there (“Calendar Aging”). The lower the SoC in storage, the lower the degradation.

From this chart you can see that capacity drops over time, and faster at higher SoC. Note there is a significant decline between 50% and 60%, so that’s where your greatest advantage is. It also gets steeper from around 80% to 100%.

It’s fine to top-up when you’re about to drive, but store it the lowest value practical (down to about 50%). That’s where I keep mine, as I don’t use more than around 15% per day typically.

There is also lower degradation with smaller Depth of Discharge (DoD) so you should charge daily rather than running all the way down and filling up.

Of course, you could charge to 100% all the time and still be unable to hit the 70% capacity limit in 8 years that would trigger a warranty replacement, but you might miss the 20%+ of range you lost.

Also, don’t be alarmed by range loss in the first year. The cells have a break-in period and degradation will slowly subside.

 

[CyberGus]

I also schedule charging so that it just hits the set limit when I’m ready to drive, keeping it at lower SoC for as long as possible.

If I know I need more range, I’ll just increase the set limit from the app.

 

[igs]

Hey CTers,

So, I have been here for a long time and noticed that most everyone charges to 80% to ensure maximum longevity of the battery. It makes sense and even watched YouTube videos to understand the science of it. However, to the best of my knowledge, it is okay to charge to 100% if you just don't let your truck sit that long before you drive.

Is it okay or not okay to charge to 100% periodically? I would like the maximum charge possible if I go to concerts/tailgating/camping/etc. The family and I go to concerts a lot and we want to be able to tailgate with no worry about battery drain due to the fridge/freezer/electric grill/coffee pot/fans/etc.

I feel that some people on this forum go stir crazy when someone charges their Cybertruck past the 80% mark.

What say you? This will be my first EV and my Cybertruck should be delivered next week!

You want to charge to 30% not 80%.

 

[CyberGus]

You want to charge to 30% not 80%.

Sure, but 50% is the minimum set point.

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