will the battery in a 30 k 2012 PIP hold up as well as the nimh ones in the regular prius

Just chiming in here to share my experience...

First, I guess it depends on the definition of "dead"; when the HV battery in my gen 2 failed in 2013 at 273K KM, the car indicated "Problem" on the MFD and the dash lit up like a Christmas tree.

However, it still let me start the car, put it in Drive, and go! I was quite impressed about this. At first, the car drove completely normal (power, fuel economy, etc.). At the second day, (lights always on), I could drive the car for a short time (~15 minutes) before the car decided to go into a protective mode and disabled the electric drive system (drastically reduced powere, and on the Energy Monitor, showed zero power arrows going to or from the electric motor). It basically felt like accelerating in 2nd gear, since the "CVT" was missing the second power source. Ugh. The bandaid was to pull over and and reboot the car and it would buy me a few more minutes of "normal" operation.

Over the next three days, as I decided the future of my car and I solicited quotes from dealers (all quoted the same, about $3500 including labour for a complete new pack), the car continued to get me around. However, with each day, the car became more protective, giving me less time before limping. But it never stranded me!

Anyway, in the end I found a private shop who specialized in Prius and he rebuilt the battery for me for a flat rate of $1200 taxes in, including a year warranty on his work, unlimited mileage. He ended up replacing 4 cells that were failing.

That was May 2013, almost 3 years and 106K has been put on since, and counting.

Such a wonderfully engineered car.

 

I don't think anyone has reported a dead PiP battery on PC yet.

 

I'm interested to see how many miles of EV range mine still has during warmer months. I bought mine used with 49000 miles on it on Christmas Eve. I've got 55,000 on it now. The most I've been able to get is 8-9 miles in Minnesota temperatures with snow tires on. So, I'm thinking my battery is still in good shape, and with regular tires and warmer temps, I hope to see 10-12, maybe even more?

 

I believe your goal will be achieved, if not exceeded.

 

I have about 70k total on my 2013 and about 20k of that in EV. I did a 16 mile round trip the other day in all EV. The temps were really nice though.

 

must be climate change.

 

Wow, you're getting great performance. Cold usually saps the life right out of those batteries. Do you keep the car in a garage?

 

I do have a garage... and the insulation from the house isn't great, so the garage stays kinda warm... hehehe. It's a lose/win situation.

 

Finally back to double digit EV predicted range this week with a 10.3. I've been in the low 9's all winter also compounded by the cheap tires I bought that are not LRR. (Missed 100k miles on OEM tires by 10k miles)

Currently at 94k miles with 25% EV. How well does the battery hold up? Well 3 years of twice daily charge/discharge cycles and we're still at double digits. If there is any degradation, I haven't noticed yet. I do notice on my iPhone 5s which only averages a single charge/discharge cycle a day will soon average more because it won't last the day otherwise. It's only 2 years old.

 

I'm only at 28K with 60% EV. With charging twice a day, I'd say I've lost about 10% of battery capacity after 3.5 years. I have a 9 mile commute so my commute is 100% EV. At least so far. It's fairly clear to me that in another 3 years, I'm not going to make 9 actual miles during the winter months, even though I started with > 2 miles to spare even in below freezing temps. I already do just in time charging so batteries are generally warm for my commute. I do have the benefit of garage at home and underground parking garage at work.

I will be disappointed when the ICE has to come on to make it the last mile, but the battery has been perfect size for me so far.

 

What kind of speeds do you have to go during that commute?

 

Mostly 45. Only about 1.5 miles is in the 55 range. I'm able to pulse and glide some because I'm waiting for lights to change anyway. Given a #5 posting on PiP top 20 MPGe efficiency list, I'm able to achieve good efficiency on my commute which helps maximize the miles per charge. Even so, there's always a desire for just a bit more.

 

I thought you were in EV the whole commute. Pulse and glide is only for HV mode.

 

It's not a PiP, but Sparkie the Volt is just under 300,000 miles with its Li-Ion battery.
Volt Stats! Tracking real world usage of Chevy Volts in the wild...

Edit: Sparkie made it.

 

liquid cooling?

 

Liquid cooling and heating.

 

right, tough to compare that to pip. but they are probably different chemistries, usage parameters and who knows what else.
either way, i doubt we'll see any more big battery life mistakes from any mfg, like early leaf and honda.