Newbe with a few questions about the Prius battery

I think Toyota states something in the vicinity of 1 mile for electric range. In practice, it uses the engine most of the time excepting when you're creeping in traffic, or driving a steady speed under 40mph on a flat to downhill stretch of road. I've found electric range to be determined by the length of the downhill stretch in a 35 mph zone.

 

welcome to priuschat!

1) you cannot go more than a mile or two on electric, unless going slightly downhill.

2) my pip (plug in prius) gets 10-16 miles on a charge, based on how fast i drive, accelerate, outside temp and hills.

3) we're on our second hycam (hybrid camry) fantastic car, average low 40's mpg's, quiet, powerful, smooth, comfortable. my wife loves it, and i do when we head down your way.

4) all the best!

 

Except for in low speed situations like parking lots, you usually don't want to use as much battery as possible. All the energy for a non-plugin Prius comes from gas. The battery is there to mainly to help boost the small engine's power, capture energy when braking, and to allow the engine to turn off and on as needed. Trying to see how far you can go on the battery in everyday driving will likely lower your mileage.

The battery in your Prius is about 1/20th the size of the battery in a Nissan Leaf and only about half of the capacity is used in order to maximize the life expectancy. Tesla's are currently the only EVs that can go hundreds of miles per charge. They can only do this because they have batteries about 4 times bigger than the Leaf's.

This video is a good intro into how to maximize mileage in a Prius.

 

You own a Gen 3.

You seem to both grasp...and yet not understand the hybrid concept.
Even the PiP is a hybrid.
No Prius is going to allow you to use the battery exclusively for too long, regardless of state of battery charge.
If yours is a standard Prius and you coaxed 4.6 miles of electric travel out of her....good job.

HSD or Hybrid Synergy Drive is dependent on the "Synergy" part. That's a cooperation between ICE and Electric Motor. There's software mojo at work that automatically will determine when the engine should kick in. You can have a fully charged Hybrid Battery and if the engine get's too cold the vehicle will kick on the ICE to keep it up to temp, for emissions purposes.

The longest periods of time I've been able to stay in EV mode have probably come in traffic jams, and in that case I'm just happy about the gas I'm saving while inching along, not really how far I'm getting on electric.

In any case, I personally enjoy the freedom of NOT paying too close attention to when my engine is kicking on and off. I trust the software. If I develop a problem, I figure I'll get a code or the operation will be so evident I notice. What I judge my Prius's performance on is full and multiple tank MPG, as long as it's giving me good/great efficiency at the pump? Then I say The Prius is OK.

 

... and lower the life-span of the battery, too. There's really no point in trying.

 

we're on our second hycam. fabulous machine. if you can put up with 45 mpg.

for road noise, you may want to consider quieter tyres and some dynomat.

 

dynomat, and other brands, are sound deadening insulation. people start under the spare tyre, and are so pleased with the change, they pull the carpets, and do the whole floor. then inside the doors and wheel wells and voila! lexus.