I hear a lot of eV owners saying that it isnt good to charge to 100% everyday. For the Prime owners out there what do you do? Do you plug in every night and charge to 100%? That is what I am doing. Should I not be?
The right thing to do is to schedule the charge in a way where when it hits 100% is about the time you're getting ready to get on the road. It's never ideal to charge to 100% and leave it there sitting for days, weeks or longer. Gen4 had the option to choose what time you want it to be done, leaving the car to calculate when it should start. I wasn't able to do such a thing for the Gen5, so I just had to kind of eyeball it myself when it should start charging and be full around the time I leave.
A PHEV charging schedule or habit is different from an EV. If the Gen 4 Prime is anything to go by, Toyota has a huge buffer at the top. In the old Prime, 100% is 83% true SOC (which is where you'd normally charge an EV to daily, anyway). So I would say go ahead and charge full. Ideally, use it as soon as possible (so use the "Departure" schedule so that the car can finish close to your departure time). (Oh I see the Gen 5 doesn't have that option?) In my old Prime, I plug it in every night (since it had a shorter range too, I do end up using it every day anyway).
If I am not mistaken, you can set it in the car of via the app. Just found it, page 108 in the Prime manual: By setting charging schedule, it is also possible to charge at the desired date and time. IMHO, it is not just good for battery in terms of longevity, but performance consistency as well - battery will be on the optimal temperature when you need it.
I got an EVSE (wall charger) that had a scheduler option. This worked extremely well with TOU metering.
For Gen5, App doesn't give you the option to start the charge using just an end time. It requires a start time. You can only put an end time along with start time to form a charging timeframe.
there are some ev's (tesla for one) that allow 100% charging. toyota does not, at least for prime. while the dash will tell you it's full, behind the scenes, toyota has hidden a portion of the battery (buffer) at the top and bottom, so you cannot fully charge or discharge. with a phev, you want a full charge because the battery is small (er). toyota has you covered, charge away!
Here is what the 2023 Prime Owner's Manual says: It doesn't flat out say not to let it sit for long periods with a full charge. But it does say to avoid parking it in high temperatures and hot sun while fully charged, and to use the charge scheduler as much as possible to reach full charge only just before driving.
I occasionally do two 20-odd mile trips, several hours apart. On those days I charge my 22 Prime twice! I figure the traction battery has a ten year warranty, why not use it?
