Hybrid ok for low mileage driver?

[Hadrian1]

On 9/21/2024 at 10:45 PM, yarissoph said:

I'm planning on selling my first car which is a 2017 toyota yaris hybrid without waffling on its due to the battery constantly going flat.

I think you've just been unlucky, but if a 12v agm Battery which is  5 or 6 yrs old, drops below a certain voltage (can't remember what that is) it is generally unrecoverable. It just won't hold a charge. I had this during lockdown with my Lexus hybrid.  A new Battery cured the problem.

[Chas G]

22 hours ago, Cyker said:

Could be - AGM are the most advanced type of 12v batteries and are superior in almost every way to normal flooded cells except in cost - Lighter, more robust, leak-proof, position agnostic (I think it's the only type of 12v that can be safely used upside-down or sideways), higher capacity per volume and mass, less lead and acid used, more easily recycled etc.

That's why I found it surprising they'd gone from that high-tech battery in the Mk3 to a 1970s flooded battery from some rando turkish factory in the Mk4  

 

Or maybe an EFB, enhanced flooded Battery would be appropriate?

They seem to be the modern equivalent of an AGM Battery

[Chas G]

On 9/24/2024 at 9:48 PM, Derek.w said:

I might just hit 4K miles this year so still in the low milage club.

 

I just hope they don't introduce pay per mile to replace car tax. 15p/mile is being bandied about but hopefully that's just click bait talk. 4k miles would cost £600.

[hind]

44 minutes ago, Chas G said:

maybe an EFB, enhanced flooded battery would be appropriate?

They seem to be the modern equivalent of an AGM battery

Nah, they are also made for the start-stop systems where you need to pull and push high currents from frequent engine starts. 

In terms of their cycle resistance, they go like this: regular flooded Battery < EFB < AGM.

For us the only benefit from these technologies would be the resistance to deep discharge. But is it worth a cost? Personally I don't think so. I'd rather rig a second Battery in the trunk, with a high power diode to only support the original Battery if the voltage drops below the aux battery voltage and use that setup when I leave a car for a longer period, charging the aux battery periodically. It will prevent the original battery from dying and allow for easy replacement. 

[Cyker]

7 hours ago, flash22 said:

the Mk4 does use a modern battery as its calcium-based long gone are the days of lead plates in sulphuric acid (for the most part) iirc the French still used crank handles up to the late 80s on new cars - Lada niva had one till the late 90s in eastern europe

Aren't Calcium batteries usually 16+v thought?

I'm pretty sure the one in the Mk4 is still your basic lead & acid type Battery. Its only real nod to the modern era is it's sealed to mitigate spillage.

 

13 minutes ago, Chas G said:

Or maybe an EFB, enhanced flooded battery would be appropriate?

They seem to be the modern equivalent of an AGM battery

EFBs are worse than AGM but better than olde worlde lead acid; They were made to allow stop-start systems to work without killing the Battery in a week, but without the higher cost of AGM. They're basically a normal flooded Battery with thicker plates AFAIK.

 

9 minutes ago, Chas G said:

I just hope they don't introduce pay per mile to replace car tax. 15p/mile is being bandied about but hopefully that's just click bait talk. 4k miles would cost £600.

15p/mile would destroy the country; No business that relied on people travelling - Electricians, builders, sales agents, repair, delivery, haulage - would be able to absorb that without passing it onto the customer. At my current mileage that'd soak up significant chunk of my annual pay, and that's on top of fuel, insurance, servicing costs!!   

[Derek.w]

For a Mk4 Yaris you going to have a few major headakes lets forget about the electric side of things just look at fitting it into position as area is to small then clamping it down you have to redesign this.

Electric the poles are opposite polarities MK3 compared to MK4 then the charging electronics may be another problem so it a lot safer just to replace with a calcium Battery from Bosch, Varta or Yuasa.

[trevor166uk]

On 9/22/2024 at 11:07 AM, MikeSh said:

I believe they are AGM on the MK3 so probably £100+.

Not all mark 3s are AGM.  Mine is a 2015 and has a 'normal' Battery.

[MikeSh]

1 hour ago, trevor166uk said:

Not all mark 3s are AGM.  Mine is a 2015 and has a 'normal' battery.

Aaarrgghh. Confusion much?

[Mojo1010]

Maybe original AGM died and got replaced. 

[flash22]

3 hours ago, trevor166uk said:

Not all mark 3s are AGM.  Mine is a 2015 and has a 'normal' battery.

We are talking about the Mk3 hybrid, all Mk3 HYBRIDS use an AGM - the Battery lives under the back seat not in the engine bay

If yours is a hybrid it has a standard Battery, you may get a 12-18 months out of it, some owners are just tight

 

@Cyker calcium iirc charge 14.4 - 14.9 so half a volt more than a conventional Battery, the DC to DC also controls the charge rate, non hybrid cars with a trad alternators are PWM controlled by the ECU

[Hadrian1]

20 hours ago, Chas G said:

I just hope they don't introduce pay per mile to replace car tax. 15p/mile is being bandied about but hopefully that's just click bait talk. 4k miles would cost £600.

I don't see it happening, but it would be good for those owning more than one car.

[trevor166uk]

On 9/27/2024 at 9:46 AM, Mojo1010 said:

Maybe original AGM died and got replaced. 

No, I've had it from new.  It is a 1.33 though, so not a hybrid.