Does cold actually damage the battery, or just temporarily reduce range?

Six years in, here's what actually cost me money versus what people warn you about that turned out not to matter. Actually cost me: assuming EPA range held up in real winter driving, and buying a charger rated way past what my car could even accept. Didn't matter at all despite what forums said at the time: the instant-torque acceleration thing, one-pedal driving adjustment, any of the 'will my neighbors judge me' stuff. On the cold-battery question specifically — it's temporary, not damage, the pack itself isn't harmed by cold, you're just losing usable range and power to heating until it warms back up.

Add one: not checking whether your specific utility has a time-of-use rate before you start charging on autopilot at whatever hour is convenient. Cost me more than it should have for the first few months just charging whenever.

One thing that doesn't get mentioned enough: DC fast charging itself slows down in real cold, not just your driving range. Showed up at a highway charger at 4°F last winter and it took almost twice as long as it does in summer for the same percentage. Budget the time, not just the range.