Desert heat testing

jstack · 07-20-2007, 03:05 PM

Well here in Phoenix we get to desert heat testing all month in July and maybe part of august. I'm very impressed with my 2005 prius. It's never had a problem in the heat.

I've heard a few people say their system battery drops down when they don't drive for a few days. I used to only drive one or 2 days a week and never had that problem. Mine in in my garage out of the sun and that may be a factor.

Even my air conditioning works great in the heat. I don't have it blow real hard since all the air can make your eyes feel dry. It work great and my mpg still keeps about 50+ on trips of 8 miles or more. On a very short trip it never gets time to warm up and do some nice regen braking.

How does yours do in the summer heat ?

Rae Vynn · 07-20-2007, 04:01 PM

*looking out the window at the rain falling... and it's 60 degrees out there*
Um, mine is doing fine so far...

B Rad · 07-20-2007, 04:57 PM

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(jstack @ Jul 20 2007, 02:05 PM) [snapback]482375[/snapback]</div>

Quote:

Well here in Phoenix we get to desert heat testing all month in July and maybe part of august. I'm very impressed with my 2005 prius. It's never had a problem in the heat.
How does yours do in the summer heat ?
[/b]

I'm in an even hotter part of Arizona than you, and I have noticed a lack of power after the car sits in a hot parking lot (I'm talking 120 plus) for a couple hours. A few times the fan by the rear back seat has come on and is much noisier than in cooler weather. My MPG is also about 1 to 2 MPG less than in the winter time temps of 65 to 75. But my only complaint is a slight rattle in the dash board (maybe that's where it is) that also started when the temp went up. Hope that will go away when it cools down !!!!!

**Tideland Prius** · 07-20-2007, 05:02 PM

*hears rain pattering on skylight*

yeah.. same low pressure system as Rae Vynn.

paco-shalom · 07-20-2007, 05:16 PM

I haven't noticed any major problems. MPG seems to have dropped a bit. Battery seems to be low when I leave work after leaving the car parked outdoors all day, so the engine needs to run more than during the winter. The A/C can keep up with the heat, but that is also a drain on the battery. I keep the A/C on Auto, with the temp set around 74, except when I get a phone call and can't hear the phone over the sound of the fan.

The biggest challenge I have in the desert is trying to keep my white car from turning brown in the dust/rain storms of the monsoon.

The only things I changed when I moved to the desert are:
1. Tinted windows
2. Always use windshield shade when parked in the sun
3. Installed Prius Hood over the MFD screen

lhazzard · 07-20-2007, 05:55 PM

It was a blistering 105 yesterday and my 2005 Prius was parked outside.

When I started it, the car showed 6 bars on the battery meter. This dropped down to one purple bar within a minute, and it started running erratically and sluggishly. Mileage took a serious dive.

I took it in to the dealer first thing this morning, and the mechanic said that they couldn't find anything wrong with it. He stated that they've started seeing this kind of problem everywhere (he mentioned AZ and Las Vegas) lately. He said that when it gets really hot, the battery protects itself by discharging to dissipate heat, and sometimes the car shuts down altogether. I'm not sure he knows what he's talking about since several here claim that everything's fine in the heat. Any similar experiences?

tochatihu · 07-21-2007, 07:18 AM

I did lots of 'hot driving' in a 2001 Prius with no problems at all. Patrick Wong (posting at the Yahoo groups) has reported some minor issues, so perhaps the jury is still out on this one. All I can say is run the A/C when it's hot, because that will help keep the HV battery cool. When better aftermarket instrumentation becomes available for the current-model Prius, one could monitor MG1 temperatures and do a precautionary 'stop and cool off' when that value exceeds 120 oC.

Lhazzard, the HV battery will make heat both while charging and discharging, so your mechanic may not be on firm ground there

If anybody is seeing performance issues in the heat, it would be important to confirm that the inverter coolant system is performing correctly.

MarinJohn · 07-21-2007, 01:30 PM

I've driven through the dreaded Mojave Desert full tilt during the day and had no problems.

jstack · 07-24-2007, 01:06 AM

I've also seen no problems with my 2005 prius. It white and I park in shaded parking areas most of the time or my home garage.

I have a point and check thermo gauge and I've checked on a 110 F day the light colored side walks are around 110 F, the black tar street was 150 F and my neighbors dark green car was 140 F. Color can make a difference.

While driving the batteries get fan cooled with air from the cabin in the rear passengers area. Seems to work very good. Some on line notes say a NiMH battery can fail forever above 160 F. I'd worry if I had to park in the direct sun on black tar parking lots all day.

paco-shalom · 07-27-2007, 04:03 PM

The only time I have experienced the problem with dropping to one bar and the engine/motor behaving somewhat erratically was when I was leaving the Weiss Guys carwash on Elliot in Tempe. I won't go there again because I don't know what they did to drain the battery.

I think there is a problem with the car in that the power does work erratically when the battery is drained that low.

07-20-2007, 05:16 PM	#5
paco-shalom Member Join Date: Jan 2006 Location: Phoenix Posts: 46 My Car: 2005 Prius Package: #6 Nominated 0 Times in 0 Posts TOTM Awards: 0 Friends: 0	I haven't noticed any major problems. MPG seems to have dropped a bit. Battery seems to be low when I leave work after leaving the car parked outdoors all day, so the engine needs to run more than during the winter. The A/C can keep up with the heat, but that is also a drain on the battery. I keep the A/C on Auto, with the temp set around 74, except when I get a phone call and can't hear the phone over the sound of the fan. The biggest challenge I have in the desert is trying to keep my white car from turning brown in the dust/rain storms of the monsoon. The only things I changed when I moved to the desert are: 1. Tinted windows 2. Always use windshield shade when parked in the sun 3. Installed Prius Hood over the MFD screen __________________ Shalom 2005 Super-white with package #6, purchased in Jan '06. Phoenix, Arizona

07-21-2007, 07:18 AM	#7
tochatihu Senior Member Join Date: Apr 2004 Location: Kunming Yunnan China Posts: 1,784 My Car: 2001 Prius Package: Pioneer #1 Nominated 0 Times in 0 Posts TOTM Awards: 0 Friends: 6	I did lots of 'hot driving' in a 2001 Prius with no problems at all. Patrick Wong (posting at the Yahoo groups) has reported some minor issues, so perhaps the jury is still out on this one. All I can say is run the A/C when it's hot, because that will help keep the HV battery cool. When better aftermarket instrumentation becomes available for the current-model Prius, one could monitor MG1 temperatures and do a precautionary 'stop and cool off' when that value exceeds 120 oC. Lhazzard, the HV battery will make heat both while charging and discharging, so your mechanic may not be on firm ground there If anybody is seeing performance issues in the heat, it would be important to confirm that the inverter coolant system is performing correctly. __________________ DAS Tochatihu, the Hopi hummingbird kachina

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07-20-2007, 03:05 PM	#1
jstack Senior Member Join Date: Jul 2005 Location: Chandler Arizona Posts: 135 My Car: 2005 Prius Package: Base Nominated 0 Times in 0 Posts TOTM Awards: 0 Friends: 0	Well here in Phoenix we get to desert heat testing all month in July and maybe part of august. I'm very impressed with my 2005 prius. It's never had a problem in the heat. I've heard a few people say their system battery drops down when they don't drive for a few days. I used to only drive one or 2 days a week and never had that problem. Mine in in my garage out of the sun and that may be a factor. Even my air conditioning works great in the heat. I don't have it blow real hard since all the air can make your eyes feel dry. It work great and my mpg still keeps about 50+ on trips of 8 miles or more. On a very short trip it never gets time to warm up and do some nice regen braking. How does yours do in the summer heat ?

07-20-2007, 04:01 PM	#2
Rae Vynn Resident Witch Join Date: May 2007 Location: Grays Harbor, WA, USA Posts: 2,573 My Car: 2007 Prius Package: Base Nominated 0 Times in 0 Posts TOTM Awards: 0 Friends: 51	looking out the window at the rain falling... and it's 60 degrees out there Um, mine is doing fine so far...

07-20-2007, 05:02 PM	#4
Tideland Prius Super Moderator Join Date: Oct 2004 Location: Canada Posts: 13,749 My Car: 2005 Prius Package: B Nominated 0 Times in 0 Posts TOTM Awards: 0 Friends: 11	hears rain pattering on skylight yeah.. same low pressure system as Rae Vynn.

07-20-2007, 05:55 PM	#6
lhazzard Join Date: Jun 2007 Posts: 1 My Car: Package: Nominated 0 Times in 0 Posts TOTM Awards: 0 Friends: 0	It was a blistering 105 yesterday and my 2005 Prius was parked outside. When I started it, the car showed 6 bars on the battery meter. This dropped down to one purple bar within a minute, and it started running erratically and sluggishly. Mileage took a serious dive. I took it in to the dealer first thing this morning, and the mechanic said that they couldn't find anything wrong with it. He stated that they've started seeing this kind of problem everywhere (he mentioned AZ and Las Vegas) lately. He said that when it gets really hot, the battery protects itself by discharging to dissipate heat, and sometimes the car shuts down altogether. I'm not sure he knows what he's talking about since several here claim that everything's fine in the heat. Any similar experiences?

07-21-2007, 01:30 PM	#8
MarinJohn Senior Member Join Date: Feb 2004 Posts: 2,292 My Car: Package: Nominated 0 Times in 0 Posts TOTM Awards: 0 Friends: 1	I've driven through the dreaded Mojave Desert full tilt during the day and had no problems.

07-24-2007, 01:06 AM	#9
jstack Senior Member Join Date: Jul 2005 Location: Chandler Arizona Posts: 135 My Car: 2005 Prius Package: Base Nominated 0 Times in 0 Posts TOTM Awards: 0 Friends: 0	I've also seen no problems with my 2005 prius. It white and I park in shaded parking areas most of the time or my home garage. I have a point and check thermo gauge and I've checked on a 110 F day the light colored side walks are around 110 F, the black tar street was 150 F and my neighbors dark green car was 140 F. Color can make a difference. While driving the batteries get fan cooled with air from the cabin in the rear passengers area. Seems to work very good. Some on line notes say a NiMH battery can fail forever above 160 F. I'd worry if I had to park in the direct sun on black tar parking lots all day.

07-27-2007, 04:03 PM	#10
paco-shalom Member Join Date: Jan 2006 Location: Phoenix Posts: 46 My Car: 2005 Prius Package: #6 Nominated 0 Times in 0 Posts TOTM Awards: 0 Friends: 0	The only time I have experienced the problem with dropping to one bar and the engine/motor behaving somewhat erratically was when I was leaving the Weiss Guys carwash on Elliot in Tempe. I won't go there again because I don't know what they did to drain the battery. I think there is a problem with the car in that the power does work erratically when the battery is drained that low.