Traction Battery Preventative Maintenance - Hybrid Automotive Chargers

There is a whole Web page on Jeff' site, that includes a grid that lists discharge levels. Hybrid Automotive - Simple Discharger User Guide

 

1. I assume that you may have disconnected the 12V battery when you were working on the traction battery. If so, that may explain why the MFD mpg indication has increased, as the associated electronics were reset.
2. If your actual mpg based upon your manual calculations have not improved after a reasonable amount of samples have been collected, I would trust that more as an actual indication of your car's fuel economy.
3. An old catalytic converter may be plugged up, restricting exhaust gases flow. With a new cc I would expect the engine may show improved performance simply because it can get rid of exhaust gases more easily. I'm not sure that would improve fuel economy but it should improve power output at high RPMs.

 

Jeff,

Thanks for the response I appreciate the information. With charging, discharging and then recharging I don't think I will get more than a single cycle in so will watch for that voltage. Hard to find 5W bulbs but I do have 15W ones to use.

Thanks again,
Chris

 

Patrick,

Good thought on the 12V. A system reset is something that should be done at least yearly, IMO anyway. That may be why the screen is reading so high.

My manual MPG calculations fluctuate and I posted now because with winter conditions now in place with the stupid bladder everything goes into question, lol. Some days you only get 8 gallons warmer ones 9.5 but never over 10 like you do in summer. Granted it doesn't through off the actual MPG much but it makes consistency difficult.

The new CAT, other than making my CEL go away hasn't had any noticeable effect on Ema, as far as I can tell. My improved power and lower oil consumption has held steady with the use of pure gas that I started months ago.

Thanks for responding!!!! You are probably The Expert that myself and other people look to on here and I for one REALLY appreciate all your help, feedback and suggestions. THANK YOU

Chris

 

Additional Information - Please Read,

I wanted to post here about an anomaly I experienced with my hybrid battery charger. This is only a working theory but I believe it is correct. Please read.

Since the power cord that connects to the hybrid charger stays connected and in your spare tire area I STRONGLY recommend being extremely careful with where it is placed. I believe my plug fell off the little ledge in the spare battery area and down into the valley where the spare is held. Those of us with high mileage Prii in most need of the hybrid charger also probably have worn weather stripping, seals, etc... This can cause water to get into the spare/trunk area sometimes around the 12 volt, etc...

I had water buildup in my spare area and was required to stop quickly for a herd of deer I believe this caused my cable plug to be covered in water and generated a P0AA6 error code, which is the high voltage isolation fault. I cleared the code after drying the plug and have not experienced any errors since so think Ema is ok. I have since mounted a sticky back and zip tied my plug so it will stay on the ledge and out of any potential water areas.

Just FYI for everyone. If you want to read more here is the thread on the issue.

Ema - Red Triangle, No Gas Engine, No Codes Thrown? | PriusChat

Happy driving,
Chris

 

hi jeff, for best prophylactic measures, at what mileage should we begin the process?

 

Jeff652,

I carry a lot of tools and equipment in my hatch area for work and didn't want to worry about the plug getting damaged or being in the way of anything and getting caught on something. So I didn't run it all the way out of the spare area like your picture. With the sticky back and zip tie on the ledge it should be ok now. Actually the plug itself is routed up near the battery so if it gets "wet" now I am really SOL because the battery will get it as well, lol.

Happy driving,
Chris

 

That extremely dangerous scenario. Live cable hanging out of the battery compartement is LETHAL threat and posess health and safety risks. Previously suggested solution by the seller of using "diode" is incompetent ignorance.

 

a) On-board charger and BMS in Prius does the job better than anything else and sufficient enough to give the battery designed life expectancy

b) There is no need to do that kind of trickle charge maintenance in Prius

c) Prius Battery Management System will disallow unbalanced pack to operate.

d) Trickle charge of NiMH batteries by any external charger does NOT fix imbalance and does absolutely no good in prolongation of the lifespan of the traction battery.

 

I think there is going to be more than a few people that are going to disagree with the above statements.
I will volunteer to be first on the list.

John (Britprius)

 

don't bother john, he's been trolling here for quite a long time now.

 

Yes I think that description is beginning to fit.

John (Britprius)

 

He is not worth our time.

 

Suggest you 3 boys look at the stats:
Kiwi has posted since Jul, 2012 only 88 posts. Only valuable information. Supported by facts, honest info, always critical to unsafe or fraudulent practice. Before fingerpointing at someone else - just look at yourselves:
usnavystg - since Jul, 2011 - 2785 posts
Bitprius - since Jun, 2010 - 4569 posts, and
bisco - since May, 2005 - 24633 posts!!! - an increadible number of 7 posts on average each and every day... :-( very sad.
Oh boy, do you folks have nothing else to do with your life but reply to each and every twit on the net?
FYI: I've been on the net since it's beginning and saw it all evolving. The number of my posts over the last 20 years on ALL forums is times less than "usnavystg" posted in the last 3 years.
Live your life, enjoy it, go to the beach, surf or swim (as we are doing here in NZ for the last couple of months) or take a bushwalk, see the mountains, lakes or waterfalls.

I will always be happy to host anyone of you 3 if you come to NZ to pick up my equipment. And show you around so that your eyes at least for a few days will be unglued from the screen. And your fingers will rest on a fishing rod and not the keybord.
As for the timebeing - for the next few weeks will be busy incorporating new design into my 2A HV chargers.

Anyone who can sourse 10-turn 10-50 kOhm trim pots of the excelent quality are welcome to make me an offer.

 

i don't have anything better, is that a problem? we have five feet of snow on the ground, pretty tough to do any of the things you mention. enjoy your beautiful country! there's no need to bash others here.

 

Kiwi,

A good measure of helpfulness on PC is to look at the percentage of "likes" they have received. You at 36% have been very helpful. Bisco has a good rating at 17%. BritPrius and Usnavystg are highly rated at 29% and 27% respectively.

JeffD

 

Did somebody say something???