Range on EV Mode

Discussion in 'Prime Main Forum (2017-2022)' started by Mike SBP, Apr 16, 2026 at 6:48 PM.

  1. Mike SBP

    Mike SBP New Member

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    We recently bought a 2015 plug in prius with a Nexcell battery and we are trying to figure out what its total EV range should be. We are getting about 13 or 14 miles range from a full charge. Does this seem right?
     
  2. bisco

    bisco cookie crumbler

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    congrats!
    there is no standard range. if you drive it exactly the same as the era test, you might get 20 miles.
    but no one can do that, because it is on a dynamometer.
    range depends on a variety of factors including acceleration, speed, stop and go's, topography, climate, hvac settings, tires and etc.
    I would contact jack at nexcell for his opinion
     
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  3. BiomedO1

    BiomedO1 Senior Member

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    I believe the original gen1 PHEV was only specs for 6-11 miles on the original Toyota pack. Like all PHEV; it varies based on driving conditions and drivers inputs.
     
  4. Mike SBP

    Mike SBP New Member

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    I don't want to bother Jack about the car when we are so happy with it. I feel like all prius owners owe so much to Jack for the the Dr. Prius app. Jack is like St. Prius as far as I am concerned.

    We are pretty happy with the car. Most of our trips around town are on full EV mode. The engine kicks on in cold weather to run the cabin heater. Overall we are generally getting mpg in the 80s on a tank of gas. We expect that to rise with warmer weather. I notice a rebound on apparent EV range when we park for a long stop. I have had a goal of paying less than 10 cents per mile for travel now for decades and have been meeting that goal. We moved out of our 2005 prius when we moved on to this 2015 prius. Feels like a good move. We went from 47 mpg to something in the 80s or above.

    I was just wondering about the range issue. I have heard that the car turns off the charge when it gets close to 15 miles of range and that it is possible to trick the car into doing a second round of charging by unplugging, waiting for a while, then plugging it back in. That does nothing to bump the apparent range on this particular vehicle.
     
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  5. BiomedO1

    BiomedO1 Senior Member

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    I hope you realize that the 80 mpg doesn't include the electricity your inputing and using. If you don't frame that into your equation, that's just bad math and bad science. Edmunds TCO (total cost of ownership) includes ALL cost, including maintenance, insurance, depreciation; over a 5 year period using average miles traveled. That number is totaled then divided by miles driven to get the TCO and cost per mile. Since they use the same methodology for all cars they test; you can infer an apples to apples comparison.

    While 80 mpg is a great "sound bite", the reality is that your closer to 45 mpg - if you didn't plug-in everyday. FWIW; my Prime is showing 120 mpg, since I'm mostly EV around town - but I do add electricity consumption into my math; for real world cost of operations comparison.
     
    #5 BiomedO1, Apr 17, 2026 at 11:46 AM
    Last edited: Apr 17, 2026 at 5:15 PM
  6. Mike SBP

    Mike SBP New Member

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    Good point. I don't calculate the KW's that are going in to charging. I am with a PUD that charges about 7 cents per KW and this PUD relies primarily on clean energy generation and that's a primary concern for me with working to reduce the number of gallons of petrol that I burn each year.
     
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  7. BiomedO1

    BiomedO1 Senior Member

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    I'm paying nearly double that for my KwH and have calculated that $0.38 KwH is the breakeven point for my commute and driving style; between gasoline @ $4/gal vs electrons.

    YMMV
     
  8. bisco

    bisco cookie crumbler

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    there's a thread here somewhere about jacks phev battery. I think it is supposed to double the oem range.
    the engine shouldn't come on until you have depleted the wall charge (except for things like hvac) unless jacks system works differently than oem.
     
  9. bisco

    bisco cookie crumbler

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    I'm paying 40 cents per kWh :(
     
  10. bisco

    bisco cookie crumbler

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    how many miles on her? you need to look into the egr issue.
     
  11. Mike SBP

    Mike SBP New Member

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    yikes
     
  12. Mike SBP

    Mike SBP New Member

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    290K I am planning to have priuscamper do the egr cleaning sometime soon.
     
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  13. bisco

    bisco cookie crumbler

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    wow! that's a lot of miles in 11 years
     
  14. john1701a

    john1701a Prius Guru

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    Nope, it was 12 miles. That "6" was stirred in discussion because it was the mile-mark in the EPA test where there was a hard acceleration to highway speed, triggering the engine to run briefly.
     
  15. john1701a

    john1701a Prius Guru

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    Nope, that is utter nonsense. EPA testing is a balance of driving conditions. It's pretty easy to exceed range rating when driving in ideal conditions. I did it countless times with my Prius Prime... exceeding 30 miles from its battery only rated for 25. For example:

     
  16. BiomedO1

    BiomedO1 Senior Member

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    The key here is "ideal conditions" and we don't control the weather or terrain. My avg mile/KwH has shown 20miles/KwH on occasions coming back from South Lake Tahoe; that doesn't make it true. That makes it an outlier that should be ignored. That's great your averaging 5+mile/Kwh; What's your average during the winter months????? A running average over a year would be a more honest approach.
     
    #16 BiomedO1, Apr 19, 2026 at 10:51 AM
    Last edited: Apr 19, 2026 at 3:50 PM
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  17. john1701a

    john1701a Prius Guru

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    When it comes to estimates, there is no "honest" value since the measurement is standardized... hence rating. That why we report real-world instead, knowing conditions will vary on a regular basis.

    Heck, even your question of "winter" is problematic. My winter experience in Minnesota will be profoundly different from someone elsewhere north, like the East Coast. Here's a real-world example for me:



     
  18. BiomedO1

    BiomedO1 Senior Member

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    You can still provide an average year-long "miles/Kwh" rather than take stipends to try to prove your point. I would bet your overall annual average would be closer to the OEM 25 miles of EV range.
    That's why OEM's do rigorous testing; so they don't get sued for exaggerated claims. They need to meet a minimum standard, doesn't matter if the car is in New York or Arizona. How would it be problematic when you just stated that everything is standardized???? I noticed you didn't provide the consumption chart, but did notice your average mpg was 69.1mpg and 98.4mpg vs your other screen shot of 199.9 mpg; so obviously your miles/KwH consumption was much lower.

    Peace....
     
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  19. Mike SBP

    Mike SBP New Member

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    Yes, previous owner in LA had the car on the road a lot. We have owned the car for about 6 months and have put on 4K, so the big odometer numbers should slow down now. We had the car in for an oil change at a dealer that does a comprehensive check of systems and they said the car is in great shape for so many miles, so I am sure the previous owner took great care of the car.
     
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  20. bisco

    bisco cookie crumbler

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    epa test started the engine at 6 miles:
    The EPA says the Prius Plug-In has an electric range of 11 miles, though the small print notes that the car can only do 6 continuous miles electrically on the agency’s city test cycle.