Observation in heavy traffic this morning.

I'm finding that mine likes to run the engine more in the morning. It's not exactly what I would say is cold outside (44 degrees F, but sunny), so I don't think the car is doing it for my benefit. I left the climate control off yesterday morning to see if that made a difference, it didn't. I am suspecting that the car is using the ICE to somehow warm the battery and/or other electrical components. On the way to work I'm in the low 40 mpg, on the way home I'm in the high 60s to 70s mpg. I suspect the long cold soak overnight gives the battery chills.

 

65 degrees? I'd say ambient temperature is what's causing the extra idling. As in, it's warmer now, so the AC has to work harder to keep the interior cool.

 

^ This, probably (I have a 2010). With mine, to keep it in maximum EV usage, I set the mode to ECO and set the AC somewhere between 74 and 77 degrees and the fan at two bars or less. The ECO setting lowers the AC power by 200 watts and that alone will do wonders with EV mileage. I will occasionally go lower temp or higher fan if it is absolutely stifling outside, but those settings work wonders, at least on a GenIII.

 

Many times New Prius Owners, are paying attention to everything very closely.
Which is good and bad.
So I don't mean to sound snarky, when I say the best advice is don't worry about it.
Basically the two parameters that seem to influence the availability of EV the most are state of battery charge, and how warmed up the engine may or may not be.

But I've been driving my Prius for nearly 3 years now, and sometimes I believe the engine is warmed up, the HV battery is charged enough, and still it will be resistant to going into EV mode.

Other times, the opposite. It may be cold outside, or I haven't been driving that long, and I'll glance at the dash, and indeed The Prius is motoring along in EV mode.

So really? Even though clearly some factors DO affect the availability of EV, the primaries being engine temp and battery state of charge, I've given up worrying about them.
It only leads to "imagining" their might be something wrong. New Prius Owners believing something is wrong if they are "idling" more or not going into EV mode as much as they think they should.
For the most part I judge the efficiency and evaluate the operation of the Hybrid Synergy Drive by one factor. My gas mileage.
If my tank to tank...NOT trip to trip, but tank to tank gas mileage is good? Then I assume the Hybrid Synergy Drive is working correctly. Which means I don't worry too much on any given trip or any given moment whether the vehicle is operating on battery power, ICE, or a blended combination of the two.

In short...to paraphrase Bobby McFerrin- I don't worry...I be happy....

 

65 is the answer. The AC is a killer to MPG. Crack the window, open the vent, and set the temp to 68 with the AC off and fan on low.

A real man doesn't need AC.

I never use the AC in the morning except during rain.

 

"The other thing I noticed was a high pitch screetch type of sound as I was moving in the traffic."

I'm curious about that one too. I haven't heard it on my car (yet). What could it be? Let's hear from the Prius Vets. Driving a Prius for the first time, is definitely an interesting learning experience. I seem to hear a new "Star Trek"'sound every day! What is all that stuff?! I open the door, sit down, and before I even touch anything I'm hearing all kinds of "buzzing", "whirring", etc. It's fun.

Re: Fuel mileage. It amuses me that some Prius drivers are checking their mileage during a short 3 mile trip! I don't mean to offend anyone, but isn't that kind of silly, and not even realistic? I'm a "full tank" guy. Drive that thing EMPTY... and then tell us what kind of MPG you got. My last little 3-mile trip, ("from the flag") showed something like117 MPG. Now, we all know that's not real... so why even look at it? It's just entertainment, I guess.

ETP and his Macho Men!

Thanks, that one made me laugh!

You got very warm weather in Florida, Frederick. I'm curious to see how my Prius performs when it gets up to 90 here. It's only been 75 recently, and I'm already running the AC every day. Doesn't seem to affect the gas mileage. And the only time I hear the ICE motor come on, is when accelerating. I've never heard it come on when stopped at traffic signals, driving in very slow traffic, etc. Or, maybe I've just tuned it out already?

 

Sounds that I have observed and identified are:

The buzzing/whirring you hear before pressing the power button is the brake pump. I believe when the driver's door is opened triggers it to cycle. You'll also hear this many times when you come to a complete stop.

When you press the power button, from under the rear seat, you'll hear main power relay for the high voltage battery pack close. Depending upon the battery pack temperature, you could hear the battery fan begin to operate.

If it's quiet enough and there's a bit of air in the engine coolant, you can hear the coolant and air moving through the heater core when the engine coolant pump starts running.

If you have the climate control system on and depending upon the selected temperature and the measured temperature inside the car, you can hear the air conditioner compressor operating (remember it's an electrically powered).

I still have not heard/identified the pedestrian warning sound.

 

Yep it's entertaining! I keep the from the flag gauge up all the time for the entertainment it provides, and it shows me how I'm driving impacts milage immediately. If I keep track of the small trips the overall tank will take care of itself. I'm sure eventually this game will get boring but for now I love seeing things like 65 mpg on lunch because those are the trips where I'd get single digit MPG in the vehicle the Prius replaced.

 

Here some entertainment for y'all.

 

Got to be tough. Never used the AC while commuting to work for 14 years in Florida.Love the heat. Vegas heat in the morning before the sun comes up is perfect.

Noises are the squirrels in the squirrel cages in the cage drive. You did put the peanuts in the box?????

Noises are for blind people to get out of the way. The other noises are start up noises. Electric shocks for the squirrels.

 

That brings up an interesting question: How much of a difference do you see in average MPG, when driving in the Power Mode?

As opposed to driving in the Normal Mode, but driving more aggressive (non-hybrid) type of driving?

Any thoughts?

 

Remember a thread several years ago on that. Seems it was a hit but if you have a calibrated foot it may not be a huge difference.
Let me look.

 

The only difference I notice between the 3 Drive Modes? The gas pedal gets firmer or lighter. Horsepower is the same. With practice, I believe a driver could get nearly the same MPG in all 3 modes.

 

Well still looking. No real MPG data that I could find.
Mine did go down in power mode on my first 3 Priuses so I don't use it at all.
Just push on the peddle if you need power. Also I have a hard time telling the difference between normal and eco because of my calibrated foot and was never able to prove one was better than the other.

 

Agreed. I drove the first month in Eco mode. 2nd month in Normal mode. Gas mileage was exactly the same; maybe even a bit better in Normal.

 

You too???? I wasn't going to say that. However it does seem to do better in eco with my wife driving.
It may be driver related. Maybe people in a hurry need to be in eco mode. Turtle power is just turtle power for me.

Most likely!