Is this the Correct Energy Management for my Commute

[Lightfoot]

My commute to work is 17 miles, one way. I do not have charging availability at work. Typically, it takes me 30 minutes. The drive is approximately 10 minutes city streets from my home to the freeway, then 10 minutes on the freeway, and then 10 minutes city streets till I arrive at work. Going home at the end of the day is the reverse.

 

I charge my brand-new 2014 FFE Titanium (Sterling Gray Metallic) at night at home. 

 

I start my commute in EV Now mode. Once I hit the freeway, I go to EV Later. On the freeway, I stay in a slower lane and Eco-Cruise around 60-65. Sometimes when transitioning between two freeways, it is stop-and-go, in which case, I switch to EV Now mode. Once I'm off the freeway, I do the remainder of the trip to my office in EV Now.

 

On the way home, I reverse the practice. The only change is that while I'm on the freeway, I look at the remaining miles available on EV battery and switch to EV Now before I get off the freeway to be sure to use what energy remains in the EV battery by the time I get home. (Today, it occurred to me I should use me GPS to more accurately determine when I should go to EV Now so that when I return home my EV battery is at 0%.)

 

I'm not using Auto mode or EV Plus.

 

I'm very new to this car, and I was wondering if I'm approaching this in the correct manner.

 

Thanks.

[larryh]

Yes.  You want to reserve EV mode for slower speeds and when less power is required.  The ICE operates much more efficiently at higher speeds, when more power is required, than at low speeds.  EV mode tends to be less efficient at higher speeds. 

Edited July 26, 2014 at 11:13 AM by larryh

[jeff_h]

That sounds like the optimal strategy for MPG, I do the same after sampling different methods.  So that would be my suggestion, is to sample different ways for yourself as only you know your daily route - do you use AC both trips or only in the PM trip?  If so, maybe use up your HVB on the AM trip and then use the remainder and the ICE on the PM trip and see if that gives the best overall MPG.  And then reverse and do it the other way and see how it goes, so after you've tried various methods you will know which tends to work best for you.

[wazer]

Should EV Now be used to get up to highway speeds and then switch to EV later after the cruise has been set? Or switch to EV Later before the on ramp and use the ICE to get to highway speeds?

[larryh]

If the ICE is not warmed up, it doesn't matter when you switch to EV later.  The car essentially runs the ICE at idle speed until it is warmed up.  Until the ICE is warmed up, the motor is going to do most of the work no matter what mode you are in.  If the ICE is warmed up, you want the ICE to supply the acceleration to get up to highway speeds.

Edited July 26, 2014 at 03:36 PM by larryh

[Lightfoot]

Does Eco-Cruise contribute to fuel efficiency, or for such a short freeway stint, should I just manually control the throttle?

[Gigi]

Does Eco-Cruise contribute to fuel efficiency, or for such a short freeway stint, should I just manually control the throttle?

Lightfoot, I'd say you've got this figured out very well. 

 

My assumption is that the computer is smarter than I am when it comes to running vehicle efficiently.  I go with cruise control pretty much anytime I am above 45 mph.

[shaggy314]

Eco cruise just slows down the acceleration to the set speed. I leave Eco Cruise on 100% of the time. There really isn't much argument for not using it. Around hilly areas you can notice the lag, but then your car would be like the drivers who don't pay close attention to their speed and have an even pressure on the gas. They wind up slowing down up hill and speeding up down hill... essentially what Eco cruise does, except the ECO will eventually maintain the speed you set AND save you a little gas.

 

Without Eco setting, the cruise is more aggressive in maintaining the set speed.

Edited July 28, 2014 at 07:24 PM by shaggy314

[Energized]

My commute to work is 17 miles, one way. I do not have charging availability at work. Typically, it takes me 30 minutes. The drive is approximately 10 minutes city streets from my home to the freeway, then 10 minutes on the freeway, and then 10 minutes city streets till I arrive at work. Going home at the end of the day is the reverse.

 

I charge my brand-new 2014 FFE Titanium (Sterling Gray Metallic) at night at home. 

 

I start my commute in EV Now mode. Once I hit the freeway, I go to EV Later. On the freeway, I stay in a slower lane and Eco-Cruise around 60-65. Sometimes when transitioning between two freeways, it is stop-and-go, in which case, I switch to EV Now mode. Once I'm off the freeway, I do the remainder of the trip to my office in EV Now.

 

On the way home, I reverse the practice. The only change is that while I'm on the freeway, I look at the remaining miles available on EV battery and switch to EV Now before I get off the freeway to be sure to use what energy remains in the EV battery by the time I get home. (Today, it occurred to me I should use me GPS to more accurately determine when I should go to EV Now so that when I return home my EV battery is at 0%.)

 

I'm not using Auto mode or EV Plus.

 

I'm very new to this car, and I was wondering if I'm approaching this in the correct manner.

 

Thanks.

I use the same methodology that you do.

[Markn455]

I use this same process with one change. If I am in the later mode and beginning a long stretch of downhill roadway, I will change to EV Now and regenerate going down the hill. Once back on level or uphill ground, I go back to the later mode.

[meyersnole]

I use this same process with one change. If I am in the later mode and beginning a long stretch of downhill roadway, I will change to EV Now and regenerate going down the hill. Once back on level or uphill ground, I go back to the later mode.

I am fairly certain (but would not bet on it) that it does not matter what mode you are in on energy regeneration. In my experience I can stay in Auto mode and in a sustained downhill will end up with miles back on the display. The ICE will not run during this period either. I then save that regenerated energy for when I am in town on secondary roads.

 

If you change to EV Now then you will use that regenerated energy right away. So, it's just when you want to use it by selecting the mode... You will retain the energy either way.

[GregKet1]

I am fairly certain (but would not bet on it) that it does not matter what mode you are in on energy regeneration. In my experience I can stay in Auto mode and in a sustained downhill will end up with miles back on the display. The ICE will not run during this period either. I then save that regenerated energy for when I am in town on secondary roads.

 

If you change to EV Now then you will use that regenerated energy right away. So, it's just when you want to use it by selecting the mode... You will retain the energy either way.

The only caveat to this is that if you are still in EV-later mode from climbing the hill, the downhill run will regenerate extra charge but the car will immediately use that up again to get you back to your "saved" energy level.  

 

If I'm on the highway and hit a long downhill run, I switch to either EV-mode and turn on hill-assist to make it so the car keeps me from gravity-accelerating.  Then at the bottom of the hill I switch back to ev-later mode so I save that extra charge for when it is most useful.

GK

 

[Kybuck]

If I'm on the highway and hit a long downhill run, I switch to either EV-mode and turn on hill-assist to make it so the car keeps me from gravity-accelerating.  Then at the bottom of the hill I switch back to ev-later mode so I save that extra charge for when it is most useful.

In my experience, you also can leave it in EV Later, and then "triple-click" the EV button (to cycle through the choices and back to EV Later) and it will update the saved % with the current battery level.  It reduces the likelihood of accidentally leaving it in EV Now mode. 

[Fat Fusion]

Eco cruise just slows down the acceleration to the set speed. I leave Eco Cruise on 100% of the time. There really isn't much argument for not using it. Around hilly areas you can notice the lag, but then your car would be like the drivers who don't pay close attention to their speed and have an even pressure on the gas. They wind up slowing down up hill and speeding up down hill... essentially what Eco cruise does, except the ECO will eventually maintain the speed you set AND save you a little gas.

 

Without Eco setting, the cruise is more aggressive in maintaining the set speed.

 

Hey Shaggy.  I know your post is a little old, but I've been thinking a lot about the ECO cruise with adaptive cruise.  I tend to be behind people who can't seem to maintain a certain speed- even trucks and SUV's that can clearly see ahead of them.  So, I end up speeding up and slowing down A LOT as we go up US 101 to Silicon Valley.  Most of the time I click off the CC when I know traffic is going to be fluctuating speed or if the person ahead of me is failing.  Usually go to EV mode then too.

[stevedebi]

I am fairly certain (but would not bet on it) that it does not matter what mode you are in on energy regeneration. In my experience I can stay in Auto mode and in a sustained downhill will end up with miles back on the display. The ICE will not run during this period either. I then save that regenerated energy for when I am in town on secondary roads.

 

If you change to EV Now then you will use that regenerated energy right away. So, it's just when you want to use it by selecting the mode... You will retain the energy either way.

I think it does matter. If you remain in EV Later, the main battery percentage reserved will not update, and the Auto mode will simply use up whatever you regenerate with the down hill. In Auto or EV, the battery reserve can be increased at the base of the hill by switching back to EV later.

 

If the downhill is enough that the battery is indicating charging, and the vehicle has shifted to EV, I switch from EV Later to Auto, in order to charge the EV battery (although EV Now would also work - the battery is charging anyway).

 

Then I switch back to EV Later when the car is approaching level ground and would start taking energy out of the battery. This can net me several percentage points of EV Later storage (depending on the hill).

Edited October 13, 2014 at 11:45 PM by stevedebi

[rbort]

I wonder what is the best way to warm up the ICE?  Since it warms up at a fixed 1500 rpms, is it better to switch into EV later a mile or two before the highway onramp if there are no lights or stop signs to stop at and idle wasting fuel or better to switch to EV later when getting on the on-ramp?

 

Doing the latter tends to use up 5 maybe 7% of the HVB to get the car up to speed (5 or less if road is level and closer to 7% if the ramp is uphill) before the engine warms up enough to take the load and then you have to recharge the HVB back to the initial set point plus 2% before your ICE starts to get mpg numbers north of 40.

 

Maybe switching to EV later where the ICE can still propel the car at 1500 rpms will use less or no battery while warming up and then getting to that onramp the ICE can accelerate you up to speed instead of the HVB.

 

What do you guys think?

 

-=>Raja.

[Hybridbear]

rbort, on 15 Oct 2014 - 09:38 AM, said:

I wonder what is the best way to warm up the ICE?  Since it warms up at a fixed 1500 rpms, is it better to switch into EV later a mile or two before the highway onramp if there are no lights or stop signs to stop at and idle wasting fuel or better to switch to EV later when getting on the on-ramp?

 

Doing the latter tends to use up 5 maybe 7% of the HVB to get the car up to speed (5 or less if road is level and closer to 7% if the ramp is uphill) before the engine warms up enough to take the load and then you have to recharge the HVB back to the initial set point plus 2% before your ICE starts to get mpg numbers north of 40.

 

Maybe switching to EV later where the ICE can still propel the car at 1500 rpms will use less or no battery while warming up and then getting to that onramp the ICE can accelerate you up to speed instead of the HVB.

 

What do you guys think?

 

-=>Raja.

You can defeat this warm-up by shifting the car to L with the ICE on. Watch the Engage screen until you see that the ICE takes over and then shift back to D. Ashley confirmed with Ford Engineering that such behavior will cause no damage to the ICE or premature wear. It works as a gas saving tip.

[stevedebi]

I wonder what is the best way to warm up the ICE?  Since it warms up at a fixed 1500 rpms, is it better to switch into EV later a mile or two before the highway onramp if there are no lights or stop signs to stop at and idle wasting fuel or better to switch to EV later when getting on the on-ramp?

 

Doing the latter tends to use up 5 maybe 7% of the HVB to get the car up to speed (5 or less if road is level and closer to 7% if the ramp is uphill) before the engine warms up enough to take the load and then you have to recharge the HVB back to the initial set point plus 2% before your ICE starts to get mpg numbers north of 40.

 

Maybe switching to EV later where the ICE can still propel the car at 1500 rpms will use less or no battery while warming up and then getting to that onramp the ICE can accelerate you up to speed instead of the HVB.

 

What do you guys think?

 

-=>Raja.

Raja,

My technique, assuming I have remaining EV battery, is to stay on EV Now until I get past the on ramp, and the switch to EV Later once I'm merging onto the freeway. I find that the ICE is especially inefficient during the on-ramp process (most of the freeways here are elevated), because it has to work too hard. And once I'm at freeway speed, the ICE is going to run anyway.

 

EDIT: That is, the ICE will be running if the traffic is moving!

Edited October 15, 2014 at 07:44 PM by stevedebi

[rbort]

Yeah Steve but when the ICE is running its limited to 1500 rpms to warm up and if you go into the engage screen you'll see dual power engine on one side and battery on the other propelling you down the freeway for a while until the engine takes over, maybe a minute or so depending on outside air temp I suppose.

 

Interesting about the warmup defeat, but I'm not sure I want to do that.  Just seems like not the best thing to do especially if its cold out and the oil is not circulating as fluidly.  I may try to do some tests and see what speed I can muster with the ICE at 1500rpms and charge the battery as well.  I want to say that is about 40mph if I remember right from what I saw.  Maybe use the EV later a little sooner but I hate sitting at a light with the ICE running so I have to be sure I'm clear of all lights before switching to EV later before the highway ramp.  Easier to do in rural areas I suppose.

 

My problem right now is that my seasonal out of state trips are pretty much over.  I have 161 miles left of gas in the car not sure when I'll use some of that - now the goal is to EV most of the time.

 

-=>Raja.

Edited October 15, 2014 at 09:56 PM by rbort

[stevedebi]

Yeah Steve but when the ICE is running its limited to 1500 rpms to warm up and if you go into the engage screen you'll see dual power engine on one side and battery on the other propelling you down the freeway for a while until the engine takes over, maybe a minute or so depending on outside air temp I suppose.

 

Interesting about the warmup defeat, but I'm not sure I want to do that.  Just seems like not the best thing to do especially if its cold out and the oil is not circulating as fluidly.  I may try to do some tests and see what speed I can muster with the ICE at 1500rpms and charge the battery as well.  I want to say that is about 40mph if I remember right from what I saw.  Maybe use the EV later a little sooner but I hate sitting at a light with the ICE running so I have to be sure I'm clear of all lights before switching to EV later before the highway ramp.  Easier to do in rural areas I suppose.

 

My problem right now is that my seasonal out of state trips are pretty much over.  I have 161 miles left of gas in the car not sure when I'll use some of that - now the goal is to EV most of the time.

 

-=>Raja.

Raja,

I hadn't noticed that, I'll keep an eye out for it next time.

[larryh]

I wonder what is the best way to warm up the ICE?  Since it warms up at a fixed 1500 rpms, is it better to switch into EV later a mile or two before the highway onramp if there are no lights or stop signs to stop at and idle wasting fuel or better to switch to EV later when getting on the on-ramp?

 

Doing the latter tends to use up 5 maybe 7% of the HVB to get the car up to speed (5 or less if road is level and closer to 7% if the ramp is uphill) before the engine warms up enough to take the load and then you have to recharge the HVB back to the initial set point plus 2% before your ICE starts to get mpg numbers north of 40.

 

Maybe switching to EV later where the ICE can still propel the car at 1500 rpms will use less or no battery while warming up and then getting to that onramp the ICE can accelerate you up to speed instead of the HVB.

 

What do you guys think?

 

-=>Raja.

 

I don't think the ICE is simply idling at a stop light--it should be charging the HVB.  Having the car charge the HVB on the freeway is inefficient.  Assuming about 75% of the mechanical power from the motor can be stored in the HVB and later output by the electric motor, and x kWh of energy from the HVB are consumed during the warmup while getting up to speed, the ICE will have to output x/0.75 = 1.33x kWh of additional energy to recharge the HVB. 

 

Suppose it takes 0.3 kWh of energy from the HVB to get up to speed.  We can either start the ICE early and use it to accelerate up to speed.  Or we can start the ICE on the on ramp and use 0.3 kWh of energy from the HVB.  If it comes from the HVB, the ICE will have to output an additional 1.33*0.3 = 0.4 kWh of energy.  If it comes directly from the ICE, the ICE will have to output only 0.3 kWh of energy instead.  Going through the math, starting the ICE on the on ramp will use 0.008 more gallons of gas (assuming the ICE is 36% efficient). 

 

I'm not sure how much gas will be consumed during warmup when the ICE is started before the on ramp vs. when it is started on the on ramp.  That may or may not overwhelm the 0.008 gas savings from starting the ICE before the on ramp. 

 

However, note that the ICE will have assisted the electric motor and charged the HVB when started before the on-ramp.  So there will be more energy in the HVB which further reduces gas consumption.  So when starting the ICE early, there is actually more than the 0.008 gallons of gas savings mentioned above.

Edited October 17, 2014 at 01:07 AM by larryh

[rbort]

 

 

I'm not sure how much gas will be consumed during warmup when the ICE is started before the on ramp vs. when it is started on the on ramp.  That may or may not overwhelm the 0.008 gas savings from starting the ICE before the on ramp.

 

This is also assuming that the engine takes the load once you're up to speed but that is not always correct.  Sometimes it takes more than that for the ICE rpms to come up and for the battery drain to turn into a battery charge.  This depends on the engine temperature and the outside temperature.  The colder it is, the longer this process takes.  With that being said, you may burn more than 0.3kwh of battery driving down the highway after accelerating up to speed.

 

If the engine is started earlier, I think there is a speed "limit" that you can get power out of the engine at 1500 rpms and still charge the battery, i.e. a sweet spot where you can benefit from the warmup period.  I may be starting my engine tomorrow.  I have a trip to Boston for a dinner, on the way down I plan to stop and recharge so I won't use the engine at all, on the way back I may use the engine depending on how much time I have.  If I do I'll try to see what speed can be driven at 1500 rpms.

 

In reading your last paragraph, I'm not sure its clear.  Are you saying its better to start it early or not?

 

Thanks Larry,

 

-=>Raja.

[larryh]

Without actually trying both ways of starting the ICE, I don't know which is better.  You will have to use a trip odometer to measure how much gas is consumed during warmup for both methods and how much HVB energy is used before the on-ramp and while getting up to speed for both methods. 

[rbort]

Well you commute every day maybe you can try different methods and see which works best?  I will also try to do the same when I get the opportunity, today I might need to use the engine if I do I'll try to warm it up a bit sooner to see how that works out as far as being able to drive the car and propel it and charge at 1500 rpms.

 

-=>Raja.

[larryh]

I do not use the ICE to commute to work.  97% of my trips are EV only.  For longer commutes on the weekends, I have to use EV mode on the freeway in order to use up all the energy in the HVB.  The first 10 miles of freeway are generally down hill and require less power, so I want to stay in EV mode for this portion of the trip.  I do not want to start the ICE before I get on the freeway.  After the downhill section of freeway, I then switch on EV later mode while I am still on the Freeway and beginning to go up hill.  For the return trip, the first 15 miles are slower speed 55 mph highway driving, so I want to stay in EV mode during this portion of the commute to use up the HVB.  The highway turns into a freeway.  At this point I switch to EV later mode for higher speeds.

Edited October 17, 2014 at 03:01 PM by larryh