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Traction Battery Paranoia in the Morning?

Discussion in 'Gen 3 Prius Care, Maintenance & Troubleshooting' started by kgall, Jun 25, 2013.

  1. kgall

    kgall Active Member

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    Over the last few weeks I have noted the following when I first start the car in the morning:
    I turn on the car, and turn on the A/C (this is Arkansas, remember, and the sun has already heated the car up pretty good). The Traction Battery is usually at 6 bars+/-.
    Over the next few minutes (driving uphill, maybe stopping for a minute to put trash in our trash cans, A/C on all the time), the Traction Battery goes down to 2 or 3 bars quickly. Then over the next few minutes it pretty quickly comes back up as I start driving faster (40-45) on a main road.

    I am guessing this is happening now because of my A/C use. But I don't remember this happening so much in previous summers, which were at least as hot.
    BTW, I start driving as quickly as possible after turning the car on (little or no warm up). So maybe some of this has to do with the car using battery energy while the engine is warming itself. But again, I never noticed this before.

    Is it possible that a cell or something in the battery is going bad? Or is it just completely normal and I just never noticed it before and I'm having Traction Battery Paranoia?
     
    #1 kgall, Jun 25, 2013
  2. jhinsc

    jhinsc Senior Member

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    I do the same - no warm up - and what I notice is the car will 'act' like it in EV mode using battery to move, while the ICE goes thru it's warm-up. Unless I stomp on the gas, the ICE won't engage to drive until I'm about 1/2 mile down the road.
     
    #2 jhinsc, Jun 25, 2013
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  3. Former Member 68813

    Former Member 68813 Senior Member

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    This is the part I'm uneasy about my Prius. The system is trying to save some wear and tear on cold engine use, but puts wear and tear on battery instead (my commute starts as uphill driving). On the other hand, I have no time to wait for a warm up cycle to complete. One thing I learned, is to avoid EV in parking lots, so warm up would not be delayed.
     
    #3 Former Member 68813, Jun 25, 2013
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  4. TonyPSchaefer

    TonyPSchaefer Your Friendly Moderator
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    Two things are happening here:
    • The engine is running a bit more to heat up the catalytic convertor.
    • The battery is picking up the load to reduce the load on the ICE.
    The history of the Prius is more about reducing emissions than it is improving mileage. So the first thing it wants to do is heat the engine and cat to optimum temps. In the grand scheme of reducing emissions, the battery will discharge but so what? It'll recharge eventually.

    I'm not saying I like it any more than you. My mileage takes a hit too. But understanding why makes it just a little easier to swallow.

    When I have the opportunity, I try to take it easy for the first minute or two while the engine's running by cruising the long way around a parking lot, for example. Or the subdivision if there's no traffic. If this isn't an option for you, sorry.
     
    #4 TonyPSchaefer, Jun 25, 2013
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  5. kgall

    kgall Active Member

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    Thanks, all.
    Everything you say makes sense--and BTW I think that reducing emissions is a noble cause too.

    Like Jacek, I start my drive uphill--not real steep, but steep enough that you know you are going uphill.
    My driveway is also gravel.
    Still, even with that, and with the fact that I generally have the A/C on immediately, I never noticed in previous summers that the battery would deplete so quickly--in just a couple of hundred yards or so it goes from 6 bars to 2 or 3.

    What I hear you folks all saying is that I just wasn't paying attention, and it always happened this way and I should STOP BEING PARANOID THAT MY TRACTION BATTERY IS GOING BAD!!!!

    Right?
     
    #5 kgall, Jun 26, 2013
  6. TonyPSchaefer

    TonyPSchaefer Your Friendly Moderator
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    That part I can confirm (within the context of this discussion).
     
    #6 TonyPSchaefer, Jun 27, 2013
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