EV Battery Health – What to look for

A healthy battery is vital to keeping an electric vehicle running smoothly for longer. So, whether you’re looking to buy a second hand EV, or just want to look after your own, it’s important to check the battery’s health.

What is electric car battery health?

When we talk about electric car battery health, we’re talking about the battery’s capacity compared to new. That’s how much energy it can hold and keep available to power the car. Over time, the battery capacity naturally fades which means charging the car to 100 per cent gets you fewer miles than from new.

How to test an electric car’s battery health

One of the easiest ways to check the battery’s health is to fully charge your car, then take it for a drive and compare the miles you get against the estimated range. A healthy battery should give you a range that’s close to the estimate. The total available range will decrease with age but if the actual range is way off there could be something wrong with the battery.

Alternatively, you can measure a battery’s State of Charge (SOC), which is the amount of charge left in the battery at a particular moment. You’ll usually be able to see this on the dashboard. The SOC will give you a rough idea of how much energy remains in the battery as you go. If it’s dropping a lot, you may have an issue.

Some EVs even come with a Battery Management System (BMS), which continuously monitors the battery's performance, assessing it’s overall condition and reporting it back to you.

For a more thorough view of an electric car's battery health, visit a certified service centre. Trained technicians can perform diagnostic scans using specialised equipment to assess the battery's condition giving you real peace of mind.

If you would like to learn us to assess your battery’s condition please call us on 01202 148303 or email us at service@star-tech-ev.co.uk