You may think that, since I live in Florida, I don't really need the heater I put in my EV. I spent extra money and a lot of Nathan's time and effort replacing the old heat exchanger with a ceramic heater. (I could have put two in that space, but it's not like I live in Alaska or anything.)

I was just being cautious. But today I found out why every EV needs a heater.

Fog.

That's right. It was pretty chilly for Florida: 42F. There was fog all over the road. Inevitably, my windshield misted up.

I've miswired my heater somehow, but it turns on when I have the fan at Speed 1 and turn the ignition key all the way over to "crank". It stays on until I bump the fan speed up.

And boy, was I grateful I figured that out! The heater took care of my misty windshield in no time.

Yes, you curious people, it does affect my range. It drains almost 20A sometimes! But today it seemed to be having huge effects, and I couldn't figure out why.

Turns out I was driving with my parking brake on.

So, in conclusion: put a heater in your EV. Make sure it can point at your windshield.

And release the parking brake.