EV mode not available.

[TopGeek]

I've had my car 9 months now and  have tried the EV mode switch several times but it just bleeps at me and puts up a notice saying :

"EV mode not available. Hybrid Battery doesn't have sufficient charge."

This is undoubtedly because I only do short journeys but it raises the question of what can I do about it? Is going on a long drive the only solution? All of the low Battery or Battery failure posts relate to the 12-volt battery but I haven't seen any posts talking about the high voltage battery state of charge. Are there any other solutions?

[Mojo1010]

Some members only ever manage to use it once or twice in their ownership when there is enough Battery for it to be active. Never manage it once myself on the previous MK3 I had, not bothering in current MK4. 

Nothing to do HV Battery dying. Just don't think about using it, nothing to worry about. 

[MikeSh]

57 minutes ago, TopGeek said:

have tried the EV mode switch several times

When/why have you been trying this?

[Derek.w]

A lot of systems have to be up to operating temperature best just to forget about Battery only mode unless you just moving it a short distance like reparking it in parking bay.

What I do if I just moving it in the street is turn off a/c first then select EV mode but dont expect it to work now in this cold weather but it works fine in the summer months.

[Paul john]

2 minutes ago, Derek.w said:

A lot of systems have to be up to operating temperature best just to forget about battery only mode unless you just moving it a short distance like reparking it in parking bay.

What I do if I just moving it in the street is turn off a/c first then select EV mode but dont expect it to work now in this cold weather but it works fine in the summer months.

Very confusing post. Ev mode works when Battery is sufficiently charged in either winter or summer.

ac on or off is inconsequential if charge is sufficient.  I have used ev in all conditions including snow.

OP is talking about ev activation on low charged main Battery. 

[Jules88]

I only do short journeys (15-20 mins) and my EV mode switch does tend to work during the last stretch (quiet residential 20mph limit). But honestly the car works it out automatically anyway, no real need to use it.

[Derek.w]

If you used ev mode in the snow then you already I presume have the car systems up to operating temp you not just jumping into a car with temp below freezing.

AC off helps to stops engine starting plus increases EV range.

[Primus1]

I use ev only, just to back out of my garage when I wash the car, I don’t like starting the engine just to do this as that’s when most engine wear takes place, I’ve had to push my previous cars out, cars are getting bigger and it’s more difficult to do now in my advancing years…

[Roy124]

10 hours ago, Paul john said:

ac on or off is inconsequential if charge is sufficient.  I have used ev in all conditions including snow.

With respect, the AC On will generate an instant ICE start as the ICE is what is used to generate heat.

[Stopeter44]

12 hours ago, Jules88 said:

I only do short journeys (15-20 mins) and my EV mode switch does tend to work during the last stretch (quiet residential 20mph limit). But honestly the car works it out automatically anyway, no real need to use it.

As Julian has said the car will work it out all by itself. Just turn off AC/Heating at start when cool/cold tends to let the car work in EV mode. Also don't turn the car off when the engine is running, this will top up the traction Battery for when you want to move off in EV mode.

[TopGeek]

Thanks guys for this interesting selection of responses.

I have tried the EV switch several times, both in order to move the car and when driving but I have NEVER ONCE had it work. It always says the hybrid Battery has insufficient charge and that is what worries me as there is obviously no way to boost the hybrid Battery other than a long drive, which I have no other reason to do.

My garage is just another room in the house so the temperature is always comfortable. The ICE usually doesn't start up until I have backed out (20 metre driveway) and moved forward in D. Sometimes it doesn't start until i've driven maybe 50 metres forward. I would have thought that indicates adequate charge.

Clearly, for the last 9 months, I have been happy enough that the electronics work it all out but the switch is there for a reason so it's annoying to find that it can't be used.

I suppose I'm going to have to ask my dealer to check it out.

[MikeSh]

1 hour ago, Stopeter44 said:

Just turn off AC/Heating at start when cool/cold tends to let the car work in EV mode.

I turn it off when I get home, before putting it away; especially in cooler weather. That ensures it won't start the engine while backing into the garage or when I reenergise the car to get it out next time. I only turn it back on when I actually drive off.

At intermediate stops I leave it as is. Even after half an hour there's usually enough heat in the engine to provide cabin heat for a few minutes before needing to burn more petrol, by which time it usually needs to run anyway.

I never use EV mode - the above covers my needs.

[TonyHSD]

Derek is right about outside air temperatures.
If too cold outside, usually  -4C° and below the engine will start immediately no matter how much charge we have in the Battery and if the hvac is off. 
There are numerous reasons why ev mode may become  unavailable including a fully charged Battery! - Yes , when the Battery had just been fully charged the car will not go into ev mode when selected via the ev button., it will start the engines and spin crankshaft at high rpm and the message will be “ ev mode currently unavailable “  Other reasons are excessive speed or low battery charge with the accompanied messages. 
Ev mode via button is perfect for those parking manoeuvres or to top up your tyres with air compressor. Works for me great every time except when its freezing cold , at-4C° tested twice the engine simply kicks in. , and btw I always have battery almost full from previous drive as I live at bottom of a long downhill. 
 

[Paul john]

1 hour ago, TonyHSD said:

Derek is right about outside air temperatures.
If too cold outside, usually  -4C° and below the engine will start immediately no matter how much charge we have in the battery and if the hvac is off. 
There are numerous reasons why ev mode may become  unavailable including a fully charged battery! - Yes , when the battery had just been fully charged the car will not go into ev mode when selected via the ev button., it will start the engines and spin crankshaft at high rpm and the message will be “ ev mode currently unavailable “  Other reasons are excessive speed or low battery charge with the accompanied messages. 
Ev mode via button is perfect for those parking manoeuvres or to top up your tyres with air compressor. Works for me great every time except when its freezing cold , at-4C° tested twice the engine simply kicks in. , and btw I always have battery almost full from previous drive as I live at bottom of a long downhill. 
 

One of the “many reasons” is during the warm up phase when the message is “EV mode unavailable at this time” rather than OP’s message “EV mode unavailable low battery”

[Roy124]

2 hours ago, TopGeek said:

Thanks guys for this interesting selection of responses.

I have tried the EV switch several times, both in order to move the car and when driving but I have NEVER ONCE had it work. I

Just had a thought:

I used to use EV towards the end of my journey and about a quarter of a mile descent and climb.  EV would cut off quite quickly.  I also learnt that it meant my HV Battery would be depleted before my next drive.  That meant I could not manoeuvre from garage to road on EV.

Now I don't bother with that switch.  If I want to get the car out for a wash I just switch off AC and it will run on Battery.

Essentially the HV capacity is so limited that the EV switch option is redundant.  PHEV OTOH have larger batteries and much more useful EV range.

[Serban]

It's redundant, as far as my observations go, don't worry about it.

[Derek.w]

10 hours ago, Primus1 said:

I use ev only, just to back out of my garage when I wash the car, I don’t like starting the engine just to do this as that’s when most engine wear takes place, I’ve had to push my previous cars out, cars are getting bigger and it’s more difficult to do now in my advancing years…

Car reverse is alway ev without selecting it with the EV button Hybrids have no reverse cogs as it just runs a electric motor in reverse direction.

[MikeSh]

1 hour ago, Derek.w said:

Car reverse is alway ev without selecting it with the EV button Hybrids have no reverse cogs as it just runs a electric motor in reverse direction.

But the engine can still be running. (To drive MG1 to supply power to the HV Battery and/or MG2, which is driving the wheels.)

[Cyker]

TBH, you're better off pretending the EV mode button doesn't exist, and use the lifty trick (Fully release the accelerator, then push it down again, but only a bit so you keeping the power bar in the first Eco band - as soon as you go into the 2nd half/Eco+ part the engine will fire up) if you want to drive on the electric motors.

The conditions for the EV mode button are the Battery has to have MORE than 50% charge (i.e. 4+ blocks on the Battery gauge) and you have to be doing less than 30mph, and not be pressing the accelerator too hard (Where 'too hard' seems to equate to 'at all' from my testing).

Because the traction Battery is tiny (0.7kWh!), you'll almost never meet the first condition unless you are driving on the motorway, where the high speed makes the engine run more, but that means you no longer fulfill condition 2 or 3.

Essentially, the button is practically useless in the Mk4 Yaris - I think it's only there because all the other hybrids had one, except they all had batteries twice as big or more, and had a different charging profile programmed.

The older versions of the hybrid system tended to let the battery charge go higher, and the button is actually usable in those, but the new ones fanatically try to keep it around 50% - As soon as it goes above 50% the electrics get used more, which quickly drops the charge below 50%, which then make the car favour the engine more until it goes above 50% etc.

It seems weird, but it does work - The new hybrid system is more efficient than any that came before it (I've never known a car that it was so effortless to get 70+ mpg in  ), but because the SoC is always around 50%, and the EV mode button requires the SoC to be ABOVE 50%, it never gets a look-in.

Even on the rare occasion you manage to meet all the conditions and the EV mode button works, because the battery is so small it'll drain below 50% so fast you'll wonder why you bothered! It's just not worth considering, esp. as the lifty trick lets you put it in 'EV mode' at will more easily anyway.

 

[Roy124]

9 hours ago, Cyker said:

you're better off pretending the EV mode button doesn't exist

In fact, until the OP raised the question, I had forgotten about the EV button.

[dannyboy413]

13 hours ago, Roy124 said:

In fact, until the OP raised the question, I had forgotten about the EV button.

@Roy124 likewise Roy. In fact, off the top of my head, I can't remember where the button is!

[Roy124]

11 hours ago, dannyboy413 said:

@Roy124 likewise Roy. In fact, off the top of my head, I can't remember where the button is!

Quite.

In fact, thinking about the whole Toyota ergonomics, only the steering wheel has what passes for reasonable layout.  Even there the range of functions is starting to equal a modern fighter jet.

The Smart Connect display lacks any tactile controls though there are equivalent ones on the steering wheel.

The AC controls are so-so but you do need to look to check.   Or say to your passenger "select windscreen defrost"  "set temperature to 21.5"

The rest of the controls, seat heater, steering wheel heater, auto park switch, auto headlight switch, and the array by the drive shifter are all scattered around the place.

Bring back positive on/off switches that you can set with power off and feel whether they are one of off.

I think the worst one has to be the heated steering wheel.  Why is it not with the seat heater switches. 

IIRC, my SAAB had heated seats but no switches whatever.   They heated automatically and off when warm. 

[TonyHSD]

The newer  the cars are the worst they are by ergonomics, design, functionality etc, 

If there are places that we can visit and try old cars that are preserved in brand new like condition we will see and remember how much nicer were the cars back then. Try a Corolla from 1990’s and you will see what I am talking about, design, materials, everything. 👌

[Roy124]

Apart from the seats that would not recline I thought my Triumph 1300 was really luxurious.  Door caps were real wood and scratch proof finish.  Plush carpets front and back and the doors were carpeted too.

It was novel at the time with an adjustable steering wheel, a centre warning light cluster of 8 lights, and a huge 11.8 gallon tank.

That tank gave a huge range of 360 miles.   Think back, many cars could only do 240 miles on a full tank.   Today we get worried with 240 miles to go.

[TopGeek]

Thanks again guys. Sounds like the EV button is indeed virtually useless. I naively thought it must be there for a reason but it sounds like it's just a remnant from earlier versions. I'll just continue to ignore it.