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Grill blocking (New to a Prius)

Discussion in 'Gen 3 Prius Accessories and Modifications' started by Patrick_Roderick, Nov 12, 2014.

  1. Patrick_Roderick

    Patrick_Roderick Junior Member

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    hey all I am new to the Prius. My wife and I just bought our 1st Prius. We got a 2014 Prius Two which we love. We went to the dealer to look at the 14 corolla and a 14 prius. The Corolla was 21k for the S model and the Prius 2 was 19k on sale with a few my discounts I was able to get with work. So we bought a Prius and man we couldn't of been any more happy. My wife has a 08 Corolla now and the Prius seems to be the same thing with better MPG. So now to my question I have.

    I have been looking at alot of the forum posts about grill blocking and how that works. I do have a scangauge and have been using to see the Coolant temp and the MG1 temp after finding the codes in another post. As of right now in MN temps are in the lower 20s so I went out and got some 1/2" pipe insulation and followed a guide on blocking the grill. My lower grill is blocked about 95%. I am unable to block apart of the grill by the license plate because the plate holder is blocking a spot. I have not blocked any of the upper grill. So looking at the temps on the scangauge. My drive to work is about 36 miles one way. About 10% of that is in EV where the other 90% is on the highway doing 55 mph to 70 mph. While I am doing 70 mph the coolant temp jumps between 188f and 198f depending on my driving. After reading about the MG1 and MG2 info. I remember reading that both are in the same area and you only need to watch one of the two for temps. So I watch MG1. MG1 temp never went over 155f. My scangauge is on firmware version 3.15. I am not able to get the inverter Temp to display. So my question is can I block the top grill or are my temps to high. After driving to work today the car told me that I was able to get 57 mpg which I love. The problem is once I go into EV mode the coolant temp drops really fast and I was thinking grill blocking stopped this.

    Also if you need anymore info about the car. I have done no mods to the car at all other then the grill blocking the lower grill. I am running stock wheels with Continental Pure Contact with Eco Plus. I am running 45psi in front and 43 psi in back. My best tank so far has been 560 miles before the last bar started to blink. Thanks for any info and helping out. Sorry for the long post. :)
     
  2. john1701a

    john1701a Prius Guru

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    I block the lower grille entirely, run some foam along the hood edges inside, then push the ECO button. That's it for winter preparation for me, here in Minnesota.

    In the extreme deep freeze, I'll block half of the top too. But that's mostly due to having the plug-in model, since that doesn't generate as much heat and it goes quite a bit longer between engine warming cycles.

    btw, I take off the plate while squeezing in the foam insulation between the slots. It only takes a minute to remove... just 2 screws.
     
  3. Patrick_Roderick

    Patrick_Roderick Junior Member

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    I did take off the plate to add some. Its just the plate has a clip that grabs the bumper for suport. So i can not add stuff into those two areas. I do like how much faster the car warms up with the lower blocked.
     
  4. macman408

    macman408 Electron Guidance Counselor

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    If you're running the heat, that'll make the coolant temperature drop like a rock, regardless of any grill blocking you might be doing. Of course, dropping quite a bit is no big deal; I forget when the engine will kick in just to produce heat, but up until that point, you're not really losing anything by having the coolant on the chilly side, as long as you made it past 70°C in the first place to get into Stage 4 of the warmup cycle.
     
  5. olieman

    olieman Junior Member

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    Patrick said: After reading about the MG1 and MG2 info. I remember reading that both are in the same area and you only need to watch one of the two for temps. So I watch MG1. MG1 temp never went over 155f.

    I would advise you to monitor MG2 temperatures for a while, the reason being MG1 is water-cooled and MG2 is not.
    MG2 is air-cooled.
     
    #5 olieman, Nov 28, 2014
    Last edited: Nov 28, 2014
  6. szgabor

    szgabor Active Member

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    what are you smoking ???

    Both MG1 and MG2 are in the CVT (also know as transmission) housing swimming in the same oil which I think is partially watercooled (some little channel goes through the housing ..).

    anyone has that schematic ? I think I saw it here on PC.
     
  7. olieman

    olieman Junior Member

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    @szgabor:
    No, I was not smoking pot..;)
    sorry,
    I could not load "the link" to the Japanese site, I am pretty new here, not enough credit yet.
    below on the picture; you can see the air-cooled note next to MG2

    You know, the Prius c /Toyota Yaris Hybrid, P510 Transmission has no longer water-cooling at all, just air and circulating transmission oil.
    I have a Yaris Hybrid and realy need to watch MG1 and MG2 temperatures well with the use of a grill block.


    upload_2014-11-29_15-34-35.png
     
    #7 olieman, Nov 29, 2014
    Last edited: Nov 29, 2014
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  8. JimN

    JimN Let the games begin!

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    Patrick, when the ICE doesn't run there's nothing to heat the coolant. As already mentioned, at 150F (70C) it's warm enough for cabin heat.

    Inverter coolant temp is available as an XGauge.

    I set the CC on AUTO at the lowest comfortable temp in the winter & the highest comfortable temp in the summer.
     
  9. Mendel Leisk

    Mendel Leisk Senior Member

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    ^ Just editorial comment: you didn't mean to say CC?
     
  10. JimN

    JimN Let the games begin!

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    CC in this context is Climate Control.
     
  11. Mendel Leisk

    Mendel Leisk Senior Member

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  12. szgabor

    szgabor Active Member

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    sorry but this was posted on the 3rdGen Prius forum so I assumed you are posting about that model ... but if they are in the same oil how much their temp could be different. Surely dynamic temp spikes are possible but those would occur in water cooling scenario as well !!!

    Also if they are NOT water cooled ... how the grill blocking would affect them? Really worth some investigating but I do not think it makes much of a difference. The CVT is not in the direct air flow from the grill in any case.
     
    #12 szgabor, Dec 1, 2014
    Last edited: Dec 1, 2014
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  13. pauerbach

    pauerbach Member

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    Could someone explain the benefit of blocking the grill? It seems about as smart as poking holes in condoms.
     
  14. JimN

    JimN Let the games begin!

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    Retaining heat gets the ICE up to temp faster & helps keep it there. The benefits are increased fuel economy as the ICE doesn't run as long just to warm itself it and more cabin heat sooner. It does prevent some damage to the radiator fins.
     
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  15. macman408

    macman408 Electron Guidance Counselor

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    And as to the "poking holes in condoms" part... The grill is designed to provide sufficient airflow such that in the hottest location the car is likely to be used, it is not likely to overheat. When the ambient temperature is cold, it doesn't need so much air, but it gets it anyway.

    Built-in grill blocking ("active grill[e] shutters") are a feature on a number of recent car models, from eco models to sports cars to luxury cars. In those cases, they're usually going for improved aerodynamics, however - the Prius can benefit from both reduced drag and faster warmup.
     
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  16. WilDavis

    WilDavis Senior Member

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    I've had my 2009 Gen II Prius for just over a year, and I've blocked the lower grill for each of the past two winters. I have a ScanGauge II and so am able to monitor the ICE coolant temp - which is normally around 190ºF, the blocking helps the system get to that temperature quicker, but the highest I've seen the temp is 196ºF. A couple of weeks ago during a particularly cold snap here in the North East, while on a run where the temp was normally ~190º, I noticed it barely got up to 170º, but that's about what I expected. Here's a pic. IMG_20150119_123345_823.jpg (regular ½" pipe-lagging from Home Despot ($4) , and zip-ties at each end) - hope this helps - Wil
     
  17. Patrick_Roderick

    Patrick_Roderick Junior Member

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    Thanks for all the info guys. Great stuff. I have left the block on the grill and I do see that it helps a lot. I made a Trip from Minneapolis, MN to Green Bay WI a few weeks ago which is about 308 miles one way and I was about to get 51 mpg one way. The car always stayed around 180f to 190f coolant temp. Only thing that worried me some of MG1 which got up to around 178f. I did stop every hour so my pregnant wife could walk around a bit. This lower MG1 down to under 140f. With the grill blocking off which I did a week ago so I could take the car into the dealer for the 10k service, It was -5f outside and the coolant would never get over 165f and would drop to under 120f on the highway going down hill.
     
  18. Snow

    Snow Member

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    I've been thinking about blocking the lower portion of my grill as well. What material are you using to block yours?
     
  19. WilDavis

    WilDavis Senior Member

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    Here's a pic. [​IMG] (regular ½" pipe-lagging from Home Despot ($4) , and zip-ties at each end) (…is there an echo in here? …
    echo in here? …echo in here?…echo in here?…echo in here?) ;)
     
  20. Redpoint5

    Redpoint5 Senior Member

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    Does the Gen III Prius have a coolant thermostat in addition to an electric water pump? I would think a thermostat is unnecessary if the pump speed can be controlled directly. Has anyone observed the coolant pump running harder or more frequently due to grill blocking?

    I'll probably block the Prius this weekend.