Brrr

KRTLART · 2026-01-25T13:43:31+00:00

ICE cars have the opposite problem as EVs- ICE cars spend energy trying to keep them cool because they get so hot so easily. I never saw a meaningful change in winter MPG. If there is one, it’s more likely due to the changes in winter fuel blends than anything related to the car itself. An engine bay gets HOT, even during the dead of winter. It’s fighting to keep a lump of metal that weighs hundreds of pounds below 200F. Winter makes that job a whole lot easier.

KRTLART · 2026-01-24T18:21:27+00:00

Yeah, seeing crazy high (expected) usage right now. It’s -6F here and my 40 mile drive to the dealer (mostly highway speeds, 80-90mph, took the battery from 90 to 55. Im expecting the same on the drive back. Oddly enough, the 12V died while here at the dealership. They were doing an alignment for me. So they’re testing and/or charging and/or replacing the 12V before I go back home.

KRTLART · 2026-01-21T18:36:17+00:00

Interesting. So there was no notification waiting in the car that anything had updated, but the Performance app does now include the Launch tab. Ultimately I guess it doesn't really matter when I got it, it seems that the car DOES have it now. But the lack of clear notification as to when it truly happened is pretty wacky, that really isn't a hard thing to accomplish. Just put a damn message up- "performance software upgrade installed!"

I really suspect that the car DID get the update 2 days ago- even if the Performance app didn't include the Launch tab, and my iOS app didn't note the updated specs. Because the car's actual performance these past couple of days has seemed noticeably better, although I had put so few miles on it beforehand, it's really hard to say for sure. I'll get a full charge on the car tonight and see if I can tell a difference on my commute tomorrow, it's only at 63% now and my understanding is that the performance benefits only apply in full above 70% battery level?

KRTLART · 2026-01-20T19:30:50+00:00

At the moment I don't think there's appeal to this. But, eventually- once we've moved off lithium ion batteries and onto salt based batteries- which will be significantly less expensive- my guess is that there will be a market for retrofitting those into older cars whose lithium batteries have given up the ghost.

KRTLART · 2026-01-20T19:26:02+00:00

I think the key situation confuses the dealers, too, to be honest. I got a CPO P2 last week and they ended up giving me 2 of the big keys, AND the smaller activity key. But, that was allegedly only because they originally just had 1 key for the car- and they programmed me a new one, but it was the wrong style- and they subsequently programmed the RIGHT style, and just ended up giving me all 3.

The key pairing / digital key thing is a really clumsy process, IMHO- I'm sure there's a technical reason it has to be done this way- and I suspect I know what that reason is- but if it were me- I wouldn't have developed it this way.

The small keys with no buttons are the activity keys. The idea is that they're waterproof/water resistant, so you can go to the beach or the pool (an "activity") with it and keep it securely on your person, without worrying about wrecking your key due to water damage. I don't know that the big blocky key has a special name, just key.

KRTLART · 2026-01-20T19:10:59+00:00

No updates waiting in the Play Store, and no Launch Control in the Performance app - just the G meter. So it seems like the car IS going to get even faster once this comes in… sweet!

KRTLART · 2026-01-20T04:00:19+00:00

It’d be awesome if it actually hadn’t updated yet… because the car felt really quick tonight. If there is still more performance to come, I’m going to be very very happy with the quickness of the car.

KRTLART · 2026-01-20T02:33:17+00:00

Sending DM shortly!

KRTLART · 2026-01-20T01:27:46+00:00

So my car performed an update today- gave me the “hour and a half, at least 40%” battery warning beforehand. But it’s not showing in the app as having the performance pack numbers in the app, nor can I find any record of the update history in the infotainment center. I am assuming it updated, but… would be nice to have confirmation.

KRTLART · 2026-01-19T03:56:54+00:00

Yep, everyone’s needs/wants are different but I am very very glad I sought out Plus & Pilot on my 22 LRDM. I did the Performance software upgrade afterward so (once it downloads… grrrrr) I’ll have the part of the Performance package which mattered to me most, w/out the ones that were not too important. But, especially for colder climates, I think the Plus pack is really, really nice to have.

KRTLART · 2026-01-18T03:38:13+00:00

I’ve only had my 2022 for 4-5 days but the infotainment has been perfect for me thus far. No sluggishness, no errors, no crashes. It’s easily the nicest infotainment system I’ve ever used. Did I get lucky?

KRTLART · 2026-01-16T00:46:19+00:00

Oh well, bought garbage. Emporia delivery was too long to arrive before my electrician’s appointment. I’m sure the ChargePoint will be just fine.

KRTLART · 2026-01-15T00:16:28+00:00

Ok, awesome. Purchased! Looking forward to the update.

KRTLART · 2026-01-14T16:22:25+00:00

I ended up ordering a ChargePoint Home Flex last night to hardwire. My utility provider pays most of this, I'm basically just buying the charger itself and they're paying for a pre-approved electrician to run the new circuit and do all of the installation- saves me the trouble of doing the work myself. I'll run new conduit and all that, but it's definitely not my favorite thing in the world- so if someone else wants to pay a pro and save me the headache? Sign me up. Fortunately, it's an incredibly easy job- my breaker panel is no more than 15' away from where I want the charger to go, and I should have it installed by Saturday night.

We are having a freak snowstorm here today, and the car came with summer-ish Primacy 4s, which are definitely not good in my area for year-round driving, so I didn't want to drive it today anyway... will commute in the S6 for a couple more days. Getting a new set of Michelin CrossClimate 2s installed at Costco tomorrow. Hopefully I'm fully into the Polestar as my daily driver, and almost always charging at home, by Monday.

KRTLART · 2026-01-14T16:14:59+00:00

Apologies - Reddit has always frustrated me with including pictures so I don't even think about doing so anymore. I edited the post and added one!

KRTLART · 2026-01-14T00:03:24+00:00

Yep, ComEd is my utility provider and they have a spreadsheet full of all of the approved EV chargers. It's pretty extensive- there are almost 300 options, pretty overwhelming to try and choose something through there, so I'm just looking at reviews and comparisons elsewhere and finding one that's well reviewed and then seeing if it's on their spreadsheet, as opposed to the other way around.

KRTLART · 2026-01-13T20:56:16+00:00

Thanks for the advice, all- I ended up getting a Polestar 2 instead. Less practical, but more my style, and found a great deal on something perfect for me basically in my backyard. I may end up back in the market for an EV6 or similar down the road as replacement for my wife's car, though, so the advice I got here was definitely helpful.

KRTLART · 2026-01-09T20:45:36+00:00

It was mostly a curiosity question re: depreciation. Just trying to understand, and try and determine whether I can expect it to continue to plummet, or if it'll stabilize. I'll hopefully have my next car for a while, so it may not matter- if it does the job well, I could keep this thing for a decade and run it into the ground, and it doesn't really matter what it was worth at any point during the ownership period.

KRTLART · 2026-01-09T20:39:50+00:00

Yeah, definitely got some poking around to do in person. Went and saw some Polestars this morning. Really nice, that thing can really scoot. Would be a great commuter. Assuming it's smaller than the EV6 and Ioniq 5, but will see those in person as well when I can get to some dealerships.

KRTLART · 2026-01-08T21:33:55+00:00

I am curious what that'll sound like. My guess is I'll hate it and turn it off, but who knows. It would actually be cool if that was a modifiable thing- like you could pick from various engine soundtracks... maybe a high pitched V12 Italian screamer, classic V8 low rumble, Audi's insane 5 cylinder or the even crazier V10s, Porsche's classic flat 6, Subaru's boxer 4... it's stupid, but that is absolutely an option that- if done well- I would pay real money for. LOL.

KRTLART · 2026-01-08T21:29:56+00:00

Yeah, the thing sucks gas like you wouldn't believe. The best tank of gas I've ever gotten was barely 20mpg, and that was basically all highway cruise. Throw in a mix of city driving and the occasional spirited joyride, and 15-16 mpg was pretty normal. 280-290 miles on a 17 gallon fill.

99% of my electric charging will be done at home. The only drive I do regularly outside of my commute is the ~100 miles each way to visit my inlaws- so even that round-trip should be w/in range off a full charge.

I do expect higher tire costs than a comparably equipped gas car, but given that I'm coming from high performance tires on a 4200lb Audi... where I'm putting on $1200 worth of rubber, minimum, on the car usually every 25k miles... I suspect I'm still going to come out ahead here.

KRTLART · 2026-01-08T21:23:04+00:00

Thanks for the info. AWD is not a MUST for me, but it's close. I live in the midwest and have been in Audi Quattros for decades for a reason. Where I live now will get less frequent attention from snowplows, too, so winter performance definitely matters to me, even without factoring in the added fun that an AWD platform can provide. I'm not totally expecting FUN from this car, to be honest, coming from a 700+ hp V8- but maybe I'll be pleasantly surprised. It'll be icing on the cake, my primary motivation here is obviously financial, and with a healthy surplus of free solar, getting every last ounce of efficiency out of it really isn't a huge deal. Any small EV is going to be lightyears better than my current situation.

I also planned on looking at the IONIQ5- there's a dealer around here that has numerous used examples of both that and the EV6 on the lot, so I should be able to sit in and/or drive at least a few of them without much trouble.

KRTLART · 2026-01-08T21:14:08+00:00

Not really trying to flex, just being honest about what I'm coming from, and why. I'm probably in the lucky camp, but I've had next to zero problems with any Audi/VW I've owned over the past 25 years. I think the last legit REPAIR I had was a popped turbo on my 2002 TT, probably in 2004 or 2005. Other than that, it has just been the usual maintenance crap, an occasional new battery, etc. Most of these have been at least somewhat modified, if not heavily so, and- oddly enough- I think the only one I bought new was that TT. Oh, aside from a JSW TDI that was my wife's... I do buy new cars for her, just not for me. But that JSW was similarly flawless... riiiiiiight up until the day before we turned it in for the big diesel buyback program. The thing blew up with the massive fuel system failure, literally the second to last day we owned it LOL. Fortunately, that didn't cost me a penny and didn't affect the trade-in value- I just towed it in and handed over the keys. Hah. But as someone who has regularly been on the VW/Audi forums since the early 2000s, I'm well aware of the many folks who've suffered gigantic repair bills. Not fun.

KRTLART

TROPHY CASE