Tips to get EV Battery Charge up

[SigmaOutdoors]

Hey All,

 

I'm new to the forum and just picked up my 2013 SE. I searched around the net and I don't see an obvious post anywhere about tips/techniques to get the EV charge up.

 

I know the braking helps, but does also going into gas mode help? High RPM? Other tricks?

 

Another thing I think the answer is no to, is there anyway on this model (non-plug in) to charge the EV batteries externally or are these special and "untouchable?"

 

Thanks and sorry if these are noob questions!

[murphy]

There is no way to charge the HV battery externally.

 

You do not want the HV battery to be fully charged. If it was there would be no place to store energy receoverd by re-generative braking.

I can't speak for the 2013 Hybrid since I have an Energi but my 2010 Hybrid maintained the HVB at 50% during a trip even to the point that if it was above 50% at the start of a highway trip it would bring it down to 50%.

[CombsAuthor]

Welcome to the forum, and don't worry...noob questions are always encouraged.

 

The only way to charge the battery is through the regen braking system. Driving with higher RPMs, without your lights on, or by push starting it to get it to move won't help you to increase the charge. As a consequence, your efforts will be to preserve the battery charge as much as possible by using steady pushes on the accelerator pedal as well as anticipating your stops and gaining as much energy as possible.

 

There is no way to externally charge the battery, but if you go to the "Display" mode on the left side of the instrument panel and select "Engage" you will be able to see how the car uses the gas engine along with the electric motor to keep you moving along with great efficiency.

[SigmaOutdoors]

Excellent responses. Thanks!

[VonoreTn]

Welcome. Let us know what kind of mpg you get.

[lolder]

In the 1st. Gen. FFH, you can charge the HVB by holding the accelerator pedal down about 1/3 while in "P". The ICE will run and charge the HVB to "H" ( about 80% ). The car might be stored many months this way with the 12 vdc, disconnected.

[46stang]

Well I like to drive 65 mph on the freeway as it tends to keep the battery at least 50%charge or a little more with coasting on small declines. But the thing that helps the most for me is when exiting the freeway, instead of coasting, i super lightly touch the brake pedal until i see the regen symbol come on. By doing this by the time i get to the bottom of the off ramp the SOC is like 80% or better. Then i try to drive in EV mode as far as possible on the streets. You can also do this technique on steep downhills and it seems to yield more time for EV mode once you reach level ground again. By doing this I have gotten several trips in the 50+mpg range.

[milleron]

I don't think it's true that regenerative braking is the only way to charge the battery. Perhaps that's not what CombsAuthor meant. Certainly coasting and the ICE can charge the battery, as well. When not doing much start-and-stop, the ICE is the main force charging the HVB.

[SigmaOutdoors]

41.6 MPG on a 140 mile round trip for mother's day, all types of road conditions. Very nice compared to my 13.1 MPG on my F-150!

[acdii]

When its cold out the ICE will run to warm up and it does charge the HVB during this time. When its REALLY cold out I have had it fully charge the pack well before it got warm enough to shut off.

[hybridbear]

It's also useful to accelerate using the ICE and then use EV mode for cruising rather than accelerating in EV mode. The car will try to keep the battery charge around 50% because this is healthier for the battery. It's best not to focus too much on the battery SOC but rather to focus on other efficient driving techniques to get maximum MPGs. One of the best MPG raising techniques is trying to find ways to avoid stopping. As is discussed in the "Why hybrids are so efficient" thread the maximum MPGs come from minimizing stops because there are inherent inefficiencies in accelerating and braking

[acdii]

One of the best MPG raising techniques is trying to find ways to avoid stopping.

I tried that, but the local PD frown upon blowing stops.

[fusionTX]

I tried that, but the local PD frown upon blowing stops.

 

And those yellow lights aren't lasting as long as they used to. Municipailties and camera operators trying to increase their take, and it's working.

[hybridbear]

And those yellow lights aren't lasting as long as they used to. Municipailties and camera operators trying to increase their take, and it's working.

In Minnesota we don't have red light cameras or speed cameras. The Minnesota Supreme Court declared them to be illegal. Each time the State Legislature tries to bring them back as a statewide program it gets voted down. I'm glad we don't have them here. I feel like I go through a lot more yellow lights now because I don't want to get a poor brake score lol

[kuzzi]

College Station, Texas residents voted to remove the RLCs in 2009 or 2010. I think they added time to the yellow lights when they were removed as well. I think some TEEX students did research while the cameras were running and after they were removed. Accident rates were higher with the cameras vs the longer yellow.

[acdii]

College Station, Texas residents voted to remove the RLCs in 2009 or 2010. I think they added time to the yellow lights when they were removed as well. I think some TEEX students did research while the cameras were running and after they were removed. Accident rates were higher with the cameras vs the longer yellow.

This is true everywhere those damned cameras are. Rear enders happen much more frequently at RLC intersections because now people stop on yellow. Although I would not object to speed cameras on some roads. 50 in a 35 zone is just stupid. Let them trigger at 44 MPH in a 35 zone.

[fusionTX]

http://www.floridatoday.com/article/20130515/NEWS01/130515020/Florida-quietly-shortens-yellow-lights-resulting-more-red-light-camera-tickets?nclick_check=1

[corncobs]

http://www.floridatoday.com/article/20130515/NEWS01/130515020/Florida-quietly-shortens-yellow-lights-resulting-more-red-light-camera-tickets?nclick_check=1

Makes my blood pressure to rise to unhealthy levels when I read stuff like this; thanks for sharing.

Edited May 24, 2013 by corncobs

[mokee]

Speaking of stop signs, judging our local drivers leaves me with the impression that stop signs are only a suggestion. Most traffic tickets in Illinois are issued by local jurisdictions. To contest a ticket you appear before a local magistrate at a hearing. I've heard the magistrate tell offenders that they need not have bothered to appear as they were all guilty, and it would have been cheaper to pay the fine rather than the "judgement."

[hybridbear]

Speaking of stop signs, judging our local drivers leaves me with the impression that stop signs are only a suggestion. Most traffic tickets in Illinois are issued by local jurisdictions. To contest a ticket you appear before a local magistrate at a hearing. I've heard the magistrate tell offenders that they need not have bothered to appear as they were all guilty, and it would have been cheaper to pay the fine rather than the "judgement."

Interesting. A few years ago, when I was in college, I got a speeding ticket on my way home from class one night for doing 40 in a 30 zone. The only reason I had sped up was because I needed to change lanes and I had this jerk alongside me blocking me from changing lanes. I tried slowing down to go behind him and he slowed down to block me with no one in front of him, so then I tried speeding up and he sped up so I slowed down again and he slowed down so then I just hit the gas and got in front of him. In doing so I apparently touched 40 MPH. The cop wouldn't let me explain what happened so I fought it. The Magistrate looked at my record and saw that I didn't have any other violations and dismissed the ticket without letting me explain either. I paid a reduced fine and it didn't go on my driving record.

 

Then I got another ticket one day because I accidentally got into one of our carpool lanes. It was about 8:55 and the lanes stop being restricted at 9:00am. I usually traveled that route about 9:10am and thus could use the carpool lane even though I was alone. That day I didn't realize it wasn't 9:00am yet and accidentally got into the lane. Less than 100 feet later I saw the sign saying they were still restricted and looked at the clock and realized my mistake and got over, but there was a State Trooper sitting a half mile up on the shoulder who pulled me over and gave me a ticket. So I went and fought that one too and explained what had happened to the Magistrate who also dismissed the ticket so that it wouldn't go on my record but in exchange I had to go to a Defensive Driving class. Which I actually enjoyed because I want to be a better driver but my insurance won't give me a discount for taking a Defensive Driving class. So this way I got to take the class for $15 because the county pays for the rest of the fee.

 

I guess it all depends on the local authorities how they police things. The police in the suburb where we live are often watching for speeders and give tickets to people doing 5 MPH over the speed limit. There are also a few stop signs that people tend to roll through where they'll sit hidden waiting for someone to roll through the stop sign.

[acdii]

Cross my fingers, have not had a ticket in well over 20 years. Been pulled over a few times, but got let go, once with a warning, and once just because the county liked my daughter. I had a 2001 Crown Vic Sport, and I had passed someone, properly, but the car took a long time to slow down, and he shot me with radar just after I had passed. and since he knew the Crown Vic well, he understood and let me go. The other time I was given a warning, and he had me nailed too. I had again passed someone, this time with my old Flex, and that thing would go from 45 to 80 in a heartbeat. I had just passed(again) as he crested the hill, so he didn't see me pass, but clocked me going 75. I had pulled over right away, and was waiting for him to turn around and come get me. Handed him my license, registration and insurance and told him what I did, and he came back a few minutes later with a written warning. It was my Birthday, and I also hold a CDL, so I think both those combined, and my clean record sent me free.

 

They will be hard pressed to catch me doing anything like that anymore, gas was cheaper back then! :)

[10FusionHybrid]

On 5/11/2013 at 11:12 AM, murphy said:

There is no way to charge the HV battery externally.

 

You do not want the HV battery to be fully charged. If it was there would be no place to store energy receoverd by re-generative braking.

I can't speak for the 2013 Hybrid since I have an Energi but my 2010 Hybrid maintained the HVB at 50% during a trip even to the point that if it was above 50% at the start of a highway trip it would bring it down to 50%.

With the Fusion, once the hybrid battery is fully charged, the computer switches back to the standard disc brakes. Once the HV battery level begins to drop, then it will switch back to the regenerative braking system.

[MeeLee]

On 1/21/2024 at 7:31 AM, 10FusionHybrid said:

With the Fusion, once the hybrid battery is fully charged, the computer switches back to the standard disc brakes. Once the HV battery level begins to drop, then it will switch back to the regenerative braking system.

Not really. If the battery is charged, it will actually use battery energy to brake (aside from the brake pads).

 

I know it's counter intuitive, but the battery can only handle about 40hp of power for short bursts, which isn't much.

 

If it sends the right voltage to the generator/motors, you can get a lot more braking power using both to brake, but it's at the cost of draining the battery.

 

Edited February 6 by MeeLee

[Waldo]

13 hours ago, MeeLee said:

Not really. If the battery is charged, it will actually use battery energy to brake (aside from the brake pads).

 

I know it's counter intuitive, but the battery can only handle about 40hp of power for short bursts, which isn't much.

 

If it sends the right voltage to the generator/motors, you can get a lot more braking power using both to brake, but it's at the cost of draining the battery.

 

 

What in the world are you talking about???

[MeeLee]

10 hours ago, Waldo said:

 

What in the world are you talking about???

My fusion charges the battery only if the battery level is low. If it is high, it actually drains the battery, as shown by the indicators, and lower mpg on trips.

 

Have you never noticed this?

 

As explained by an engineer, the battery sends power to both generator and power motor, and both of them will start working against one another, generating a massive amount of braking torque. "Massive" being rather small on a 4 ton car using only a 40hp motor.