2001 prius all electric

The short answer is probably no chance - unless you were to 1) go very short distances or; 1) dramatically increase the battery capacity. The other factor is - how would you charge the battery - it needs the ICE to charge? Stopping the ICE from working will probably cause the computer to say "NO - FAILURE". If not, the battery could be drained so low that it is effectively destroyed (the NiMH battery normally retains a reasonable amount of charge (is it 20%?) and then goes into charge mode by engaging the ICE).

You've got a hybrid vehicle - which basically uses 2 powertrains in conjunction - you can't make it change into a different type of vehicle without major redesign - like millions of dollars re-development. It'd be cheaper and much more effective to buy a Leaf (or even a Tesla) than that.

 

+1 If you want a Electric Vehicle, buy one. A Prius is a hybrid, the ICE has to run to keep the traction battery charged.

If you must have a Prius, and want to run electric as you described then invest in a "Plug In" Prius. The only other alternative for your 2001 would be a retrofit adding a large battery pack to the existing pack therefore making it a "plug in" type vehicle. A few years back this was popular however the companies that made the kits are no longer in existence.

 

These ranges would deplete your battery and dramatically shorten its life.

 

Although I agree with @alanclarkeau, the Gen-1 Prius is cheap enough that if you want a technical challenge, a science or engineering experiment, it is a good place to start. Understand that experimental cars are not terribly reliable but can be 'fun.'

CHEAP EV MODE

1. Modify a fuse for the fuel pump to be a plug.
   1. Add an inline, slow-blow fuse on the 12V side.
   2. With chaffing shielding, run both wires to a switch with indicator light ON if open.
2. Add a Scanguage
   1. XGAUGE: SOC/Voltage, min block and voltage, max block and voltage, ICE rpm, and coolant temperature.
   2. Use to clear codes to make starting engine easier and avoid abusing car too much.

CHEAP PLUG-IN EV MODE

1. Re-work traction battery to support charging
   1. Install three, 400-600V, 1-5A, diodes to accept a charge and not discharge
2. Create a charger that:
   1. Wire-OR the battery cooling fan to turn ON
   2. Wait 30 minutes
   3. Apply a charge current limited to 1/2 the diode rating and voltage limited to 310-340V
   4. When charge current reaches 10-100 ma., stop and turn off FAN
   5. Repeat cycle every hour
3. Tickle charge 12V battery

Be sure and start with a Gen-1 Prius that you won't mind if the 'smoke escapes.'

Bob Wilson

​

 

welcome to priuschat! isn't there some way to spoof the computers to think the engine is warmed up?

 

i was never able to go two miles in my gen 2's, perhaps it depends on speed and slope. btw, it uses more energy to charge the battery than to propel the car.

 

Yes there is: NHW11 Prius Temperature Hack

However, I pulled mine off and never bothered to put it back on. I found I could achieve similar results by using "N" to minimize warm-up costs through the neighborhood. In fact, the car also had a block heater but after initial experimentation, I stopped using it unless temperatures were cold enough for frost and snow.

I was trying to address "EV" only operation in the NHW11. Since we gave our Prius to our housekeeper, I don't have a test article to demonstrate what works and doesn't work. We replaced the 03 Prius with a 14 BMW i3-REx and it solves so many problems that we struggle to kludge in a Prius.

Bob Wilson

 

oh yeah, i hear ya. after 4 years of the pip, and 25,000 miles 66% ev driving, i don't think i could go back.

 

3l/100km is great. As others have said - anything is possible with modifications - but you'd have to work out if you really want to go through the learning curve, with the potential of failure at the end.

I didn't realise that a Prius would run on E85?

 

Both of our North American Prius run on E85 but above E50 it will set a nusence 'check engine light.' The fuel trim exceeds the internal alert limits since it could be a clogged injector issue. There are kits that spoof the injector timing, lengthen it, so you don't get a check engine light.

The only operational problem was below 40F (5C) the engine would initially stall-out. But upon restart, it ran fine. I suspect the 'cold-start' trim values were too lean and an injector timing hack would solve the problem but I didn't go that far in my testing.

Fuel consumption was proportional to the energy content. However, the local to Huntsville, E85 costs were not proportional to the energy content. Other areas that produce ethanol have fair prices proportional to the wholesale price.

My testing was with both our Gen-1 and Gen-2 Prius.

Bob Wilson