I have a 2013 Prius Plug-In. When new the range indicator for the battery showed 11.1 miles. It has slowly declined over time. First it went down to about 10.6, then gradually to 9.6, and now 8.7. If anything, my driving is much less aggressive than when it was new. So what can be causing this problem?
there is normal battery degradation. after that, it could be ambient temp, driving conditions, rolling resistance and etc. how many miles on her? do you only watch the gauge, or do you actually measure ev miles?
Ambient temperatures in the 30s or below will easily drop your range that much and will also kick your engine on to prevent over-charging if you brake too hard with a full charge.
How long since you bought the vehicle? I assume you bought it in 2013 or 14 since you said “when new “?
Mine is also same issue now. Same model car(see my signature for car details). I used to get 11.2 miles since I bought(in 2017 used) and last month it has dropped to 9.7 miles.
I target to run the PHEV regardless of its EV miles holding till the end of 2021 as my CAV (HOV) decal is valid till then. One its done, I will plan on a better HEV(Hopefully Lexus comes with a comparable HEV to Prius Plug in) I am really hoping CT200h got an electric component along with Hybrid option. But Lexus killed it all together.
The CT is still in production, just not for sale in North America. It's based on the old 2nd generation Toyota Auris with the hybrid powertrain from the Gen 3 Prius, so is due a replacement though.
I have a 2014 Plug In with the same problem, was 11-12 miles on a charge now 9.8 miles which I just noticed this reduction in the past month or so November and December. I live in Minnesota and I was thinking our colder temps might be the issue, however, the car is stored inside a garage with temps around 40-50 degrees with outside temps 0-35 degrees. I do not recall seeing this in previous winters so am wondering if at 68000 miles this reduction is normal. Or is 40-50 degrees cold enough to cause this reduction?? Thanks for your thoughts
That's absolutely cold enough to reduce your range. Also remember that when your car leaves that "cozy" garage, it starts getting chilly just like you would. It helps that it's rolling, but unless you're going really short distances, those outside parts will chill quickly. Also, I assume you're not using cabin heat, so the battery will get chilly, too. Even here in FL, my Prime is noticeably more efficient in EV on a 70F afternoon than a 40F morning.
Thanks Jerry. My concern is that I do not recall this reduction in previous winters, however, it could have happened and I just did not notice. I do have heat on for passengers if that is what you mean by cabin heat. I have read that the battery management system in these plug ins might result in some degradation to the battery capacity and that there might be some process one could use to improve capacity. May be a hoax but I have wondered about it. All in all we are pleased with the MPG we get with our 2014 Prius. I believe we have averaged over 55 MPG since new but that is just my estimate. The Toyota readout of MPG may be inaccurate but often on the trips around town we take says anywhere from 40 to 100 MPG
@GTE, I hope I didn't make it sound like I don't believe in battery degradation. It's pretty much a given. Just commenting that there are other factors that cloud the issue. I put about 36,700 miles on my 2013 PiP from December, '16 - March, '19 and averaged 84.9 mpg. I didn't track kWh per charge, but my EV-HV ratio didn't change enough for me to see it on my spreadsheet.
Jerry, Thanks and I understand. Your MPG is pretty good and I cannot expect such n Minnesota with our winters.
I monitor how good my battery is via how much charge it takes... my 2014 PIP has 130,000 miles on it, and takes 2.4KW to charge it...when this number goes down, the battery is wearing out.. The milage will vary by how you drive it, the outside temperature, and where you are driving it. The charge will not vary much based on those conditions.
