Anyone ever take a moment to consider the advantage of having seperate HV & EV battery-packs? The EV pack will always be used first, since there's no EV button on the PHV. That means those kWh will provide the MPG boost... leaving the HV pack untouched until afterward. Imagine how many miles the HV pack won't provide kWh for as a result. That could work out to something like 3500 to 5000 less annually than a no-plug Prius. Many years later when the EV pack is starting to show some age, the HV pack will still be going strong. That could contribute to unusually high resale values and a heck of a nice upgrade platform. .
You are making an assmuption here ("...leaving the HV pack untouched until afterward") which may be true but may not. Let me give you another possibility - the reason for separate HV & EV packs is their different functions: While the EV pack(s) is designed for deep discharge cycles however with low to moderate discharge rates and low charge rate (while plugged-in), the HV pack is designed for relatively shallow discharge cycles but with the possibility of high charge/discharge rates (like in regen situation, even in EV mode). Future will tell (hope near future). Giora.
Currently, it is true. That's how the PHV on the road now works. I witnessed that behavior firsthand. Whether the design is retained is an unknown. But if it is, that is a notable distinction from the other plug-in hybrid currently available. .
The EV sub-packs is what I had heard. Are you saying the HV & EV will be combined also, so there's only 1 total? .
In your firsthand experience - how could you tell which pack (the EV or the HV) is capturing regen oportunities in EV mode? I guess you assumed it's the EV pack... Your assumpion, by the way, contradict Toyota publication saying that in EV mode the EV pack (currently on line) is working in tandem with the HV pack. Giora.
Got a link handy and when that was published? I'd like to know what activity would invoke that. I didn't see anything during either EV discharge or regen to indicate the HV was active. The range indicator was always in reference to EV when in EV, both when accelerating and rolling downhill. .
John, I remember discussing this when the spec became available. I think the answer was the Prius PHV prototype was smart enough to rotate the packs. Main pack may become subpack in the next run, which is probably why all 3 packs have the same capacity. Sage, that single pack was just a rumor. The article said it may be a possibility in the production version.
Have to admit, that was what I had read into it as well. The HV pack is always on-line and takes ALL the regen capacity. And I had read the 2 EV packs switched as to when which was first used.
