Leica Z10 Pure Electric Car Makes Snowy debut in Extreme Winter Conditions

This winter, the automotive brand Leica tested their latest offering, the Z10 pure electric car, in extreme cold temperatures to see how well it holds up.

The car was equipped with a 95 kWh lithium-ion battery pack and rear-wheel drive configuration, achieving an official CLTC range of 806 kilometers. The vehicle was taken on a challenging route through the Gurbat Region of northeastern China, braving frosty conditions ranging from -25°C to -20°C as it made its way along 50% highways and roads.

The results showed that in temperatures below 0 degrees Celsius (freezing point), the Z10 pure electric car performed significantly worse than at warmer temperatures. A cold test was conducted where the temperature was dropped to as low as -25°C, with a battery life of just 331.8 kilometers. In contrast, its range at freezing temperatures stood at around 349.7 km.

In terms of power consumption, Leica observed increased energy usage in both tests (15.3 WH/100km). On average, its energy consumption was 29.94kWh/100km higher than expected, so much that it fell short of expectations by around 14% compared to other low-temperature tests conducted previously.

With regard to charging capabilities, the car's performance deteriorated significantly in colder temperatures due to shorter charging times for a given degree range, with a maximum temperature drop in comparison to the earlier tested low-temperature test dropping to nearly half. Compared to previously performed lower temperate tests, the overall charging time increased by 21 minutes.

During this experiment the ambient air inside the vehicle was kept relatively stable at a comfortable temperature, but it suffered significant drops in temperature as compared with expected results from previous outdoor stationary testing. When exposed to outside temperatures and running the car`s system for two hours, it had a rise in car body temperature from a comfortable 20 degrees Celsius (293 K) up to about 20.5 degrees Celsius after around half an hour of constant airflow on maximum mode, and finally reached the end result of a relatively stable temperature only at the final minutes.

In summary, Leica Z10 pure electric car scored two out of the three badges – reliability and comfort – with its test results falling short in terms of range.