This approach would be easier on the HV battery, further extending it's life. There are times when I do not want to wait. As I take off as soon as the car is ready, I do see ICE powering the wheels according to the MFD. Once moving and the car is rolling without my foot on the accelerator below 7 mph, MFD does indicate ICE is powering the wheels while charging the battery. I acceleration lightly in this warm up mode to give less stress to the HV battery.
Would't it depend on what route you drive? I live at the top of a steep hill. After a brief push to get going, I have my foot lightly on the brake for the first minute or so, so why not be moving during that time?
We know that sometimes the MFD shows you what you expect to see and not what's happening. Your not going to kill it if you don't wait or Toyota wouldn't let you drive off. There are exceptions to EVERY rule YMMV. Just now we know you don't save gas by driving off immediately, and for me more importantly, I know why. Thanks Ken.
You're right! Everyone's environment is different. My recommendation is for people in general. Ken@Japan
occasionally, i will notice, that i take off with 6 bars, and will drop to 5 bars which lends to what Ken said. time is precious, but i will try the warmup option to compare numbers had first frost Sunday morning before work, so had to idle a bit simply to be able to scrape ice.
I think it has a lot to do with each person environment. In my case, I first start out going down hill for about 300 yards and then up hill for about 1/2 mile with speeds around 35mph. I start out with 7 or 8 bars SOC and it remains there during that time, no loss, engine running. If I were to have to hit the highway at speeds above 55 right away, I would probably wait for warm up to complete before moving.
I left for the airport yesterday with 6 bars of battery -- 56F outside in LA -- and tried EV mode before the engine came on but it wasn't available. I thought that was supposed to work if you press is quickly enough. I pushing it just a few seconds after turning the car on.