Does the Prius have a transmission?

I thoroughly understand the eCVT in the Prius. Once I found out how simple it is I sold my TDI and bought a '10 Prius.
So, does a PiP have a bigger MG2 or just allow more current to power it before the stinker kicks in?
I understand it allows EV up to a whopping 62 MPH! If you have patience.
I think EV in the Prius is up to 47MPH (?) but only if gas got you there and it takes finesse to stay in EV at these speeds with a standard Prius.

I do understand, but can't appreciate driving a PiP on a cold morning, (not using cabin heat because you are a geek), and you start accelerating on an entrance ramp and the first thing the stinker does is power up and make HP to get you to highway speeds.
The Volt never treats its stinker that way. It always goes through a warm up routine.

And for the record, I use NO GAS for weeks at a time. The stupid display shows +250 MPG.
And yes, it's complicated computing actual fuel costs with these cars.

For example, this 45° morning, (with cabin heat because I'm not a geek), I used 8.0Kwh to go 23.1 miles.
I pay around $0.12/Kwh. So, $0.96 to get to work, 4.15 miles/Kwh.
And this was mostly 65-75 MPH. In nice weather it can be close to 5 miles/Kwh.
But this is battery to wheels, not wall to wheels...

Shall we talk about maintenance costs?
Do you change your engine oil at 10k miles regardless of EV miles?
What is Toyota stating in the PiP manual for ATF change intervals? Is it even stated in the manual? It wasn't stated with my '10 Prius.
And I found crud in my transaxle when I changed it at 112k miles and started this thread:
ATF fluid changes ARE Required. | PriusChat

Once I got a taste of driving behind an eCVT and the little bit of EV driving the Prius offered,,,,
I sold the Prius and bought a Volt, the next step in this technology.
I briefly compared a PiP and a Volt, but com'on,,, it's not even a close comparison... Sorry, IMHO..

 

MG2 is rated 60 kW in both models.

NiMh battery in the regular Prius is rated 28 kW but for EV mode, only 10 kW (15 hp) is allowed to power up to 25 mph. I think 28kW is reserved for hybrid operation where a short burst of power is needed for acceleration, etc.

PiP Lithium battery allows 38 kW (51 hp) to operate up to 62 mph in EV mode.

A regular Prius can shutdown ICE at 46 mph and below. In the stealth mode, only 10kW is available so it is only good enough to maintain speed.

PiP with 38 kW battery can accelerate beyond 46 mph without the ICE. Even when it hits 62 mph, it can continue to accelerate but it was cap to avoid aero drag inefficiency at high speed. Gas engine was tuned to operate very efficiently above 62 mph. 1.8l ICE could revs at low 1,000 rpm thanks to the extra torque (vs. 1.5l in Gen2).

I bet your impression of PiP EV mode was anemic like a regular Prius. It is not.

See this post, to avoid duplication. It is counter-intuitive but it is better to use the gas engine for cabin heat.

PiP can accelerate and keep up with traffic merging into highway over here. Most people don't use more than 50hp when driven normally. You probably rarely use more than 50hp with your Volt. Knowing that makes a huge difference and your perception of things.

 

Thanks for the details on the PiP.
Still, "the PiP can accelerate and merge into hywy traffic"? And around here 62 MPH would be a traffic obstacle.
My point is when doing this with a stone cold engine, that is not the best thing for engine life.
Speaking of,, what about oil and ATF change intervals? How is that addressed with the PiP?

With a Volt it is always better not to use the stinker for cabin heat if you can get to your destination EV with EV heat. (It does have ERDDT which turns on the stinker below a set outside air temp, but most owners hate ERDDT. There is a hack to keep the stinker from coming on if you don't want it.)

And personally, I routinely stomp it and use all 147 HP of EV power. It's fun, silent, efficient and does not abuse anything!!

You should go take a test drive to get an impression of the Volt. It is a proper EV. It turns into a Prius after ~40 miles.
It is not a Patched In Prius Hybrid.
But your daily commute has to be under a certain distance for it to make sense, for both cars.

 

There's nothing "simple" about the Prius transmission..... if you think there is, tear the planetary gear set apart & then try to reassemble it.

The "transmission" in an EV is simpler: Basically just one gear. The Prius is not simple.

 

Well then the Prius has the simplest transaxle in a non-EV car.

Probably the smallest parts count by far compared to any automatic or 5-6 spd manual transaxles.
But you're right, some EV transaxles have less parts, maybe.

Just a few gears that are always engaged and bearings and two MG's with six heavy gauge wires running to the controller where the complicated SW runs these motors and there are a two resolvers to feedback MG rpm info to the controller.

 

PiP wasn't part of that SC, just the regular Prius.

 

Which is why you use the second onboard fuel. It can even be a combination of both. It is elegently simple to use both fuels and engines you carry. It is a plugin hybrid!

When the ICE starts, the reserved battery power is used yo baby the engine warm up. EV range drops faster since engine makes only a few HP.

If you exceed the battery support power limit, ICE will skip the warm up and make full power. Safety is more important.

Oil and ATF interval are the same as a regular Prius. Toyota is conservative.

I have driven a Volt, Leaf and Tesla Roadster but not Model S or Energi.

I find EV mode boring after some time. You go faster, the range estimate decreases. You go slower, it increases. It is pretty one dimensional.

That's why PiP is so fun to drive for me as two propulsion systems make two "gear ratios" and I can control which to use.

I want to be in the right gear to be optimum. I think using electricity for high speed is the wrong "gear" to be in. Not at today's grid carbon mix or charging speed with current infrastructure or the cost of the battery or the size it takes away interior space.

 

Check this out.

 

From what I read, the damage was caused when the HV battery gets hot. That means it will no longer be able to sustain the rated 27 kW (36hp) power.

ECU was probably programmed to generate more electricity from MG1 in such situation. If it has a bug, it'll generate more than the limit and cause damage. Perhaps, sudden spikes from the generator where battery would supply flat. That's my take on it.

Why didn't it affect Prius v? Perhaps, v has better battery cooling and would not face this scenario (unless the battery vent is blocked). PiP has two blowers (instead of one) and two air intakes. Lithium may be cooler too and more mass.

 

Hmmm.. The attachments are there (at the bottom) but the pics in the post were broken after the server upgrade. I updated the images so it was showing up for me.

If you still don't see them, refresh the page? Are you able to open the attachments at the bottom of the first post?

 

usb,
You said, "Oil and ATF interval are the same as a regular Prius. Toyota is conservative."

So, No ATF change is called for? That was crazy when I discovered that in my Gen3 owner's manual.
How is that conservative? It's more like looking the other way, sticking their head in the sand.
Are they still telling PiP owners that it is a "Lifetime Lubricant"?

And, "ICE will skip the warm up and make full power." This is not good for any engine. Pretty low tech.
With the Volt you have the full 147 HP, ICE or no ICE. This is the next Gen of hybrid/plug-in tech.

Let's not talk about where your Gas Dollars go.
I could get my ~40 miles of range from my roof top.

 

Ok, Bill. I thought you knew it is for technical discussion but you went off to trolling.

BTW, I hope you don't sell your SRECs and keep it in your Volt. That's probably the only way you can claim it is powered by your roof top.

 

Here is the Gen3 Prius hybrid transaxle. You are looking at motor/generator #1 (MG1), Power Split Device (PSD), motor/generator #2 (MG2), and finally the reduction gear.




Up next is the GM's 2-Mode hybrid transaxle. The first picture is just the motors and planetary gearsets. The second picture if the entire transaxle.




Below is the bare-bone Dual Clutch Transmission:



Audi 7-speed Dual Clutch transmission:



Now, going into "traditional" 8-speed transmission:

 

Sorry about the trolling.?.
Still, I'm just trying to help maintain your PiP's by pointing out that the manual never discusses ATF changes.
Is this true? I don't know.
Do you understand the question about this subject? Has it come up in the PiP sections here?

And thanks for the detailed pics of transmissions. An eCVT is an amazing piece of technology! But it still needs a clean lubricant.

 

Thank you for the concern. I know MG1 will rev higher than a normal Prius.

I don't recall seeing ATF change in the manual but I'll have to check again. When I had my 2006 Gen2, I changed it for just in case. It now has about 200k miles (bro has it) without any issue. I'll probably do the same as I plan to keep the car for a long time.

 

Since that point has already been debunked on several threads, it is time for a colorful response...

Prius PHV is a PLUG-IN HYBRID, which means it takes advantage of having both an electric-motor and a gas-engine.

When power beyond the electric-only threshold requested, the engine will start but is not allowed to exceed 1500 RPM.

That RPM limitation enables the engine to warm up gracefully, preventing wear a cold engine would otherwise experience.

Full draw from the battery-pack continues during the warm-up, which is how engine RPM can be limited yet still deliver power to merge onto a highway.

Remember this colorful response, so we don't have to answer the same question anymore. Seeing it repeat is really getting old.