Couple Of Questions On Auris Hsd

[Synergy]

Hi

I'm taking delivery of an Auris HSD T Spirit on the 4th March. I've got a couple of questions that I can't find an answer to:

The Auris TR has dual zone climate control, but the T4 and T Spirit do not. Anyone know why?

and

When should I select neutral on the gearbox? I would normally put the handbrake on when waiting in traffic - should I select neutral as well?

Rich

PS What's error 1026 when I try to edit my profile?

[timberwolf]

When in Neutral there is the disadvantage that if the petrol engine is running it can't charge the HV Battery.

[Hicardo]

If its like the Prius v3, then you'll find you don't really use neutral. Its really either D / B / P. If i'm at lights and i want to give y foot a rest, i press the P button, rather than shift to N. Its then easy to go back to D, as the gear stic is very easy to use and quick. I guess if you want the HSD on, but you dont want to creep, you would use N, but in 1.5 years, i dont remember using N at all! Cheers, Rich

[Terry953]

When should I select neutral on the gearbox? I would normally put the handbrake on when waiting in traffic - should I select neutral as well?

When waiting, say at traffic lights the correct procedure is to - Apply handbrake and select N.

By selecting N you relieve the HV Battery of trying to move the car against the h/brake thus wasting energy.

There are two indications of this :--

1. When you select N you will notice the car sort of slumps and settles [stresses are removed].

2. Look at your drive meter, in N you will see no energy going anywhere from the HV Battery or engine.

3. Select D and you will see energy going from the HV Battery to the wheels but you won't move as the

h/brake is on so you are just wasting energy - If you take the brake off you will get drive [creep]

4. It takes only a millisecond to select D from N and even at the front of a queue the time is much

shorter than selecting 1st gear in a conventional g/box.

5. Never select P in a traffic situation. P is only for PARKING.

6. This procedure is exactly the same and for the same reasons as for a conventional auto transmission

with a torque converter.

[FourFourTwo]

Hi

I'm taking delivery of an Auris HSD T Spirit on the 4th March. I've got a couple of questions that I can't find an answer to:

The Auris TR has dual zone climate control, but the T4 and T Spirit do not. Anyone know why?

and

When should I select neutral on the gearbox? I would normally put the handbrake on when waiting in traffic - should I select neutral as well?

Rich

PS What's error 1026 when I try to edit my profile?

Hi Rich, congrats on your new car. I'm sure you will enjoy it.

Why no dual zone A/C? - I wondered about this myself when I test drove the HSD.

Could it be due to the goal of this car being to achieve max mpg and min emissions? With only one A/C zone it's easier for the computer to regulate A/C use (when in "Auto" mode) for maximum efficiency, something that wouldn't be so effective with two people selecting different settings. (I'm purely guessing here, so...)

Regarding neutral on the gearbox - I have never used neutral on the gearbox and can't really think of when I would need to.

[timberwolf]

When should I select neutral on the gearbox? I would normally put the handbrake on when waiting in traffic - should I select neutral as well?

When waiting, say at traffic lights the correct procedure is to - Apply handbrake and select N.

By selecting N you relieve the HV Battery of trying to move the car against the h/brake thus wasting energy.

There are two indications of this :--

1. When you select N you will notice the car sort of slumps and settles [stresses are removed].

2. Look at your drive meter, in N you will see no energy going anywhere from the HV Battery or engine.

3. Select D and you will see energy going from the HV Battery to the wheels but you won't move as the

h/brake is on so you are just wasting energy - If you take the brake off you will get drive [creep]

4. It takes only a millisecond to select D from N and even at the front of a queue the time is much

shorter than selecting 1st gear in a conventional g/box.

5. Never select P in a traffic situation. P is only for PARKING.

6. This procedure is exactly the same and for the same reasons as for a conventional auto transmission

with a torque converter.

The brake pedal also disables the electronic creep mode and the advantage is that if the petrol engine is running it will continue charging the HV battery. I suspect most people do not use Neutral in either conventional Automatics or HSDs. If the wait time is long then I would put the car in Park such as at a rail crossing. At all other junctions and lights the wait doesn't in my opinion require changing gear, I just press the brake pedal and the electronic creep disables.

I always find it interesting that this subjects comes up at all, in Canada where I first drove an Automatic it was obvious that all the other drivers don't bother with Neutral and it only seems to be some in the UK (probably moving from manual gearboxes??) who seem to have this thing about applying the parking brake and worrying about being in gear.

[Jan&tone]

The whole discussion about procedures came up on an earlier thread. Personally I would rather engage P if waiting at lights or level crossings for more than 30 seconds or so, at least if some burke wants to redesign my rear end it won't push me into the car in front and i won't blind the guy behind with my brake lights

Having said all that, there is no hard and fast rule these days, it really depends on so many things..

[monya]

Can anyone confirm that the engine DOES charge the Battery at standstill. I thought charging only came from braking. The display doesn't seem to indicate any charging when stationary with foot on the brake.

[Jan&tone]

Can anyone confirm that the engine DOES charge the battery at standstill. I thought charging only came from braking. The display doesn't seem to indicate any charging when stationary with foot on the brake.

In my gen2 i got stuck behind an accident - 5 cars back so too late to get off the motorway, police shut the motorway and we were there for 2 hours before they turned us all round and took us back 'wrong way' for 8 miles to the exit.

During that time I left the car in 'ready' and was listening to cd's. Every now and again the engine came on and charged the hv Battery by 2 bars. I assume the gen3 and the Auris are the same...

[johalareewi]

Can anyone confirm that the engine DOES charge the battery at standstill. I thought charging only came from braking. The display doesn't seem to indicate any charging when stationary with foot on the brake.

The petrol engine (ICE) can charge the Battery if the HV Battery level gets too low.

When you are stationary with your foot on the brake, the Battery level is usually OK so there is no need for the ICE to charge the battery. If you run the battery right down then do this, the ICE will keep running to put some charge into the battery.

You can try this in summer by being stationary with your foot on the brake and the aircon running full blast. Watch the HV battery indicator drop and the ICE will eventually fire up with your foot still on the brake.

[Opifex]

………..

5. Never select P in a traffic situation. P is only for PARKING.

………..

This statement seems to be at odds with some opinions on the forum. I would be interested to know whether it is official advice and if so what is the source.

The whole discussion about procedures came up on an earlier thread. Personally I would rather engage P if waiting at lights or level crossings for more than 30 seconds or so, at least if some burke wants to redesign my rear end it won't push me into the car in front and i won't blind the guy behind with my brake lights Having said all that, there is no hard and fast rule these days, it really depends on so many things..

Fully agree. This way you keep the car safe and don’t dazzle the driver behind. Using P instead of holding the car on the brake also removes the danger of the car moving if your foot slips off the brake.

I believe that putting it into P locks the transmission so that the car can’t move. Is this true regardless of how steep a hill you’re on? When I got the car the dealer told me that he always uses P and never uses the ‘handbrake’. If you take your car on Eurotunnel you are told to engage P and put the handbrake on. I’ve wondered whether both are necessary or maybe they hope that by asking for both you will do at least one of them.

On the original question, page 183 of my Owner’s Manual (Publication No OM47666E) says

When in heavy traffic

If the shift lever is in “N”, the hybrid Battery (traction motor) will not be charged. To help prevent the Battery from discharging, avoid putting the shift lever in “N” for an extended period of time.

[Jan&tone]

Opifex... Yes, using P does lock the transmission, just the same as in a "normal" automatic car....

[DrCez]

...

5. Never select P in a traffic situation. P is only for PARKING.

...

This statement seems to be at odds with some opinions on the forum. I would be interested to know whether it is official advice and if so what is the source.

Terry953's statement is not just at odds with some forum opinions, it's also at odds with the owner's manual. To quote the same manual as Opifex, P158:

Stopping

Step 1 With the shift lever in "D", depress the brake pedal.

Step 2 If necessary, set the parking brake.

When the vehicle is stopped for an extended period of time, push the "P" position switch.

When waiting, say at traffic lights the correct procedure is to - Apply handbrake and select N.

Again, this is not the advice in the owner's manual. The section I've quoted above is referring to stopping in traffic (as opposed to parking the vehicle which is dealt with in a separate paragraph). The term "extended period" is not defined but could be interpreted as anything from waiting at traffic lights for a minute or two to more prolonged stops.

I know we're quoting the Prius manual and the Prius has a foot-operated parking break as opposed to a handbrake on the Auris, but the HSD part is the same on the Auris so I am pretty certain the same guidelines apply to the Auris.

I believe that putting it into P locks the transmission so that the car can’t move. Is this true regardless of how steep a hill you’re on? When I got the car the dealer told me that he always uses P and never uses the ‘handbrake’. If you take your car on Eurotunnel you are told to engage P and put the handbrake on. I’ve wondered whether both are necessary or maybe they hope that by asking for both you will do at least one of them.

When "P" is set the car can rock forwards and backwards (presumably there is some give in the transmission) but cannot roll anywhere. When the parking/handbrake is set it is held much more firmly since the wheels can't rotate at all. Some have expressed concerns that the parking pawl could be damaged on a steep hill but I haven't see anything the owner's manual about this, although it does suggest setting the parking brake before pressing "P". In any case, I think it's sensible to use the parking brake on slopes as a backup.