planet4ever
Well-known member
No, I haven't been racing, flying on the freeway, climbing hills, or even gunning it at stoplights. For the past six days I've just been making a few short trips in town.
10.1 miles total, and 4 bars gone.
2.2 m/kWh is probably roughly comparable to our Prius getting 20 mpg. Now, I know that can happen in a Gen 2 Prius like ours if you make very short trips spaced far apart. Gasoline engines are incredibly inefficient when they are cold, and Toyota's Hybrid Synergy Drive doesn't seem to be able to escape that. But I didn't expect an electric motor to be grossly inefficient when it was cold.
Let me make this clear -- I'm not talking really cold weather, like below freezing. Our nighttime low temperatures here have been around 40°, and I've only been driving the car in the afternoon and early evening when the outside temperatures are probably around 55° to 65°. I've also been making trips so short that there was no point in turning on the heater. I am talking about battery temperatures between 4 bars and 5 bars (perhaps because I park outside), but I'm not even sure why the battery temperature would affect the dash m/kWh. Headlights? Sure, but only low beams.
The areas in town where I have been driving are essentially level, +/- 30 feet. I have probably gone up to 4 acceleration bubbles occasionally, but I haven't done any braking beyond very gentle. I started with an 80% charge, and I have not seen more than one unavailable regen bubble during the whole time. So what is going on?
Ray
10.1 miles total, and 4 bars gone.
2.2 m/kWh is probably roughly comparable to our Prius getting 20 mpg. Now, I know that can happen in a Gen 2 Prius like ours if you make very short trips spaced far apart. Gasoline engines are incredibly inefficient when they are cold, and Toyota's Hybrid Synergy Drive doesn't seem to be able to escape that. But I didn't expect an electric motor to be grossly inefficient when it was cold.
Let me make this clear -- I'm not talking really cold weather, like below freezing. Our nighttime low temperatures here have been around 40°, and I've only been driving the car in the afternoon and early evening when the outside temperatures are probably around 55° to 65°. I've also been making trips so short that there was no point in turning on the heater. I am talking about battery temperatures between 4 bars and 5 bars (perhaps because I park outside), but I'm not even sure why the battery temperature would affect the dash m/kWh. Headlights? Sure, but only low beams.
The areas in town where I have been driving are essentially level, +/- 30 feet. I have probably gone up to 4 acceleration bubbles occasionally, but I haven't done any braking beyond very gentle. I started with an 80% charge, and I have not seen more than one unavailable regen bubble during the whole time. So what is going on?
Ray