This Alaska study proves EVs can outperform diesel even in the harshest winter conditions

Extreme cold has always been the line in the sand for EV skepticism.

Diesel is supposed to be the safe option when temperatures plunge.

But a new study out of Alaska decided to stop theorizing and start counting.

And what it found doesn’t flatter diesel at all.

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What this Alaska study actually found

Researchers from the University of Alaska, working alongside national lab testing, looked at how EVs and diesel vehicles actually behave in Arctic conditions. 

The data came from places like Kotzebue, Galena, and Bethel – remote communities where winter temperatures can hit -40°F and infrastructure is limited. 

If EVs were going to fail anywhere, this was it.

Instead of focusing on range alone, the Alaska study tracked total operating costs. 

That meant fuel or electricity, yes – but also idling time, block heaters, winterized fuel, maintenance, and downtime. 

Once those pieces were added up, diesel’s edge started slipping fast.

Across 21 different use cases, EVs delivered lower total operating costs in most scenarios. 

Diesel fleets were dragged down by long warm-up idling at zero mpg, constant block-heater use, and higher maintenance when cold-related issues piled up.

Only four cases favored diesel on fueling costs alone. 

Those were locations with higher electricity prices and vehicles that barely moved each day – short trips, little idling, and limited heater use. 

Outside of those narrow conditions, EVs consistently came out ahead.

Just as telling: none of the EVs failed to operate due to cold. 

Efficiency dropped, charging slowed, but every vehicle remained usable. 

Diesel, meanwhile, lost time and money simply staying warm.

High-mileage fleets – taxis, ride-shares, and delivery vans – benefited the most. 

According to this Alaska study, the more hours driven and the colder it got, the stronger the EV advantage became.

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Why confidence, not capability, is still holding fleets back

Cold weather still isn’t kind to EVs. 

Range does drop, and charging does slow when batteries are frozen. 

But diesel suffers too.

It just disguises the pain through idling engines and wasted fuel.

Short, bitterly cold commutes turned out to be costly for both EVs and combustion vehicles. 

Heating a cabin for a quick trip burns energy either way. 

Store vehicles outdoors and costs spike fast.

Indoor storage made a major difference. 

EVs kept in heated spaces preconditioned faster and ran far more efficiently. 

Outdoor-stored EVs saw efficiency drops of up to 69 percent, yet still never failed outright.

The real hurdle wasn’t performance. 

It was trust. 

Diesel feels familiar, while EVs demand planning – routes, charging schedules, infrastructure confidence.

Ironically, in some of the coldest places in America, diesel’s hidden winter penalties add up quicker than anyone wants to admit. 

And the colder it gets, the clearer the math becomes.

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