EV prius button???!!!

http://priuschat.com/forums/kb.php?mode=cat&cat=6
Three different articles here on what the EV button is and how to install one of your very own.

 

Here's a shot of my OEM EVb installed:

 

You can take that out of context and it sounds bad and scary doesn't it. Maybe you could be a auto journalist in Detroit! :blink:

If you put it IN context you'll see he's talking about how far he can go with his nearly quadruple battery power he's installed in his Prius. He now forces himself to go out of EV mode after 7 miles. He also says that very little lubrication and splash is required.

Earlier you asked if I thought it made a difference. The easy answer is "yes". But I use the button very judiciously. You know how there's sometimes a delay for the ICE to shut off as you're approaching a stop light and sometimes it doesn't shut off for several seconds even after you've stopped? Well I use the button to basicly tell the car "I'm fixin' to stop, so shut off." So maybe as much as 1/2 mile or more before a stop light I'll go into a glide, as my speed drops below 34mph I tap the EV button to force the ICE off (in case it wasn't already--sometimes it's hard to tell) and to prevent it from 'accidently' coming back on until I'm ready to leave the stop light.

You know how sometimes you'll be at a stop light and you know the timing and you know that you won't make it through the green light b/c there are too many cars in front of you? I use it then so I can just scoot forward in electric mode and inhibit the unnecessary ICE spin up (which consumes a lot of energy) just to stop after 50 feet and shut off again.

I use it as I approach home and tap the button some 1/4-1/2 mile before my garage as I can glide home with little or no additional power being used...just my momentum.

I use it in the morning as I pull out of the garage before driving the 100 or so feet down my drive way to grab the news paper.

I use it at drive-throughs so the ICE doesn't spin up as I pull around.

I use it in school zones when going ~20mph since the ICE is inefficient there.

There are lots of bad times for using the EV mode--if you have to go as far as 1/2 mile and then you're going to keep driving (ie. pulling from your home to a highway on-ramp) you're probably just as well to run the ICE without the EV button to keep the battery SOC high.

In MOST cases using the battery alone to accelerate from a stop/drive is less efficient than using the ICE. Exceptions are very slow trips where the ICE starts and stops multiple times during a short distance b/c it takes quite a bit of battery power to spin up the ICE + you burn gas. Learning to recognize those situations takes time and experience and practice.

 

Wheelskins cover. BTW, it doesn't look so 'royal blue' in real life (the flash brought out the color a lot), much more subtle color tone--which I'm glad of.

 

I believe it's the cobalt blue. In 'normal light' it actually looks sorta blue/gray (more gray than blue) against the black. Only in the brightest direct light would someone see it as the blue in the photo.

 

The factory button does require a little "doing". You need to use a soldering iron, you'll need to tap the dimmer (if you want the button to light up), and you'll need to fish a wire across from the ECU.

Whether it's a "nightmare" or not depends upon how handy and adventurous you are. I do very little with electronics but have had a good time working with my Prius and extending my knowledge and experience and comfort level with this stuff.

The factory EV button is fun to play with, I like having it to show off and look at...there isn't anything to point at/show other people with the coastal mod. That said, the Coastal EV mode is very easy to install (other than the stinking pin in the connector frustrations folks so often experience).

I just suggest reading both articles...my original one on installing your own EV button and then the one specific for the OEM EV button itself. I've not yet heard of anyone doing any damage to their car or being unsuccessful with the factory EV button, but then this may be a self-selecting population of do-it-yourselfers.

I didn't check your location before starting this reply, but if you're somewhere where there are other PCers living you may be able to find one who's done one of the EV installs who'd be happy to come over to help you do your install...sort of a 'hand to hold' for confidence.