2006 Prius I got on March 1 is....

[efusco]

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(supernole1 @ Apr 3 2006, 07:36 PM) [snapback]234414[/snapback]</div>

Thanks for all the inputs and ideas guys!

FWIW, I live in north Florida so it's definitely not cold temp related.

I think I've been turning it off at night. All the lights go off as well as the MFD so i assume it's off. I'll check twice tonight.

I do sometimes go straight from Drive to powering off. Is that ok or should i go to Park and then power off? [/b]

Straight from drive is fine.



BTW, turn the headlights off manually before shutting down...there's a small battery drain if you leave them turned on even with the car off.

[KMO]

Sounds like a fault to me. As long as the car is turned off (or even in ACC or IG-ON modes, where the READY indicator isn't lit), the high voltage battery is disconnected by a couple of big relays. You can hear them go clunk-clunk in the back when you stop and start the car. Thus whatever you do with leaving lights on etc can't affect the main battery; at worst you can drain the 12V one, thus requiring a jump start.

There should not be any appreciable overnight drop in indicated charge level - at most you might see it 1 bar lower in the morning occasionally.

If it really is acting as if the HV battery pack is draining overnight, you've either got a battery fault or some sort of sensor problem in the battery management system. So take it back under warranty pronto - it may be an expensive fix, but make sure you're not paying.

[Amyshubby]

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(efusco @ Apr 3 2006, 09:23 PM) [snapback]234438[/snapback]</div>

Straight from drive is fine.
[/b]

Really? I just assumed you need to put the car in park before turning it off. With any other car, you would never turn off the ignition in drive.

My feeling on the subject is that it takes virtually no effort to press Park before powering down, so why chance it?

[efusco]

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(Amyshubby @ Apr 4 2006, 08:09 AM) [snapback]234628[/snapback]</div>

Really? I just assumed you need to put the car in park before turning it off. With any other car, you would never turn off the ignition in drive.

My feeling on the subject is that it takes virtually no effort to press Park before powering down, so why chance it? [/b]

The Prius isn't "any other car". The transmission isn't controlled mechanically as it is with other cars...there is absolutely no mechanical linkage b/w the shifter and the transmission...it's purely electically controlled.

There is nothing being left to chance. If you push the power button and watch the gear indicator on the display you'll actually see the indicator jump from drive to Park just moments before the car powers down.

No, it's not very difficult to push park first, but it's even less difficult to just hit power and it's perfectly safe to do so.

[Amyshubby]

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(efusco @ Apr 4 2006, 09:23 AM) [snapback]234633[/snapback]</div>

it's not very difficult to push park first, but it's even less difficult to just hit power and it's perfectly safe to do so.
[/b]

I stand corrected.

OK, so here's a follow up question: With other cars you are supposed to wait about 10 seconds after you start before driving (I guees for the oil and other fluids to get going). I know you don't need an extended time for the Prius to warm up, but do you wait at all, or just press and drive?

[richard schumacher]

Press and drive. It is a good idea to be gentle for the first few minutes until everything warms up, but sitting for any length of time with it "Ready" and not moving just wastes gas.

[efusco]

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(Amyshubby @ Apr 4 2006, 08:30 AM) [snapback]234634[/snapback]</div>

I stand corrected.

OK, so here's a follow up question: With other cars you are supposed to wait about 10 seconds after you start before driving (I guees for the oil and other fluids to get going). I know you don't need an extended time for the Prius to warm up, but do you wait at all, or just press and drive? [/b]

As Richard said, no point in waiting. The ICE will start about 7 seconds after "READY" regardless of what you do. The way the Prius HSD works MG1 (motor Generator #1) spins the ICE up to over 1000 RPM before the ignition fires--this allows the oil to circulate and completely avoids all the trouble with conventional ICEs that use a small starter and fire the ignition immediately--before the oil pressure has come up. Pretty fantastic huh!

[heliotropehead]

I left a light on in my car overnight this past weekend. When I started up the next morning I was down to one pink bar. It took 5-10 minutes for the blue bars to show up.