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107 mpg. 1,100 mile tank. Enginer system back on track.

Discussion in 'Prius PHEV Plug-In Modifications' started by ericbecky, Jun 30, 2011.

  1. ericbecky

    ericbecky Hybrid Battery Hero

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    I wanted to report in on this customer again.

    He just called me to say that his latest tank took 34 days to use up the gas. 1,162 miles at 91 mpg! That's in the Midwest during December!

    He normally gets about 42 miles before the system shuts down.

    He has had no problems since I last checked in until this week. He had a charger that died which is now being replaced.

    He is anxiously waiting the new charger since 60mpg just doesn't cut it for him anymore!
     
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  2. Rich London

    Rich London New Member

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    I find the results above either very hard to believe or very frustrating to me. I had an Enginer 4kwh pack installed in my 2009 Prius about a month and a half ago. The mpg is VERY traffic and road dependent. When driving in rush hour in slightly hilly terrain I have gotten 80mpg. An average for most of my driving (3 - 6 mile trips 30 - 45mph) is about 68mpg.

    Interstate driving brings almost no benefit. I have found that it is best to turn the unit off on the highway and then back on about 3 miles before my exit so the Prius battery can fully charge. That is so when I am on local roads again the ICE doesn't kick in to charge the Prius battery.

    ericBecky, any advice on what I can tweak?

    Anyone else's real world numbers would be appreciated.
     
  3. dan2l

    dan2l 2014 Prius v wagon

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    Hi Rich,
    Be assured that this is true. I and one other person that I did an install for have also done this.

    First there is a big difference between a 2009 and a 2010. The 2010 regularly gets 10mpg more than a 2009. Also the GenII car limits the input from a system like the Enginer system to 15a. I have run as much as 19a into my 2010.

    Finally the mountains and freeway do make a big difference.

    Thanks,
    Dan
     
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  4. ericbecky

    ericbecky Hybrid Battery Hero

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    The results are true. But, the customer is truly an outlier. Most people will not be able to duplicate his results since he has a car and a drive which is a great fit for the Enginer kit.

    2010 Prius. Just the right length trip 42 miles. Lower speed roads (35-45 mph). Zero interstate or above 55mph driving.

    Your 3-6 mile trips will be very hard to make any difference in mpg. The warm up cycle simply hammers down the mpg too much to recover from in such a short trip.

    Your interstate driving will continue to be an aggravation to your mpg, unless you commit to not exceeding 55 mph (which is legal on most 65 mph roads). If you have time, and there is an option, try a side road more conducive to mpg.

    If you had the same car and the same trip as my customer, you could probably duplicate his results.

    If you want to give me a call, we can talk more specifics. 608-729-4082
     
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  5. usnavystgc

    usnavystgc Die Hard DIYer and Ebike enthusiast.

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    Eric,
    There is an old saying that says "Trust but verify". I know I would really like to see some pics and I have a feeling others would as well. Would you please ask your customer to take some pics of his MFD for us? I would really appreciate it.

    Thanks in advance
     
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  6. Stretch53

    Stretch53 New Member

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    See attached pictures. The first is the miles driven and the second is the fill-up; 113 miles/gallon.
     

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  7. pjc

    pjc Member

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    Eric,

    Any other ingredients to the secret sauce of your customer? Does he/she take any other measures, especially cold-weather related (grill-blocking, EBH, etc.)? I'm in MN with similar winters and am struggling to get 65 MPG with my 09 Prius + 4 kwh Enginer. And our winter has been very mild this year. With the latest cold snap (weak that it has been), my daily MPG has fallen to more like 55 MPG. My commute is not ideally suited to the PHEV kit in winter, though (short, 45 MPH, hilly route).
     
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  8. ericbecky

    ericbecky Hybrid Battery Hero

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    Nope. This guy does not do any special driving techniques, or other extra effort. The route itself is the key. In his stock Prius he gets 60 mpg or so on this route normally.


    For MN you could try adding some warming and insulation on your system.
    Or even pre-heating you cabin in some way. For example a small ceramic heater.
    You certainly should do the other cold weather techniques like grill blocking, block heater, etc. Also be sure that you understand the 5 stages of hybrid operation and get into the highest/most efficient stage as much as possible.
     
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  9. ericbecky

    ericbecky Hybrid Battery Hero

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    I've asked him to take some pics. It may be a while but I'll post them if I get them.
     
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  10. sidecar

    sidecar Member

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    well that beats my stock 2008 by a long ways...
    [​IMG]
     
  11. Rich London

    Rich London New Member

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    I have a 4kwh Enginer pack. The problem that I am having is it's hard to keep the car in EV mode. I drive back streets a lot, but it seems that once the car drops out of EV mode the first time it won't let me back in. Any suggestions?

    On a second note, I'm beginning to think that I shouldn't worry so much about staying in EV mode. Maybe I should just drive conservatively.and let the Engjiner pack do its job.

    Any thoughts on this approach?
     
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  12. ericbecky

    ericbecky Hybrid Battery Hero

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    usnavystgc,
    Stretch53 is the customer I'm talking about.
    See his pics attached in post #26 of this thread.

    Rich London,
    Like you note, It isn't necessarily about driving in EV mode.
    In fact on Stretch53's system we turned down the amps so that the pack would last longer in blended mode on his commute. As opposed to turning the amperage up high so the charge gets put back in the car quickly.

    Do you have your EV switch on a separate button? You could use it to try to get back in.
     
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  13. NortTexSalv04Prius

    NortTexSalv04Prius Active Member

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    The "107mpg" record by your customer with a Gen 3 Prius 4kw Enginer kit. I assume this was done with some of the following conditions flat roads, high % SOC, and other favorable variables.
    However, I am curious did they drive in "EV" mode more or less?How long have they had the install?
     
  14. ericbecky

    ericbecky Hybrid Battery Hero

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    This is his normal route for work. No special techniques. Just happens to have a route favorable to great mpg.

    It's not a one time occurrence, clearly, since it is for his entire 1000+mile tank.

    He has had the install for just over a year
     
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  15. NortTexSalv04Prius

    NortTexSalv04Prius Active Member

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    Additionally, Did they the "107" mpg record use a scanguage? I know the Gen 3 you can drive in "ev" and "eco" modes do they know which mode they used the most on commutes? You did say they had a "charger" failure too? On Gen 2 some owners go with "blend" mode and limited "ev" mode. The 107 mpg is based off the Gen 3 dash board readings with or without scangauge.? I get confused after 99.9 reading mpg
     
  16. NortTexSalv04Prius

    NortTexSalv04Prius Active Member

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    On your 2010 with scangauge and 4kw Enginer. How long have you had the install? You also state you go with "19amp" to feed back from additional pack is that correct?
     
  17. dan2l

    dan2l 2014 Prius v wagon

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  18. usnavystgc

    usnavystgc Die Hard DIYer and Ebike enthusiast.

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    Awesome!!! :) Really appreciate the pics.
     
  19. NortTexSalv04Prius

    NortTexSalv04Prius Active Member

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    Help me out here (since you are a installer)
    I have notice that failure of the DC - DC converter on Enginer kits with several prius chat posters is a common thread issue. The RFE battery some have had failure because low soc and not being balanced and waiting for a new dc-dc converter so they can recharge the RFE battery.I also notice some1 posted a plan B for enginer part replacement. PHV enginer owners also "think" the BMS provided is inadequate sometimes. Lastly I notice Mr big went with a hybrid interface bms $399 plus a liliput mobile flat screen.

    I am curious what are some common issues that phv owners overlook on a month to month time frame.? Plus how soon after PHV install should your monitor of mpg reflect an increase?
     
  20. lopezjm2001

    lopezjm2001 Senior Member

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    There is a lot that goes on behind closed doors in the Enginer User's forum. You must own a Enginer kit to be in the users forum. If you are really interested you should buy a Enginer kit and find out. Otherwise you are just perpetuating the negativity of the Enginer product.
     
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