Car shows EV mode - but not registering battery use

Discussion in 'Prime Fuel Economy & EV Range' started by WashingtonDriver, Nov 10, 2019.

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  1. WashingtonDriver

    WashingtonDriver New Member

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    My Prius recently started showing me 97% battery left 6 miles into my commute when it should show in the low 80s. I do this trip every day. It is in EV mode when I start. Now burning gas like crazy. Has anyone else had this issue? When I asked the mechanic he just answered that gas consumption is greater in winter - but never addressed the fact that in EV mode the car is burning fuel.
     
    #1 WashingtonDriver, Nov 10, 2019
  2. Salamander_King

    Salamander_King Senior Member

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    Were you using front defroster? There are other instances PRIME will start ICE even if you are on EV mode with plenty of battery SOC left.

    ice starts.png
     
    #2 Salamander_King, Nov 11, 2019
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  3. Tideland Prius

    Tideland Prius Moderator of the North
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    Have you lowered your climate control setting? (and set it in Eco Heat/Cool and S-Flow to driver priority?)

    One possible reason is that your temperature setting is too high so the car runs the engine to provide more heat. (It also happens if you leave the car outside on a cold soak. It's better to set the car to finish charging near your estimated departure time and run the heater as well to warm up the cabin. This reduces the load on the climate control when you leave and also keeps the battery temperature warmer).

    If you accelerate harder when the battery is cold and can't provide enough energy (cold in a sense that you left the car outside, unplugged, all night or it was plugged but it finished charging well before you leave in the morning so the battery cooled down)., the engine will come on to provide extra power and once it's on, it'll run the warm-up cycle.

    Also if you drive in B mode and the engine comes on, the engine won't shut off in B mode.


    Those are just 3 of many possible scenarios.
     
    #3 Tideland Prius, Nov 11, 2019
  4. JeremyM09

    JeremyM09 Junior Member

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    I have a similar question. Today the gas engine kicked on going 40 MPH at 37 degrees. I'm looking for ways to decrease the amount of time the gas engine kicks on. So far I'm seeing having it finish charging close to when I leave in the morning. I'm not sure how I'll accomplish this since it has a different length of time to charge each night but I'll try. Anything else I can try to do? It's only been as cold as 25, sometimes not even that cold and it usually kicks in when I get to 65 on the highway after starting with a full, cold battery. Doesn't happen on the way home that afternoon. Would starting with a not quite full battery help or make no difference? Thanks!
     
    #4 JeremyM09, Nov 24, 2019
  5. john1701a

    john1701a Prius Guru

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    The impression I get from that is you have the MAX defrost button engaged. That dedicated button on the dashboard instructs the engine to run when needed to warm the coolant for window clearing. Check that. The normal window blower (screen option with all the other choices) is entirely electric. Any setting from that menu is no-engine operation.
     
    #5 john1701a, Nov 24, 2019
  6. sam spade 2

    sam spade 2 Senior Member

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    Wait for spring. The "problem" will disappear.
    It is not really a "problem", that is just the way things ARE when it's cold.
     
    #6 sam spade 2, Nov 24, 2019
  7. Salamander_King

    Salamander_King Senior Member

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    If you set the charge schedule by "Departure" time, then you don't have to do anything. The car will figure out how long it will take to charge to full by the Departure time, and start charging accordingly.

    Screenshot 2019-11-24 at 4.56.47 PM.png
     
    #7 Salamander_King, Nov 24, 2019
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  8. john1701a

    john1701a Prius Guru

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    Real cold, like that in Minnesota, isn't even that way. Watch the following video. Hopefully, some element being overlooked will be identified. With so much data here contradicting the claimed situation, something else is obviously at play.



    Notice how effortless it was to remain in EV, despite the variety of driving conditions on that cold commute?
     
    #8 john1701a, Nov 24, 2019
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  9. jerrymildred

    jerrymildred Senior Member

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    Nice, John! That looked like pretty good range for the temperatures you had.

    I know you've mentioned it before, but I forgot which app you're using for those nifty gauges on the right. I could look it up, but thought it might be nice to have that info in this thread in case others are interested. I'm seriously considering an Android device to be able to get that data.
     
    #9 jerrymildred, Nov 24, 2019
  10. Salamander_King

    Salamander_King Senior Member

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    #10 Salamander_King, Nov 24, 2019
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