2012 V So today i was sitting in a car wash in Neutral, Had the AC on auto. All of a sudden the Square amber P lamp came on and the battery was down to one bar with a red flashing around the entire battery Display From what i can tell the ICE failed to start to run the generator to charge the pack back up. When i entered the wash i think i only had a couple of bars left on the battery . Is it possible that the car didn't start the engine because i was rolling in Neutral in the Carwash? After i pulled off the wash's conveyor and popped it back into drive the engine started right back up and started charging the battery back up. I then went for a 15 min drive to charge the pack back up and then proceeded to sit in Park at home with the AC on waiting to see if the ICE would start up when the pack was depleted. It did when the Bars went Blue (stereo screen car info) and started to charge again. Anyone have something similar? TIA Richard.
oh nevermind.. Charging is not possible in Neutral and My pack was depleted Warning light/details: The amount of charge remaining in the hybrid battery (traction battery) has fallen because the shift position has been left in N for a long time. Correction procedure: Because recharging is not possible when the shift position is in N, shift the shift position to P when parking the vehicle for a long time.
You got it... Enter the car wash with a full pack in Neutral with the A/C and any other power drains such as AUTO headlights OFF.
yes, this has happened to many unwittingly. don't go in unless you have a good charge. and when your car gets older, don't go in at all.
Our dealership has a carwash where the car goes in and stops. Then a big frame with all the jets and brushes passes along it. That's the way to go. In the interim with your carwash: go in with a decent amount of charge, and keep everything non-essential (that includes AC) turned off. Or wash it in the driveway: much better.
I pay $17 a month for unlimited Car Washes. First time this ever happened. I'll remember for next time..
$17 CAD a month? Get some waterless wash or a no-rinse method (or a self-serve bay) and do it yourself! I just spent $40 on a waterless spray kit with enough to last me for at least six months, including four microfiber cloths and a scrubber. Those tunnel washes just scratch up your paint. But yeah, neutral doesn't charge the battery. Though, doesn't Power mode force the gasoline engine to stay on? Is there any mode that does so? Not great for fuel economy, sure, but I'd rather have a temporary MPG penalty than a flat battery...
I spent maybe $10 on a bottle of car wash liquid, that lasted maybe a decade? At least that. It finally ran out a while back, got this baby, for about the same amount:
Unfortunately I live in an apartment building. No option for self washing. I'd love to wash with the pressure washer and foam but doesn't work with the current home .. Posted via the PriusChat mobile app.
A moot point, if you can't driveway wash that's that. But about pressure washer and foam: I put about a tablespoon of liquid concentrate in a pail, add about a gallon of water. I get out the hose, go over the car with a sponge, and when done, there maybe 3 quarts still in the pail, which I pour down the drain in the house. There's a young guy up our cul-de-sac, the family has some beautiful Nissan sport cars, he's working for a dealership I think. We're walking the dog up that way, he's washing his car with some pressure washer system, and there's a foam explosion going on, lol. You can't SEE the storm drain in the gutter, with the foam build-up. I didn't cluck or anything, think I just said nice clean car. I think he just was trying it out the system, he mentioned something to that effect.
Ugh. Can you picture any nearby streams? "Turn every Sunday wash into a foam party"?? Ours is lucky if it gets washed alternate months, lol, one tablespoon of concentrate, and most of it recovered. We had a DIY car wash ban during a drought, and then we got a cloudburst, so I figured it was legit: washed it with rain water. My quality control guy got into the picture:
I thought I was the only loon to wash my cars in the rain. We have a very expensive water company and our monthly bills run anywhere from $100 to $170 US. Why you say, it is easy, I can pay for the water or buy another truck load of sod. Though this winter and spring we have gotten so much rain I'm cutting the grass every 5 days. I tried wood chips and then pine straw. My intent was never to wow again. It is a lot easier to blow leaves into a pile from grass than either of those alternatives.
