Putting the PHV through it's paces in the hot desert... (Rick's turn for the PHV)

86% is actually pretty good in the switching power-supply world.

I'll see if the current displays can be shown while charging.

 

Yea, I only used the Kill-a-watt long enough to get my values. It requires an extension cord in my case because of the outdoor "cover" on the outlet I'm using. Despite the cord's rating that matches or exceeds the charger rating, I'm respecting Toyota's request to not use the cord for charging to prevent overheating the cord or bypassing leak detection (not concerned, it's not raining here).

I couldn't get the AMP display to work properly (nothing returned w/ a stationary load), and the max charge/discharge of 20/21kW values seemed to be "peak" values stuck in the Scan Gauge.

 

Took a few moments to observe the difference in power consumption between the PHV and my 2010 w/ Solar.

2010 Prius A/C demand MAX is 1800 watts, 400 less than the PHV. Eco mode still shaves 200 watts under high load.

Remote A/C demand in the std 2010 is up to the max 1800 watts, regardless of Eco setting. Compared to the PHV's 500 watts, the std Prius stands to be more effective, but for a far shorter amount of time. What we don't know is how the current draw translates to BTU output.

I wonder if some drivers would be willing to trade range for cooling effectiveness if the sub packs could be tapped for pre-cooling or pre-heating.

Side note: Battery AMP does work in my 2010, so the PHV must use a different SGII value - kinda stinks, as I'd love to know the max draw in the LiIon setup. :-(

 

YouTube video of acceleration (should be HD once they're done processing):

 

Once I triggered the ICE on the first attempt, It was stuck for about a minute or two in a warm-up phase before I could keep the car in EV. I didn't have temp sensors viewable in the SG II, so not sure just how long that took, but it did translate to about 1-1.5 miles before I could maintain full EV again. Bear in mind the outside temp was almost 100°F

 

Some physical differences I've observed between my 2010 and the PHV:

• Rear spring "color" markings are different, the PHV rear coils are painted "blue/purple". Mine are not (yellow/orange or something similar). I'm not sure if that's indicative of spring rate, etc.
• Tire PSI placard is 38psi both front and rear. Passenger/cargo rating is still 825lbs.
• Under-hood placards are updated to reflect LiIon battery packs as well as a bit more refrigerant installed (.45lbs more max).
• The "sticker" on the engine cover says "Plug-in Hybrid" instead of "Hybrid Synergy Drive".
• There's at least 4 refrigerant pipes vs. two leading from the A/C "area" into the firewall.
• The inverter coolant tank is a bit larger.
• The inverter "appears" to look the same, however there is one additional plug.
• The fuel tank appears to sit a tiny bit lower underneath the car. There's also some additional battery connectivity or fuel-tank assembly items beneath where the spare tire "tray" is.
• The fuel door placard states that refueling should happen within 30 minutes of releasing the electronic fuel door. There's a more "standard" pressurized gas cap that ratchets upon closing.

Pictures reflecting this (and others I've uploaded) are in the following Picasa Album (updated as I add more pics):

Picasa Web Albums - HTMLSpinnr (Rick) - Toyota Plug-i...

 

The car must be in IG-ON to display the "time to charge". An attempt to place the car in READY mode will be prompted by a warning to disconnect the plug first.

The MID also illuminates during remote A/C mode (which is like IG-ON+ or "Almost Ready")

 

I think because 0-30 is so much stronger, I falsely assumed 0-60 would be just as good, but failed to account for the balance of "power" strongly favors the ICE above 45mph.

 

Could it be derived from MG1 torque and RPM? Otherwise, w/o HV battery amps, we'd only be guessing.

 

There was another thread on "charging in the rain". Turns out a T-storm did blow in late last night. When the lightning counted off as being ~1 mile away, I decided to quickly unplug the car. While I wasn't too worried about the water-tightness of the plug (the rain was rather slanted and coming down pretty heavily), or the leak protection the adapter provides, I wasn't all that interested in testing the lightning resistance of the car (or my outlets). I'm not sure the capacitors in the charging unit were rated at a million volts... LOL

Good thing too - not 10 minutes later we had a strike about 2 seconds away. Scared the kids out of bed, but at least I knew the car was safe