"Stealth" Mode Button

[msquared48]

Apparently, from what I can find out presently, there is a button that is standard on Japanese and European Prius models that allows it to be driven only on pattery power, system overrides excluded, up to a max of 34 MPH. It is not available on American Models. By "system overrides excluded" I mean that the motor will still be able to kick in if certain red flags are detected.

My questions are:

1. Where and how can I get one installed, if they do exist, and

2. Why are they not available in the US?

When I ask a Toyota repairman about the button, then have no knowledge about it.

[efusco]

search EV Button and EV Mode and prepare to do a lot of reading....
Here's my original article, sans pictures.
[KB] EV Button Installation Instructions

EV Button Installation with Y harness
Check out calcars.org too for a differetn version of my article.

[msquared48]

Any articles on the effect on the mileage. battery life, or increased battery temperature if this modification is made?

What about the current warranty? Will installation of the button void the warranty?

[dwreed3rd]

duplicate

[a priori]

Originally Posted by msquared48

Any articles on the effect on the mileage. battery life, or increased battery temperature if this modification is made?

What about the current warranty? Will installation of the button void the warranty?

Presumably, Toyota did not offer the EV button on American Prius cars because of the lengthy warranty offered here (especially in California).

I recall posts from this past winter in which a Prius owner was going to be denied a replacement warranty because the car had an EV button installed. Toyota had claimed that the modification voided the warranty. My further reclamation is that Toyota agreed to replace the battery in exchange for the owner's removal of the EV button and agreement not to install one in the future.

OK. I found the post. It was Naterprius, and his posting was just over a year ago. Follow this link for interesting reading.

There also is a brief discussion on this EAA Wiki page about whether installation of the EV button could/would/should void the Toyota warranty.

Some of the same persons participated in a similar discussion on the GreenHybrid site. Follow this link to read those postings.

In the case of the fight between Naterprius and Toyota, his battery started to go bad at about 3900 miles, so it seems clear that the EV button had nothing to do with the problems. Still, Toyota gave him two months of grief dealing with it. The EV button cost him $40, and it gave him the option of driving away from home without having the ICE start until he was a couple of blocks away. There is very little (if any) MPG assistance. It is a fun and cool thing, but it has value (MPG-wise) only if you are moving the car from the driveway to the street and don't want the ICE to turn on.

Question: Is it worth it to get into a battle with Toyota over such a thing? Regardless of whether it really should void the warranty, the battle could not be worth the cost (at least to me).

[msquared48]

Thanks for the links. I'll check it out and probably take your advice here, forgetting about the button - at least until the warranty has run out. That'll take only a couple more years at our current yearly rate of about 25,000 miles per year. (I do a lot of business driving).

[Tchou]

Originally Posted by msquared48

Apparently, from what I can find out presently, there is a button that is standard on Japanese and European Prius models that allows it to be driven only on pattery power, system overrides excluded, up to a max of 34 MPH. It is not available on American Models. By "system overrides excluded" I mean that the motor will still be able to kick in if certain red flags are detected.

As I'm in Europe I have one, and quite never use it... I'd gladly exchange it for HID lights, autodim mirror and such...

[john1701a]

You already the have STEALTH ability. That's the standard in all Prius, electric-only drive up to 42 MPH.

What you want is the EV option, which reduces the top electric-only speed to 35 MPH with the trade-off of additional power before the engine starts back up.

.

[aaf709]

There are 3 other ways to get the EV mode other than the button. The software is already there, so all you need to do is activate it. There is a open spot in a plug in the far right hand side. To activate the EV mode (assuming conditions are right), you short that open spot (with a pin inside) to ground. There's a company called Coastal Tech, which sells a gizmo that allows you to use the Cancel lever on the Cruise Control (it still works for Cancel, just pull for over 2 seconds), but they are a bit flakey on customer service. You can stick a pin in that spot, and run a wire to a ground with a push button in between. You can also convert the "Flash to Pass" lever to do the same thing. You'll have to do a search in order to find those instructions.

[a priori]

Originally Posted by msquared48

Thanks for the links. I'll check it out and probably take your advice here, forgetting about the button - at least until the warranty has run out. That'll take only a couple more years at our current yearly rate of about 25,000 miles per year. (I do a lot of business driving).

That's some heavy driving. It also could be a great way to pay for your car! Having the ability to expense at 58.5 cents per mile, I find that I do very well. My lifetime cost per mile is below 6 cents. I know it it higher today, but not too much higher. At worst, I think I am pocketing 50 cents per mile after paying for gas. By my calculations, I have already received enough money this way to pay for lifetime maintenance of the car plus two sets of tires. I am now busily recouping gasoline costs and insurance.

The car will not pay for itself at my rate (15K per year and only a portion is business), but I wonder what it would be at 25K per year -- and mostly business.