PHV Battery Range

[altocumulus]

I generally see around 32 miles after a charge - highest 33.5 miles ( no A/C or heating switched on ).

What does anyone else see?

Depending on journey, I'll probably get most of that range available.

[Ten Ninety]

Back in September mine had climbed to showing 40 miles (with the heating and a/c off). That was when I was driving with no heating or a/c. That was optimistic, as most days I would see 30-34 miles of actual range. I think the best I ever actually got was 36 miles.

Now that I'm using the heating and a/c, it has dropped back down and settled around 31 miles (with heating and A/C on). It is, however, still hopelessly optimistic as my actual range is now 20-25 miles. Cold weather, wet roads and using the heating are not conducive to EV driving!

[altocumulus]

40's generous!

Yes, I guess there was software engineer game for laugh. You can drive around in winter, but don't expect to be warm!

Environmentally logical, but annoying!

[PeteB]

20 minutes ago, altocumulus said:

40's generous!...

If it's anything like the range estimates for the Prius ordinaire on petrol, it starts off being very optimistic when the car is new and gets a bit closer to reality as the miles increase.

When I first got the car 2½ years (and 33,000 miles) ago, it was estimating almost 900 miles range after the first few fills, but settled down to around 560-570 once realism set in.  This, in fact, is often pessimistic unless I do a high number of short journeys and/or it's cold/wet.

My best fill so far is 623 miles since the previous fill, with the car estimating just 4 miles more, and my database calculating a more likely 43 miles left (not that I'd willingly chance it).

[RichSH]

I would say I’m getting around 25 miles now it’s winter. All down to speed and terrain of course. In my experience nothing kills the range more than hills (well, going up them obviously...)  so I tend to toggle back to ICE mode if I see a long hill ahead. I refuse to compromise on heating at this time of year so have it well cranked up. I’m all for great fuel economy and doing my bit for the planet but there is a limit...

[Ten Ninety]

3 hours ago, PeteB said:

If it's anything like the range estimates for the Prius ordinaire on petrol, it starts off being very optimistic when the car is new and gets a bit closer to reality as the miles increase.

It was actually the other way round for me. My very first charge showed a range of 31 miles but I actually eked out 32. Over a couple of weeks of adjusting my driving to maximise range (which in EV mode simply means going slower) the indicated range crept up and up each day but my actual distance travelled didn't go up by the same amount, putting it in optimistic territory. Then when I started using the heating, my actual distance plummeted whilst the indicated range has only gradually slipped back down. 

37 minutes ago, RichSH said:

In my experience nothing kills the range more than hills (well, going up them obviously...)  so I tend to toggle back to ICE mode if I see a long hill ahead. 

I did that to start with, but then discovered that it only works if the engine has already been fully warmed up by previous running in HV mode (and hasn't subsequently cooled). If the ICE is cold, switching to HV puts it into its initial warm-up cycle, during which the ICE runs but the car is actually propelled entirely by the Battery. Depending on the length of the hill, and assuming EV mode will be reinstated at the top, I found I could end up simply wasting petrol on warming the engine whilst still depleting the Battery which continued to power the car up the incline!

When I'm already running in HV mode after the EV battery's empty, I've actually been experimenting with doing the complete opposite - if I manage to 'earn' a bit of extra EV range from re-gen then I'll 'spend' that to go up a hill, saving me the heavy-throttle petrol usage of getting up there. I'm not sure if this actually improves mpg in reality but it seems to yield some benefit in journey-average mpg as indicated on the MFD.

[RichSH]

You’ve solved a mystery for me which has been driving me up the wall (if not up the hill...): I could not figure out why, when the ICE fist kicked in, the car still wanted to run the Battery as well. Now I know - thanks!

By the way, do you have any idea how any recharges the Battery pack is designed for? Doing it every day has got me wondering...

[PeteB]

2 hours ago, Ten Ninety said:

... If the ICE is cold, switching to HV puts it into its initial warm-up cycle, during which the ICE runs but the car is actually propelled entirely by the battery...

This is something that non-plug-ins have always done when first started from cold, and something that still fascinates me after all these years (since 2002) of diving Hybrids.

It's as if the petrol engine has been yanked away from the drive system and does it's own thing while the car is, as you say, effectively an EV (unless the loud pedal is floored) - even if the HV Battery charge is really low.  I understand the timing is heavily retarded (or is it advanced - I can never remember!) which makes it very inefficient at providing motive power, but generates much more heat to effect faster warm-up, which is probably why it doesn't drive the car during this phase.

On the Gen 1 Prius (which didn't have an EV button) the ICE started almost immediately the ignition key was turned, whereas all subsequent generations of Prius and other Hybrids waited about 7 seconds after the Start button was pressed, primarily to allow time for the EV button to be pressed.

[altocumulus]

On journeys that exceed my Battery range - such as a trip into Aberdeen, the terrain is in two equal stages; 50% trending up then 50% noticeably down - I'm experimenting with using the EV on the upstages, then switch to ICE - on the return it doesn't work so well, because the first stage of ups is draining - but it's manageable.

 

Outward I can regenerate about 5 miles onto the Battery so a 22 mile journey "costs" me about 17 miles.

[altocumulus]

Journeys vary. 18 miles round trip home/Inverurie, 30.5 miles on the range with heater. Made it home with 0.8 miles to spare. Outside temp 5-7C.

 

Side note: Brilliant sunshine - auto headlights on both ways!

[QuantumFireball]

On 12/2/2018 at 9:21 PM, RichSH said:

By the way, do you have any idea how any recharges the battery pack is designed for? Doing it every day has got me wondering...

Mine's over 6 years old now, and still doing OK. I have not seen any appreciable reduction in EV range in the two years I've had it, in fact the range went up after fixing the sticky rear calipers!

[altocumulus]

I cannot recall where I read it, but one response to the same question suggested the recycle plant in the UK was not seeing enough work!