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BSOC on the 2k4 Prius

Discussion in 'Gen 2 Prius Care, Maintenance and Troubleshooting' started by Frank Hudon, Jan 11, 2004.

  1. Frank Hudon

    Frank Hudon Senior Member

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    just a quick question, does the bsoc (battery state of charge) indicator on the new Prius ever get to the top of the bracket on the left side. I realize there is a 1 bar gap at the top of the meter but our new Prius has never made it to the top. Took it to the dealer and he probed the computer and it said the battery was at 61%state of charge after I had driven it 17 miles mix of highway and country roads to the dealer with the A/C off IE: no defrost and the heater on manual low setting and at legal road speeds. It's relatively flat with one hill mid way and the last mile or so a slight grade with regen. On our Classic it was no problem to have the battery at a full state according to the bsoc. This has bothered both of us since we got it (ll day wait from time of deposit) and since the weather is realatively cool gas mileage is of no concern. I have managed 3.58Liter per 100KM's=78.9 miles to the gallon for ove a half hour loop so I know in warm weather it will be ok (imperial gallon) ok I know, long winded, Rick or John any thoughs Oh Rick still working on the Reset problem.
     
    #1 Frank Hudon, Jan 11, 2004
  2. rockluvr

    rockluvr New Member

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    Thank you for asking this question. I was wondering the same thing. I've had my Prius since Dec. 24. When I picked it up from the dealer, it was two bars down from "fully charged" on the battery indicator. Only twice now has it ever "turned green" to indicate it was fully charged, and then only for a few minutes before it was back down two bars. When it turned green, there was still a space at the top of the indicator (i.e., there was a space for another bar). It seems to me that it doesn't take much for the battery indicator to decrease and then increase again (like going down one hill can raise it up a bar). Only once has the battery gotten so low that the engine had to kick on to charge it - that was only two days after I got the car and we were driving on electric (very slow) through a Christmas light display (the kind you pay to get in and drive through). I would appreciate any comments from other drivers to confirm that this is "normal."
     
    #2 rockluvr, Jan 12, 2004
  3. Wolfman

    Wolfman New Member

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    My classic has never seen the "fully charged" indicator for the battery since the day I bought it. I've just figured that the state of charge that mine is in is pretty much where it's going to be for my driving pattern.
     
    #3 Wolfman, Jan 12, 2004
  4. HTMLSpinnr

    HTMLSpinnr Super Moderator
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    While it's not difficult to get a "full" battery indicator if you have enough hill, the Prius will take every chance it gets to dump some of that charge. It prefers to keep it's state of charge at 2-3 bars from the top. This allows charging room for longer bouts of regen, and keeps the battery "happy" so that it will enjoy a long, healthy life.

    If you can take a several kilometer or mile descent either riding the brakes lightly or using "B" mode and still not fill the battery to the "top" (not including the poles), there may be cause for concern.

    Almost every warmer morning (when the ICE doesn't need to run to keep the heat flowing), I can fill my battery to the "top" during my drive through my city in the morning, so it shouldn't be too difficult.

    Still nothing on the reset.
     
    #4 HTMLSpinnr, Jan 12, 2004
  5. Atoyot

    Atoyot New Member

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    I'm so glad that he clarified what BSOC meant as from the title of the post in the forum I thought this was going to be a discussion on how to remove Bird Stuff On Car. :mrgreen: :mrgreen: :mrgreen:

    Um...other than that.....I got nothing.

    Atoyot
     
    #5 Atoyot, Jan 12, 2004
  6. bearincolo

    bearincolo New Member

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    In my experience, driving up and down the foothills of Colorado, I've seen both a full charge (all bars and green color) and one bar from the top with the color green. On the bottome end (going up the hills) I've seen it down to one bar and purple.
     
    #6 bearincolo, Jan 13, 2004
  7. HTMLSpinnr

    HTMLSpinnr Super Moderator
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    I can honestly say I've seen the same. Pushing decent speeds (55-65mph) up to Big Bear Lake (6800 ft, but part of drive gets over 8100 ft) I saw 1 bar toward the top of my climb. The good thing is on the way back down, I was at full for most of the trip. Overall MPG was 45 I believe for the end of the trip, which wasn't bad. Going from 2000-8000 ft is about a 35-40 mile stretch going up Hwy CA-38.

    Those who aren't seeing fluctuations in battery charge need to try a significant climb both up then down, you should see the battery living in "both ranges" on the gauge in the end.

    -Rick
     
    #7 HTMLSpinnr, Jan 13, 2004
  8. Frank Hudon

    Frank Hudon Senior Member

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    Re: bsoc on 2K4

    Thanks to those who have responded, I have had the meter to one bar from the top (green) and 1 bar from the bottom (never purple) and it's up and down. I was curious if this is what others are getting on their Prius. On electric forklifts (I'm a mechanic) the Toyota electrics have a pot in the controller card that you can adjust to give a full reading, as all batterys have a different peak voltage when fully charged you can just set it to give a "full battery" on the BSOC meter. And a lot of the stuff on the Prius has been around on the forklift side of things for a while, drive by wire, A/C drive motors, A/C-D/C inverters, etc. so for me this is just another vehicle. Interesting one albiet, but just another vehicle. The Classic was cool to but the 2K4 has some interesting stuff as well Smart Key one of the best ideas to come along in a while.
     
    #8 Frank Hudon, Jan 13, 2004
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