Hymotion: Staying In EV Mode Without Any Hacks

Today, I set a new personal record: 4 days in a row (and 4 trips up the hill) without using a single molecue of gas (except for evaporation). That's about 52 miles and 16 kWh.

I have a standard Hymotion system with no additional hacks/mods installed. My only tricks are:

- being careful about my speed and acceleration (especially going uphill)

- shifting into neutral for parts of my downhill trip (to keep my SOC below 75%)

- starting the car with the Hymotion switch off and then switching it on after several seconds (but before the engine comes on)

- only using reverse when first starting the car (and then being sure to quickly shift back to Drive and flip on the Hymotion switch before the engine comes on)

The last two "tricks" are to deal with "improvements" that were part of the most recent firmware "upgrade."

So, y'all can keep your EV-mode switches and 52-mph hacks! I don't need 'em!

Who needs to drive on the highway, anyway!

Actually, I do drive on the highway on the weekends and get pretty good mileage.

I'll be having solar panels installed soon. Then, I'll be the greenest greenie of them all! :rockon:

Arthur

 

Yeah, I occasionally "bother others." I'll admit that.

On the other hand, my commute is mostly in 30-mph zones and I live in a small town where traffic is pretty light. So, it's actually very easy to stay in EV mode. In fact, nobody ever beeps at me!

Now, that wasn't true when I lived in New Jersey. There, I could be going 10 mph OVER the speed limit and people would honk at me.

The only time I look at my SOC is on my way down the hill. If I let it charge up too much, I'll get kicked out of EV mode. I usually drive around 29 mph, with only occasional glances at the speedometer.

So, for my driving conditions, I don't really need the 52-mph hack. In fact, I'm glad I don't have to worry about restarting my car in order to get the engine to come on. They say that shifting into neutral (on my way down the hill) might be unsafe. I don't agree (not with a Prius), but I do think that it's unsafe to not be able to start your ICE when you might need to.

So, be careful with that!

Arthur