Gaming the system: record EV range!

EV on downhills can help efficiency because the system will turn off the engine between ~40 and ~62mph. On the flip side, by extending the glide in EV, during the pulse, the engine operates more efficiently because there isn't as much low load (and low efficiency) operation.

 

This is very interesting but sounds like way too much work for me! And also a constant distraction, looking at the display and your speed, figuring out which button to push next etc. But definitely interesting. Thanks for posting.

 

every time i try to push a button while driving, i knock the shifter into next week.

 

It's also illegal to drive above the speed limit & I would estimate that 95%+ vehicles on the road do just that at one point or another in their travels whether on purpose or on accident.

I would assert that the vast majority of "hyper milers" whom are doing this are paying much closer attention to the road conditions than everybody else around them.

 

I usually take this approach on shorter length hills, but on some very steep and long ones, I'll start off at say 55 MPH and put the car into N, then when my speed gets up to about 75 MPH, or 10 over the speed limit, I'll put the car back into D to slow it down and regen. As far as I know, I've always kept it in HV mode to do this, so the engine may have stayed on during the coast in N portion. I'll pay better attention to the EV indicators from now on.

 

How do you apply P&G on freeways where the average speed is 75+ mph, like on I-5 between San Francisco and Los Angeles? Essentially, one is always above the 64mph threshold where the ICE comes on (if not in N).

And don't you really have to know your topography? It doesn't do any good to get the top of hill with so much charge that the battery fills up before you get to the bottom of the hill and you have to dissipate the energy with friction brakes or engine compression braking. In such cases, wouldn't it be better to actually use some or all of the EV on the way up?

 

I find this thread both interesting and fascinating. Thanks everyone!

Most of the time, my wife does the driving (please don't ask why) and I sit in the passenger seat (at least its not the back seat!) and act as "throttle man." I mash the buttons to my hearts content while watching the MID. We have the Technology Package and the energy bar is shown in the HUD for my wife to see but without as much detail as the MID. I can switch between EV/HV to accommodate her driving technique at the time. I AVOID, AT ALL COSTS, COMMENTING ON HER DRIVING SKILLS! I also switch between D and B gears to maximize regeneration.

Here is the situation, we drive up the mountain on a winding road for business purposes once or twice a week. It is a 4000 elevation gain in a 40 minute drive, then back down. Going up I keep it mostly in HV/ECO mode and D gear (there are a couple of short downhills). Coming back down, I keep it mostly in EV/ECO mode and B gear going an average of maybe 40 MPH.

Question: How does the B gear come into play with P&G technique?

BTW, we have found that EV mode won't work if the you have the radar cruise control activated (even below 40 mph). So P&G technique doesn't work with cruise control which should be intuitively obvious.

 

Hmmm! Maybe she should enter her EV mileage in the EV Mile Tracker topic here. Might even be able to give bisco a run.

 

NOBODY can top the Bisco!

 

you haven't met my better half.

 

I'm convinced the "B" setting is mostly a feel good setting for concerned drivers.

The car will allow the max traction battery charge & then go into "B" on its own from what I can ascertain so why bother manually switching to it?

 

Ahh.. I forgot I was in the PiP section.

And yet another reason why I want a PiP over my "plain jane" Prius.

A PiP would fit my driving style, range needs, & local geography to a "T"!

Thanks for the education.

 

I've been using EV mode glides for speeds of 45-65MPH, along with pulses in HV mode, for the past several months. Definitely has improved my fuel economy but the weird consequence is the EV range estimate which was stubbornly 13.6 miles (heater off) has jumped up to 16+ miles. My actual EV range appears unchanged as I can still, just, make,in EV only, the 12 mile round trip to the nearest grocery store.

 

Try P & G at above 45 MPH when driving to the grocery store
Now seriously, car computer takes your recent history into account when calculating expected EV miles, as it should. Why do you care? Estimate is only (moderately) accurate after several repeated same trips and only for the next same trip.