New owner 2026 Prius PHEV

I don't think you'll have to worry about overcharging the hybrid battery. I think that the charge level has been well engineered for battery longevity.

My Gen 3 plug-in lithium battery only lost 15% of its capacity over 10 years. I read somewhere that it only charged to 70% when full.

 

I was about 14 when I learned the hard way that revving to redline was hard on the engine.
I will always be sorry for wearing out the engine in my Mom's car from revving it to redline so often.

To this day, I find it very unpleasant to hear someone revving an engine needlessly.

 

I don't understand what you're talking about? What vehicle are you referring to that you can redline? And vehicles have NOT needed to be "warmed up" since before the days of fuel injection? What you're saying would of made sense a 1/2 century ago, but not anymore.

 

I don't want to tell anyone how to drive, but revving to redline, just seems like engine abuse.

 

How is that even possible in a Prius?

 

Hard sustained acceleration every week or two is actually good for the engine. Breaks up carbon deposits. Called an Italian tune up. Being overly gentle on an engine causes its own set of problems. As in most things, moderation is key. Constantly revving high = bad; never revving high = also bad.

 

The Prius has always had fairly low rpm limits imposed by the hybrid system anyway.

G1 was limited to 4500rpm, and G2 lifted that to 5000rpm, and it seems that it remained at 5000rpm for the 1.8 litre Priuses.

But the G5 has lifted the limit to 6000rpm with the 2.0-litre M20-FXS.

So potentially a bit more engine stress putting your foot to the floor in the 2.0 G5, but then it is a totally different engine.

Although due to PSD gearing and MG1 limits, the engine won't be able to actually reach 6000rpm until you get to some road speed. We haven't established exactly what the current MG1 limit is though - some discussion here.

It must be at least 12,000rpm forwards, letting the engine reach 6000rpm at 130km/h (80mph), but could be higher, which would permit 6000rpm at lower speeds. It's 10,000rpm backwards, giving the 135km/h (84mph) EV limit.

Gen 2's MG1 had similarly asymmetric rev limits of 10,000/6,500, to accommodate its higher engine rpm compared to the G1.

 

More 1970's mindless myths... To be clear: Italian tune-ups were useful on old carbureted engines to burn off deposits, but modern fuel-injected engines with precise ignition and catalytic converters run clean automatically—no hard driving needed.

References:

-- Bosch Automotive Handbook (10th ed., 2018) – explains how modern closed-loop fuel injection and catalytic converters keep combustion clean.

-- Society of Automotive Engineers (SAE) Technical Paper 2010-01-1472 – shows reduced deposit formation with modern direct injection and engine management.

-- U.S. Department of Energy, Alternative Fuels Data Center – notes that modern emissions systems keep engines clean without special driving techniques.