Question on PHEV Prius

A have a question about the Plug In Prius - The talk is that there are three batteries, two that charge from the mains and one for the hybrid side of things. I'm wondering if Toyota will bring out an official option to add batteries to the plug in side to extend the range? Maybe an option of 23 mile range with an extra battery or 30 miles with two extra batteries?

 

I'd think about adding an enginer kit to the PHV if it'd be possible. Then again, I've got a 2010 and should have my enginer kit in my car any month now and no plans to trade up anytime soon. For me, the enginer kit would be more practical than additional OEM ones from Toyota. Enginer would accomodate my commute and my guess would be cheaper than Toyota. As with all vehicles, driver requirements plays a major role. I drive 5 miles to just about everything I do, not counting trips. I typically have anywhere from 5 - 7 stop lights (which seemed timed to make me stop at each one during those daily commutes). I would hope the enginer can pump enough power back into the PHV battery packs to keep them topped off pretty easily given the constant stop-and-go that I deal with.

Again, it all depends on driving requirements for most people. I could easily get by with the 12 miles on the PHV (although, I do go home for lunch, making my commute 20 miles each day) because I could sneak a plug into some of the 120v outlets in the garage at work.

 

Hi Wick1ert,
I have had a 4kwhr in my wife's 2010 for several months now. The full details are at...
http://priuschat.com/forums/gen-iii...ic-vehicle-installation-in-portland-area.html
I can easily get 99.9mpg on the Prius trip average for trips like yours, if I work to maximize EV. If you just drive normally you will get 80mpg or so.

To maximize EV, I always start with 7 or 8 bars. The car will start with its ICE warm-up while forward motion comes from electrons. During this first 3/4 mile the Enginer system will generally keep up because I am going slow (20-25mph). Then I come to a full stop and after 5-10seconds the ICE shuts down. At this point EV is limited to 10 mpg but if I do not push the EV button but instead use a light foot to keep the power bar in the lower 1/2 then I can baby the speed up to 42mph with no ICE. If I need to accelerate the ICE will come back on and stay on until the ICE comes up to running temp.

When you are pushing for 99.9mpg the limiting factor tends to be ICE temp. I find that the ICE will cool off from not running and then EV will be limited again. Also, anytime you turn the car off and back on, like a quick stop at a store, you will need to have the ICE go through warm-up again.

A ScanGauge is really needed so that you can see ICE temp and RPM and Current into/outof the Prius HV Battery.

Of course the Toyota PHEV Prius will not have these issues because they will change the computer programming to correct for the PHEV assist. Note that Enginer does not do anything to change or spoof the Prius computer programming.

Thanks,
Dan

 

I'd still take 80 mpg. I don't hypermile, although I will tend to coast to lights and stuff. I'm not an aggressive driver, so I'd consider that I fall in the middle somewhere. The last time I hear from Patrick (the installer in eastern PA), he said something about July. This was over a month ago, but I think maybe he's been out of town.

My thinking for the Enginer in a PHV Prius, would be the ability on a stop-and-go drive to help keep the plug-in packs topped up. Depending on the thru-put power requirements, it may be able to successfully double your EV range (of course, depending on commute type). I was thinking that potentially from a cost-benefit standpoint, I'd expect Enginer to be quite a bit cheaper but its limitations may be the downfall for adding to a PHV. Something we will have surely have to get additional information and testing on.

 

Just FYI, there are other after market Prius conversion systems coming relatively soon to the market for the Gen3 model Prius with significantly larger ranges. I agree that Toyota's PHV is a step in the right direction, but 13 (EDIT: sorry--14) miles is a bit disappointing.

EV WORLD CURRENTS: PICC's 40-Mile Plug-In Prius

Andrew

 

i would not add an aftermarket PHV to my prius. i'd rather not void the warranty. the PHV Prius from toyota will be official, you'll get OEM support, OEM reliability, and you probably won't have to pay $10,000 extra to rip out perfectly good batteries and install new ones, while eliminating any cargo space you might've had.

 

I wonder what the pricing will be on that kit. Awesome results for sure!

 

I would bet that it will be closer to $15,000 than $10,000. I also expect the Toyota and Nisan and Chevy will all be at least $15,000 additional over a stock version those cars. It won't be priced and levels lower than this because there are a lot of people that will pay for the new technology. Maybe in 2 or 3 years the price will come down to a reasonable amount.

Thanks,
Dan

 

That kit looks great, but i don't think they have a dealer in the uk, and the price is going to be pretty high i think. I'm happy to have a play with the cheaper Enginer kit, but as soon as i can get hold of an OEM car (be it Ampera, Prius PHEV, or some BEV with enough range) i eill get one of them instead.

 

Please be aware the 14 miles EV range is for the current field testing Prius PHV.
No one knows the EV range for the consumer version yet.
Rumors said Toyota will offer various EV range options for the consumer version Prius PHV.
I think it is too early to discuss any detail now.

Ken@Japan

 

It seems to me that the limiting factor is the battery size of the selected LiFEPO4 chemistry. I don't see how they could cram any more range into it than they already have (given that there already is no spare tire and the batteries still protrude ever so slightly in to the trunk space). We'll see what they come up with...

Andrew