I DID IT!!!

Well, now I'm familiar with them, and I probably wasn't in Phase III half of the time when I tried to engage it. That would explain why attempts to do so once I reached the store parking lot were successful.

I still find it an interesting feature, but I can certainly see why Toyota decided not to offer it standard in the U.S. Can you imagine explaining its operation to the average driver? Let's face it. We're all on the far end of the technology bell curve and it's still confusing....

 

I still want one :_|

 

Easier, but not easy! I found it easier compared to what I went through disassembling the dash to put the XM radio in, and hacking into the main ECU bundle to wire in the two speed sensor defeat switches.

A couple warnings (this applies to ALL wiring mods):
1. The bigger your hands, the harder this is going to be. None of the dash wiring is readily accessible and very little slack is provided in any of the harnesses.
2. Figure out how the connector detaches BEFORE you start yanking on it. They're not all the same. Most have a little release tab that needs to be depressed while you pull on the connector. This is particularly amusing when you consider Warning #1.
3. DON'T try snipping off all the black electrical tape Some anal retentive assembly line person seemed to use this absolutely everywhere. Most of the wires are quite thin (22-24 guage) and are packed tightly together. On my first mod, I tried slicing the tape off and ended up making a few electrical disconnects I hadn't planned on.
4. Keep new electrical tape handy. When Warning #3 doesn't help and you have to perform emergency surgery after a shaky slip, this will always work in a pinch. Do this often enough and Warning #3 becomes that much more important.
5. Use connectors to make mods removable. Radio Shack sells male/female pairs of fast-on and barrel-style wire connectors that work great for this. When you add a switch, make one new wire attached to the switch male and the other female. This way, the switch can be easily disconnected and the original wire reconnected if need be, or if you worry about service repairs.
6. Have a long screwdriver handy. For those hampered by Warning #1, this helps to manipulate, hold in place, press, push, or otherwise disturb any wire and related connection in an otherwise inaccessible location.
7. Plastic trim piece clips break easily. Most of the dash panels and vents are held in place with plastic compression clips that allow for the pieces to be installed and removed without the use of hardware. These work just fine as long as you pull the panel out perpendicular to its mounting surface. Any excessive pressure applied in any other direction will likely break off a piece of a clip. If this happens, don't panic, since the clips are in all four corners at a minimum and will likely still hold snugly in place. Of course, multiple occurrences of Warning #7 can be a problem.
8. Beware of sharp metal edges. The interior of the dash panel is not exactly user friendly. There are plenty of jagged metal edges on brackets and such. When I was installing the EV mod behind the passenger side A/C vent, I sliced the dickens out of my hand on the razor sharp corner of the metal A/C duct.
9. Take your time and follow instructions to the letter. Most of you will, since you might not know what you're doing. Some of us who think we're electrical savvy will skim through the details and only read them after we've made a crucial mistake.

With that in mind, forge on ahead and enjoy.

 

I have tried several searches for this list of phases and failed. Maybe I am using the wrong search phrase. "Phases" did not work nor did an author search for "Tosh". If anyone can find it, thanks and perhaps it should go into the FAQ.

 

Thanks for the feedback on my warning list. People like Dave at Coastal Tech or Jon at PriusXM can do these procedures blindfolded, and probably read those items and shake their heads with a firm "Duh!". Once you know how to do something that well, you can't even objectively see how it can be screwed up, or comprehend how someone could do something so stupid. That's where people like me come in. Consider this the first installment of "Prius Modifications for Dummies".

 

mboileau,

Here are the 4 phases or "stages", as Japanese Prius geeks call it, in THS.

S1: (below 40C) ICE runs no matter what.
S2: (40C - 69C) ICE stops when not in acceleration
S3: (above 70C) "idle check": ICE keeps running below 42 MPH
S4: (above 70C) "complete hybrid": same behavior as S2

In S3, you will see the ICE is running if you are not accelerating. You can temporarily shut up the ICE by pressing the EVb here. But this won't take you out of S3.

You will need to come to a complete stop in S3 and wait for the ICE to shut down. Then you are in heaven (S4).

My original post can be found here.

http://www.priuschat.com/forums/viewtopic....er=asc&start=20

I had a hard time trying to find my own post...

Tosh
Salsa BC + OEM EVb
San Diego, CA

 

Thanks Tosh. Evan pointed me to this thread as well. I am curious, though, about the general timing for each mode during normal operation. This seems particularly important since the Japanese version doesn't have the US "thermos" for keeping the fluids warm. Basically, assuming nominal 25 deg C ambient conditions and the Prius having been parked for a considerable length of time, I'd like to believe to leave my garage in EV mode and navigate a few blocks out of my neighborhood before going back to full hybrid.

when I start things up, I assume S1 will exit quite fast and then I'd be in S2 with the ICE off. If I don't want to drive for a bit to reach a speed above 55kph, can I simply release the brake until I see the arrows appear and then re-apply the brake for 10 seconds while still in my driveway to get into S4? At that point, i could select the EV mode and be on my way?

 

daniel,

Your "weird part" explains what I wrote in my original post.

"If the coolant reaches 70C, the car is in S3. In this stage, if you can't go up to 55km/h, the ICE will not stop no matter what you do until you come to a stop and wait 10 seconds. If you reach 55km/h and above, the ICE stops when your foot is off the gas pedal. But the car will be in S3 until you stop for 10 seconds."

You thought the car was temporarily in S4 after speeding up to 40 MPH but in fact it was still in S3 (as defined in the Japanese sites).

I also think that the ICE keeps running bit longer in S3 after comming to a stop. You should then wait for the ICE to shut down (takes about 5 seconds) or wait 10 seconds if the ICE is not running, to get into S4. That's my observation.

Tosh

 

I just got my EV kit (Buttonless) from Coastal yesterday.

I installed it with no problems. Getting the pin to slide all the way in was hard but I think I got it go. It was just below the top surface of the plug. Other then that everything went smoothly.

The problem is that I can’t seem to make it do anything. I have not gotten it to switch from the consumption screen to the energy screen, and I have never heard the three beeps.

I have tried pulling the cruise control stalk right after starting the car and that did seem to prevent it from starting the ICE (initially). Driving around at slow speeds (in a parking lot) I was able to go for several minuets without the ICE but then it would engage. It did not seem to happen when I accelerated hard or when I hit 34 mph or when the battery is low. I think I was just driving around slow enough that the computer did not want to use the ICE.

I have never seen a change in behavior when pulling the stalk while driving, the ICE just keeps doing what it wants.

Does the fact that the screen does not change and I get no beeps mean that I do not have it installed correctly? (I can swap screens with the steering wheel button, by the way)

Is there some test I can do to conclusively prove whether or not it works?

Thanks for any advice you can give me.

 

Brettray, I was going to provide you with some things to try and look at, and then I saw that we're both in Livermore. If you still have problems with this, PM me and I'll just come take a look at it!

 

I did the headlight flasher version of the EV mode and it is freakin' COOL!! Evan's document was easy to follow and it took an hour to complete. All of the remarks on the operation of EV mode are right on, from a real-world-here's-how-it-works standpoint. (if EV mode doesn't engage at startup, hybrid battery must be too low; if EV mode won't engage even after driving awhile and hybrid is charged enough, then the engine is not hot enough yet, etc.) Usually, I'll press the power button in the AM, pull the headlight flasher towards me and release and be in EV mode until my 1st stop sign (3 minutes with a small hill to go down). Then after that it's 40 MPH so it automatically turns on the gas and it warms up going 50 MPH (next section of my commute). It's really awesome to have this option...now when is the MP3 coming? Seamless and no extra button to show on the dash. I made labels to put on the headlight lever to remind me that it's there: PULL EV MODE. I love it. Again, kudos to Evan and his document!

 

Thanks for the advice everybody.

I just tried again following the steps that Evan suggested and it definitely did not work. It did not change screens and did start the engine after 7 seconds. I had five bars on the SOC, so I don’t think that was the problem.

I assume the ground wire is the white with black stripe and the tap in connector. Is it possible to put the tap in place (with it snapping shut) and not get a connection? I will check my connections again tonight.

Thanks