Hybrid Battery

Lowest was TWO BLUES so far on my '07 touring Edition owned since November '06. I did see ONE PURPLE several times on the '04 Prius I drove for over two years. So far NO GREENS on my '07 - did see GREENS on the '04 several times.

I rarely look at the ENERGY display - just let the Prius' computers take care of that.

My 2¢... for what it's worth.

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(Rxmxsh @ Mar 17 2007, 07:25 PM) [snapback]407482[/snapback]</div>

I've had one purple bar about 3 times since Nov 05
I also find that if I start out in the morning in EV mode and say 4 or 5 bars, as soon as the ICE kicks in it eats away at those bars and then after a mile or so starts to replace them - so I try to use them all up in EV mode until the ICE is forced to start up.
A colleague at work has the Gen 1 Prius which she bought in 2002 - and just had the hybrid battery replaced free of charge by a Toyota GB recall....she didn't know why but I'd guess it was done under the warranty.

 

Under "regular" operating conditions, one pink bar. That was inch-at-a-time gridlock during hot weather for the Hurricane Rita evacuation out of Houston, TX. (That was an amazing experience, BTW.)

Under not-so-normal operating conditions, I've had it down to zero. Yeah, I ran out of gas once. Yeah, I knew it was possible. Yeah, I was dumb. I had been using a trip odometer to track how far I could go between "last pip" and "low fuel" warning -- but on this one trip it was about 1/2 of what I had been previously getting and I was in a stretch of road with NO fuel stations.

Thankfully, the system protects the battery... I turned off everything but headlights (it was dark) and slowed to 30mph trying to get as close to the next highway exit as I could. I made it about 1.8 miles and then the battery was empty, no arrows on the energy screen, and the accelerator was floored. Once stopped, my only choice was neutral or park.

That was the first (and last!) time I run out of gas in a car. But the Prius can handle it if it happens -- Yeesha's been operating juuuuust fine.

 

I've been down to one bar a couple of times while sitting in a traffic jam.

 

1 red/ purple bar.

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(IAO @ Mar 17 2007, 10:31 PM) [snapback]407737[/snapback]</div>

Going up Tioga Pass in Yosemite, a single purple bar was the lowest. I was a bit worried about the low reading, but I figured some other warning light would appear if there was a problem. I got more worried as on the down hill all green bars lit up for a long time. I was worried about overcharging.

On a long downhill (I'm talking about thousands of feet drop without level or uphill) as is the case over Tioga pass and the drop into Death Valley and the engine is working hard braking, what happens to the energy regenerated beyond the batteries capabilities to hold it? The grades are so steep that I was trying to decide the lesser of two evils: over using the brakes or overcharging the batteries.

Any thoughts? :huh:

Lee

 

I had one purple bar after going up the parking garage at the hospital. but it charged itself on the way back down.

also did the same thing when I had the A/C on while I had the car parked.

 

Two purple bars for me, on my 2006.

Tom

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(Gadgetdad @ Mar 18 2007, 01:30 AM) [snapback]407753[/snapback]</div>

The car will switch to physical (friction) braking when it decides that any additional regen braking would charge the batteries over its limit. You don't really get a choice in the matter; the car will protect itself.

However, you can use the engine braking mode ("B") to give the car an alternative to switching to friction brakes. This is the best option for an extended downgrade since it doesn't result in overheated brakes. In this mode, the ICE will spin (without fuel, if possible) to add drag to the wheels.

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(wrprice @ Mar 19 2007, 09:42 PM) [snapback]408764[/snapback]</div>

Thanks, for the info. I was in the "B" mode! That little ICE was spinning like a top. Friction braking and the "B" mode were needed to keep from finding out what the terminal velocity is for a Prius!

Lee

 

error!

 

I seem to remember reading a magazine review of the 01-03 type Prius- Car and Driver or similar. They went flat-out as fast as they could up a mountain pass and eventually depleted the battery to the point where the computer intervened. I seem to remember that they said a turtle icon appeared on the screen (no I am not kidding) and that it continued up the mountain, albeit more slowly, using the ICE only.

Seems like under more normal usage conditions this won't happen, though.

I did also read about the very first (Japanese-market) Prius having quite a bit of that trouble when later exported to countries with wide-open spaces. Used cars from Japan are pretty commonly exported to Australia, and Australian users experienced this quite a bit in that first-generation car. They added power to the ICE and motor systems since then (first when they brought the Prius to the US, and again with the '04 redesign) so it shouldn't be easy to deplete by going flat-out up a mountain anymore.

I've seen one purple bar while crawling in heavy traffic in downtown Atlanta before. Shortly thereafter the ICE fired up for a few minutes to recharge the battery.