Today bought an Energi, is it a mistake?

[jj2me]

Thanks so much for your posts, they give evidence that the HVB can be preserved by user actions (at the expense of MPGe and the bother to take those actions).  32K miles and almost no degradation is remarkable.  I value HVB longevity (and don't have cheap electricity), so will follow charging practices like yours.

 

We have these parts of the HVB, plus the 12V battery:

1. ~5.6 kWh: HVB available for EV operation

2. ~1.5 kWh: Hybrid reserve

3. ~0.5 kWh: Overcharge/longevity protection

--------------

Total: 7.6 kWh nominal

4. 12V battery

 

Do we know if manual charging charges all four?  If so, in what order?  Or the first three simultaneously?  I don't want to shortchange some part of the HVB by never charging to nominal 100%.  (Or maybe the three parts of the HVB are virtual allocations?)

[murphy]

There is only one HVB.  Three is never discharged.  It's a virtual mapping on one battery.  When charging of the HVB is complete the 12 volt battery is charged if it needs it.  Note that the charge complete message to MFM happens when the HVB is full.  If the EVSE shows still charging after the message it is charging the 12 volt battery.  Those that think it is necessary to stop charging before 100% (I'm not one of them) never charge their 12 volt battery from the wall.

[My14Energi]

Number one....i cant understand a person who makes a car purchase decision based on a couple online forum posts.

Number two....Opinions, like buttholes, everyone has one. Some people are just insane with these cars and the operation. "I always face north and use my left hand to plug in the car to get maximum charge". Its all nonsense. I dont do crap other than plug in it when i get home, unplug when i leave. I have 47k miles and its the same as when i got it. One oil change thus far, original tires and brakes. This car has had the least amount of maintenance than any car i have owned.

Number three..... its just a damn car. To go from point A to point B. Get in, start it, and push the pedal. Thats all thats required. Way to much thought by some into a automobile.

[Blastphemy]

I don't mind taking precautions that might (or might not) forestall battery degradation, so will generally avoid

- full discharge and full charge (like with cell phone batteries):

- "auto manufacturers have found that by staying within a range of 30%-70%, the battery's useful lifespan is practically indefinite" - [per this post]

- On the other hand... the car might be keeping us in a good range already but having the display lie to us, like readings of 100% and 0% are really 80% and 20%, respectively]

- heavy EV use during times of high temps (ambient and running)

- EV use over 40-50 mph (often not under my control)

- charging in below freezing weather (openair's post on p.1)

- Level 2 charging (openair's post on p.1)

 

You are completely wasting your time worrying about this stuff. You won't see any discernible difference whether you go crazy playing all those battery games, or you just drive/charge the car normally like everyone else does. When you get home at the end of the day, plug in your car and let it charge fully overnight, and then forget about it until the next evening.

 

If this was a battery-only electric car, perhaps you'd want to exercise some caution by not charging to 100% on a daily basis. But worrying about this for a gas-electric hybrid is just plain silly. Enjoy your car, and stop worrying about losing 1% of your battery's capacity in three years.

[dpswbab]

1. Yes

 

2. I just charged my car a couple of hours ago.  The EV part of the battery was empty, I was in hybrid mode as I entered the garage but the engine had not started.  I have a very accurate kWh meter dedicated to car charging and I use a level 2 240 volt EVSE (Electric Vehicle Supply Equipment), the charger is built into the car.  The meter registered 6.46 kWh.  The trip log, in the app, said I used 5.1 kWh to go 23.9 miles.  My electric rate for the current month is $0.007354 so it cost me $0.05 to charge the battery.  With your rate it would be $1.24.

 

3.  Any time you are driving on a freeway EV Later is the best mode.  Drag increases with the square of the velocity so the faster you go the quicker the battery will be empty in EV Now mode.  It is not possible to drive on ICE only.  There is no correlation between vehicle speed and ICE RPM.  The computer selects the optimum RPM for the ICE.  Drive is either all electric or a combination of ICE direct drive and electric drive.  The eCVT is an amazing invention.  Unlike a CVT, which has belts, an eCVT has no belts, only electric motors.  The car is a hybrid when the HVB is depleted.  I have never seen mpg that low.  Actually my 2013 computes MPGe for me.  That was deleted in later years.  My MPGe for this mornings drive was 144.1.

 

4. I never use EV Auto if I can help it.  Unfortunately it is the default in several situations.  EV Now provides all of the power I that need.  Besides in grid locked local driving passing is rarely possible.

 

5. When the HVB is depleted EV Now and EV Later no longer exist.  In hybrid mode the computer tries to maintain the hybrid portion of the battery at 50%.  It NEVER goes to 0.  That is exactly the same as the hybrid version of the car.  Going to 0 would be really bad because the next time the ICE turned off the car would be a useless chunk of metal.  The ICE is started by one of the electric motors and they run off of the HVB.

 

Note that there is only one battery.  From memory, which doesn't always work, the lower 1.5 kWh of the HVB is dedicated to hybrid mode.

 

 

 

I really appreciated the video link explaining how the eCVT works. Two questions, though: 1) does the clutch disk get enough wear to ever need replacing? 2) How do the motor-generators connect to the electrical system? Brushes? Something else? If this assembly ever needed servicing, I imagine it would be very costly. Thanks for any insights you can provide.

[AungJoMomma]

I just got mine at the end of December.  I guess I worry a lot less because this is my third hybrid and my second plug in.  I also had a LEAF.  LOVED that car, but I moved back to IN from CO and the infrastructure just wasn't as good here.  :(  

 

I've been reading your posts, OP and I think you're really just worrying unnecessarily.  I loved my Prius and I love my Fusion.  The plug in part will really benefit in warmer weather.  It's been in the single and barely double digits here lately and my battery life is laughable.  For the couple of freak warm days we've had, I was getting like 130 mpgs.  I would imagine that when it warms up again, I'll be back there.

 

Enjoy your car of the future!

[h2Odiver]

C-Max -Energi 2014- GREAT CAR - great power, great battery, no problems for over 110,000 miles.  I wish they still made these plug-in hybrids. Fantastic concept, when the battery charge is gone tour on easy to obtain gas, it recharges the battery along the way.  Much better battery in non-highway driving.  Plenty of pep on the freeways, set the cruise control and there is no sluggish slow down on the incline, so common in cruise control.  I highly recommend.  BTW if your a lead-foot driver forget any hybrid. I highly recommend - wish I could purchase another.