Can I increase EV+ threshold?

[MattMart82]

2016 Ford Fusion SE PHEV - This is my first post and my first shot at a PHEV, let alone any form of HEV... with that said, please bare with me. I would like to increase the EV+ threshold. Basically, is there a way to increase the time in which my engine kicks on from electric/hybrid mode? I am finding that my engine is kicking on quick from acceleration. I would like to use a little more EV before using the engine/gas? Is this possible in the settings?

[murphy]

EV+ prevents the engine from coming on when you are approximately 0.25 mile from home on the assumption that you will recharge the battery when you get home.  If you request more acceleration than the electric motor is capable of providing the engine will start.  There are no adjustments other than I think EV+ can be turned off.

[jj2me]

I'm guessing from your write-up that you didn't mean EV+, but rather are driving in Auto mode and want to stay strictly in EV. If that's the problem, consider switching to EV mode, except 1) that can also switch on the engine in some circumstances (but much less so than in Auto), and 2) you'll experience less power on acceleration during heavy or higher-speed acceleration.

 

Most people here don't follow the recommendation to just drive in Auto. We fiddle with the EV-mode switch to force the mode to hybrid or electric depending on the circumstances (like for controlling use of the battery for when it's most efficient). EV-later on the highway and EV or Auto in town is a common usage.

 

Ignore if I misinterpreted.

[muzicman61]

I frequently flip it to EV-Later when taking off from dead stop.  Then switch to Auto when I'm up to cruising speed (35-40mph).  Seems to work well for me.

[jj2me]

I frequently flip it to EV-Later when taking off from dead stop.  Then switch to Auto when I'm up to cruising speed (35-40mph).  Seems to work well for me.

 

What's your reason for not just going Auto all the way to 40 mph?  If it's for acceleration, won't Auto figure it out to give you reasonably comparable power, but erring on the side of using more EV than gas?

 

I mostly do Auto or EV at low speeds, not for any efficiency reason, but rather because I like that nice smooth pull of electric at low speeds,

[MattMart82]

Thank you team. I am new to the PHEV world. Which mode would I get more electric out of EV or EV+?

[jsamp]

Thank you team. I am new to the PHEV world. Which mode would I get more electric out of EV or EV+?

 

EV+, but I wouldn't be in such a hurry to use it.  They discontinued that feature in later model years I think because of the wear it was causing on the battery.  You only get ~1/2 mile additional by using it, and I don't think it's worth the extra strain on the battery.

 

What it does is allow the battery to discharge farther than normal into hybrid mode if it knows you are within reach of your charging destination (based on your GPS location and your typical charging location).  So it only works if you are near to wherever you typically charge and you are almost out of battery.

[MattMart82]

Outstanding! Thank you for the information team...

[muzicman61]

What's your reason for not just going Auto all the way to 40 mph?  If it's for acceleration, won't Auto figure it out to give you reasonably comparable power, but erring on the side of using more EV than gas?

 

I mostly do Auto or EV at low speeds, not for any efficiency reason, but rather because I like that nice smooth pull of electric at low speeds,

 

I don't believe I have ever felt the ICE kick on when in auto mode.  You probably really have to stomp it for that to happen.

 

A lot of this is experimental to see what values the full charge numbers will achieve.  I've noticed for example my full charge number might be 38.  If I just leave it in auto from a dead stop, I'll see that number decrease to 37.  Of course, when I brake at the next stop it will usually return to 38.  However if I use EV Later from the dead stop, then switch to auto at cruising speed, after a couple of braking events, I'll see the number increase to perhaps 39 or 40.  Honestly it's all a SWAG numbers game.  This weekend I drove a little less efficient (EV Auto all the time) and saw my number drop down to 27 which is about what i actually get (even when it was saying 41).

Edited April 1, 2019 at 07:56 PM by muzicman61

[jsamp]

I don't believe I have ever felt the ICE kick on when in auto mode.  You probably really have to stomp it for that to happen.

 

A lot of this is experimental to see what values the full charge numbers will achieve.  I've noticed for example my full charge number might be 38.  If I just leave it in auto from a dead stop, I'll see that number decrease to 37.  Of course, when I brake at the next stop it will usually return to 38.  However if I use EV Later from the dead stop, then switch to auto at cruising speed, after a couple of braking events, I'll see the number increase to perhaps 39 or 40.  Honestly it's all a SWAG numbers game.  This weekend I drove a little less efficient (EV Auto all the time) and saw my number drop down to 27 which is about what i actually get (even when it was saying 41).

 

When you accelerate in EV, it takes ~1% to get to 30MPH and over 2% to get to 60.  You get some but not all of that back when you stop.  When you do the same in EV Later, it doesn't take any electricity to accelerate (depending on how far you press the accelerator pedal, that is), but you still get the regen.  That is why your numbers go up, plus it is generating a little electricity while the engine is running.

 

What is your normal driving mode and technique?  I've never seen anything in the upper 30's or 40 (knowing it is bogus anyway), so I wonder how you're doing that.  It almost seems you are in km instead of miles.

[muzicman61]

Well, to start with I have a roughly 20 mile drive to work.  Main roads, no interstates.  Relatively flat both ways.  Not much stop & go traffic.  I head to work at 5am and leave for home at 2pm so I dodge the heavy rush hour traffic.  Top speed is typically 45-50.  I never saw more than about 32 when I lived in Illinois.  These upper 30s low 40s only happened in the last month or so here in Arizona.

 

1) From a dead stop... use EV Later until I reach the speed limit.  Typically 45mph most of my trip.

2) At speed limit, shift to EV Auto.

3) Often I use L which helps generate charge without braking.

 

That's pretty much it.  

 

Not using the above technique I have maintained a pretty constant 27.

[jj2me]

A couple of "if"s along with a humble suggestion, because Phoenix in April at 2pm makes one think of battery degradation.

 

If you care about long term battery health, and

If taking the precaution(s) below isn't beyond your personal threshold for when it becomes too tedious, ...

 

You might want to drive in EV-Later on the return trip from work.*

 

Examples of how two people avoided battery degradation are in two successive posts here.

jsamp: 61K miles, 5.5 kWh (out of 5.6 new) - lives in year-round moderate climate, and tries to keep charge level within 20-80%

bdginmo: 57K miles, 5.3 or 5.4 kWh (was 5.5 new) - never charges in hot Missouri summers.

 

HVB Temperatures:

Here and here are one North Carolina person's experience with limiting HVB temps to 105° or even 102° (the Energi's software automatically cuts off EV mode when the HVB temp reaches 113°).  Before instituting that practice, his battery capacity degraded to 4 kWh, mostly attributed to a hot summer in 2015.  Since then, after minding the HVB temperature, he's "lost very little capacity since 2015."  He is careful to "limit hot weather charging to once per day or less," and also noted that "when the overnight lows are around 80ºf there is little opportunity to cool the HVB."

 

*Or better yet, keep HVB temps below 105° or 102°, which may require not using the battery in hot Phoenix summers.

 

[jsamp]

Well, to start with I have a roughly 20 mile drive to work.  Main roads, no interstates.  Relatively flat both ways.  Not much stop & go traffic.  I head to work at 5am and leave for home at 2pm so I dodge the heavy rush hour traffic.  Top speed is typically 45-50.  I never saw more than about 32 when I lived in Illinois.  These upper 30s low 40s only happened in the last month or so here in Arizona.

 

1) From a dead stop... use EV Later until I reach the speed limit.  Typically 45mph most of my trip.

2) At speed limit, shift to EV Auto.

3) Often I use L which helps generate charge without braking.

 

That's pretty much it.  

 

Not using the above technique I have maintained a pretty constant 27.

 

Now it makes more sense.  You are using gas to optimize the electric use to boost the EV miles.   Basically that is using gas to 'charge' the battery because you use gas to accelerate and regen to decelerate.  I don't know that your overall MPG is any better because of it, but it makes the range look really great.

 

Thanks.

[muzicman61]

Is there a better way to get your kWh? I've only seen it listed in the MFM app after a trip it shows the kWh used. When fully charged is it indicated in the vehicle anywhere? May have just overlooked it. Typically after depleting the battery and looking at MFM when I get home, my kWh usage typically adds up to 5.3 for both trips (home to work and back).

[jsamp]

The only 2 ways to get kWh is to measure them either going in (with a Kill-A-Watt meter) or going out (by driving and looking at the result).  As well as by MFM, you can also get the result from the left screen if you use a trip odometer and reset it when the battery is at 100%. 

 

There is no way to accurately check what is in the battery.