Question about idling

[jmn20171]

Hello all,

I was wondering if anyone else has experienced this: I was "idling" for an extended period the other day and I saw that my battery charge gauge actually increased 1%. It usually does the opposite, as one would think!

Thx,
J

 

[Aussie]

Measuring battery charge is not an exact science. It's not as simple as measuring the level in a gas tank. It involves calculations including voltage, temperature, energy in / out integrations, voltage under load etc. I suspect your charge was just below the threshold (let's assume 60.98%) and one of the inputs to the calculation changed (such as ambient temperature) pushing you up slightly to ~61.01%.

 

[av8or]

It also constantly recalculates based on driving conditions. For example, a few days ago I drove on the highway most of a charge, then plugged it in for an 80% charge overnight. The GOM read something like 65 miles after charging when I started it the next morning. That morning, I was driving on local roads, 35mph max, and the GOM crept upward and got to 70. In reality I had driven 6 miles, but based on the lower speed limit, it was figuring my range on the fly and increasing it due to recent low speeds.


ahh- I see you note % increased, not GOM. Not use to % as my car doesn't have that. It is strange it increased, maybe regen'd just a little bit to increase % that had barely dropped or something...

 

[jmn20171]

Actually it may have been temperature change, since I had transitioned from a 25-mi drive to sitting indoors. I don't remember the temps though... I guess I was wondering if the batteries will balance themselves away from the charging station, but recalculation seems more likely. Thanks!

I wouldn't be surprised if the GOM uses that apparently flexible soc to predict miles remaining, along with the myriad other factors. Maybe there are even more factors than I assume!