Preparing for winter with a comprehensive strategy to improve MPGs including grille blocking & more

[Wingmn]

Paul, where did you hook up the Oil pan heater? And where did you get one?

[hybridbear]

At those temps I would recommend taping off the complete front end to conserve heat as much as possible. On a long trip you may need to be a little more conservative. If you have MYVIEW set for water temp then you have nothing to worry about as long as the temps stay below the top white line. I have never seen them close to that. :)

 

Paul

Idk if you've noticed, but the FFH front end seems to be much better sealed than the C-Max front end. On the FFH there is a minimal air gap around the headlights and the hood seal is much tighter. Where else is there to tape off? The only spot that's open is the tiny slots under the lower grille. Everything else is now covered. Coming home the coolant hit 184F as the ambient temp was about 3 degrees warmer than in the morning. I found it interesting that the coolant temp increased by the same amount as the air temp on the drive home. I haven't driven in the city yet, but will tomorrow. Tomorrow morning it's supposed to be between -15 & -20 with the afternoon high only -2.

 

I also fully blocked the upper and lower grilles on my wife's Prius the other day. Its coolant temp reached 189F in a short highway drive this morning. Once getting off the freeway and driving around the city the coolant temp quickly dropped to 160-175 F which seems to be where it stabilized in city driving.

[ptjones]

Idk if you've noticed, but the FFH front end seems to be much better sealed than the C-Max front end. On the FFH there is a minimal air gap around the headlights and the hood seal is much tighter. Where else is there to tape off? The only spot that's open is the tiny slots under the lower grille. Everything else is now covered. Coming home the coolant hit 184F as the ambient temp was about 3 degrees warmer than in the morning. I found it interesting that the coolant temp increased by the same amount as the air temp on the drive home. I haven't driven in the city yet, but will tomorrow. Tomorrow morning it's supposed to be between -15 & -20 with the afternoon high only -2.

 

I also fully blocked the upper and lower grilles on my wife's Prius the other day. Its coolant temp reached 189F in a short highway drive this morning. Once getting off the freeway and driving around the city the coolant temp quickly dropped to 160-175 F which seems to be where it stabilized in city driving.

Did you already tape around the Grill Cover so no air gets by? Those are miserable temps, no fun. :)

 

Paul

[hybridbear]

Did you already tape around the Grill Cover so no air gets by? Those are miserable temps, no fun. :)

 

Paul

I didn't. I figured this space will protect me from overheating as temps go up and down so that nothing overheats. Tonight I did a quick trip out in the FFH. It's a route we drive frequently, 6.3 miles say way. Leaving home the coolant temp was about 20C from being parked underground. The outside temp was -1. The warmest the coolant got was about 63C. I needed defrost because the windows kept fogging up but I was constantly toggling it on and off because it was making the ICE run. I got only 35 MPG. With moderate temps of 45+ F I could consistently get 50-55 MPG on this drive.

 

Coming home the coolant started at about 25C and the outside temp had dropped to -3F. The warmest the coolant got was 73C after a long uphill freeway stretch. This was with minimal heat because I was trying not to cool the engine too much. Once I got off the freeway the coolant temp struggled to stay above 63C. In city driving to home the coolant temp dropped to about 63C. When the ICE would come on the coolant temp would initially drop as the coolant began circulating and then it would rise back to about 62 or 63C.

 

This cold sucks!! I hope it ends soon!!

Edited December 7, 2013 by hybridbear

[hermans]

This cold sucks!! I hope it ends soon!!

Are you not going to get Winter in MN? I have clients in MN. Unfortunately I sometimes need to travel there in Winter. They never seem to need me in the Summer.

Edited December 7, 2013 by hermans

[hybridbear]

Blocking both grilles seems to be good for at least a 15C increase in coolant temp when the ambient temp is below 0F. I drove my parents to the airport yesterday morning in their C-Max. The outside temp was -3F. On the freeway I put the car in EV Later. The warmest the coolant got in the Energi was about 60C. Whenever the ICE would turn off to drive in EV Mode the Energi would start heating the coolant with electricity from the battery to keep it warm enough to have heat. In the FFH with both grilles blocked the coolant temps would have reached 75-80C in the same amount of miles at those temps.

[ptjones]

Had first fill up last night and the numbers where 630.2mi.,12.77gal.,49.3MPG, 376.9EV. Actual 13.18gal., 47.8MPG but I think odometer is off too by 1-1.5% which would work out to be 48.5MPG.

That was with Grill Covers on about half the time and temps between 40 to 75degrees and some rain over three weeks. :)

 

Paul

[hybridbear]

Last night I bought some more foam pipe insulation and blocked the grille on the Energi. Instead of the coolant temp peaking at 165F it reached 188F today on the interstate driving to Owatonna. A few times it reached 193F after long stretches of the ICE running while increasing in elevation. When the car would go into EV mode the coolant temp would often drop to about 182 and then begin climbing from there. Mostly it stayed at 186 or 188F when the ICE was on even for many miles without the ICE turning off.

 

One thing I noticed was that the Intake air temp was not effected by blocking the grille of the C-Max. On the FFH the grille blocking increases the intake temp by about 20-30 degrees F on the interstate. The C-Max intake temp was only about 2-3 F above ambient. Ambient temps this morning were about 6 F during my drive.

[ptjones]

Paul, where did you hook up the Oil pan heater? And where did you get one?

I would suggest Wolverine Model 9.0 Oil pan heater at 125watts. I used a NAPA KAT's pad heater # 24150 but it covered up the bottom of oil pan and caused the ICE to run 5-10degrees warmer. That is when I learned that the oil pan does a lot of the cooling of the ICE. :)

 

Paul

[Wingmn]

Received the kit yesterday. Thank you sir :)

[ptjones]

Received the kit yesterday. Thank you sir :)image.jpg

Your welcome. How soon can you get it installed? I'm looking forward to your comments. :)

 

Paul

[Wingmn]

Probably this weekend. It was very rainy yesterday. That and I'm not the primary driver of the fusion :(

[ptjones]

Probably this weekend. It was very rainy yesterday. That and I'm not the primary driver of the fusion :(

It shouldn't take more than 5-10minutes to install. :)

 

Paul

[jsolan]

Do the grill covers need to be made from quality materials?

 

I have a piece of plexi-plastic from an old poster frame that I was considering carving up with a dremel. Would this work ok or does some of the heat come out through the grill, such that quality materials should be used?

[milleron]

It shouldn't take more than 5-10minutes to install. :)

 

Paul

 

Hey, Paul,

The mailman just delivered the one you made for me. It was in good condition; I expected the USPS to break it, no matter how difficult that might be for the average person, but it arrive unblemished. I was very impressed with the following:

1. the extra cover for summer use.
2. the clear instructions with helpful photos
3. the very clever mounting system and mounting hardware you manufactured to go along with the cover
4. the Lexan construction (as opposed to less expensive plastics that crack and break, especially in cold weather)

I think I'll put a washer under the head of the central bolt; it'll make it only slightly more obvious, and it just looks like more contact area wouldn't hurt.

I'm SO glad I didn't try this project here at home. Your covers, to my way of thinking, are a superb bargain, that I'd heartily recommend to other FFH owners up here in the Frozen North.

 

My only regret is that I didn't order the lower-grill cover as well. We're clearly in for a colder-than-average winter, so my fears about overheating the electronics are ebbing rapidly.

 

Thanks a million.

 

Ron

Edited December 14, 2013 by milleron

[ptjones]

 

Hey, Paul,

The mailman just delivered the one you made for me. It was in good condition; I expected the USPS to break it, no matter how difficult that might be for the average person, but it arrive unblemished. I was very impressed with the following:

1. the extra cover for summer use.
2. the clear instructions with helpful photos
3. the very clever mounting system and mounting hardware you manufactured to go along with the cover
4. the Lexan construction (as opposed to less expensive plastics that crack and break, especially in cold weather)

I think I'll put a washer under the head of the central bolt; it'll make it only slightly more obvious, and it just looks like more contact area wouldn't hurt.

I'm SO glad I didn't try this project here at home. Your covers, to my way of thinking, are a superb bargain, that I'd heartily recommend to other FFH owners up here in the Frozen North.

 

My only regret is that I didn't order the lower-grill cover as well. We're clearly in for a colder-than-average winter, so my fears about overheating the electronics are ebbing rapidly.

 

Thanks a million.

 

Ron

Thanks for the compliment and can still ship you a lower cover when you want. :)

 

Paul

[ptjones]

Do the grill covers need to be made from quality materials?

 

I have a piece of plexi-plastic from an old poster frame that I was considering carving up with a dremel. Would this work ok or does some of the heat come out through the grill, such that quality materials should be used?

That will work, but Plexiglass is brittle and fractures easily so be careful. Good luck. :)

 

Paul

[acdii]

I made 3 covers out of the midgrade 3/16" stuff from Home Depot, HB has the first one, the second is on my car, and the third is for Corncob if he wants it. It cost somewhere around $35 for it. It does crack if you aren't careful and flex it too much, but if you do get a crack, a stop hole drilled as the end of the crack will prevent it from spreading a s shot of thin CA will bond it. It will take a lot of abuse from salt trucks in the coldest weather, and worked quite well for an experiment. If it comes through the winter damaged, then I will get a sheet of the good stuff and make another one, but quite pleased with the one I got.

[Wingmn]

Installed and ready to roll! :) I think adding a washer is a great idea - just read the above posts. Great job Paul, I was SUPER pleased at how it has all come together, I might add some door edge protection around the edges of the panel for paint protection, that was my other thought.

[corncobs]

I made 3 covers out of the midgrade 3/16" stuff from Home Depot, HB has the first one, the second is on my car, and the third is for Corncob if he wants it. It cost somewhere around $35 for it. It does crack if you aren't careful and flex it too much, but if you do get a crack, a stop hole drilled as the end of the crack will prevent it from spreading a s shot of thin CA will bond it. It will take a lot of abuse from salt trucks in the coldest weather, and worked quite well for an experiment. If it comes through the winter damaged, then I will get a sheet of the good stuff and make another one, but quite pleased with the one I got.

I'll be back ... in 4 weeks.

[superplatipus]

Was stuck in trafic Today and Yesterday coming back from Work.

 

 

 

Both trips were approx.the same:

 

1h45 minutes, 26km(16.2 miles), -minus 20c(-minus 4f).....did only 10l/100km(28.2mpImpg or 23.5mpUSg)....winter is horrible for my FHH ....consumes more than double than in warmer seasons.

 

Any recomendations ?

 

Thanks

[Wingmn]

The covers would help a little I think, but with temps like that, and traffic as bad as that, the immediate suggestion is try to use the heated seats if you have them as your primary heat source. That might reduce the gas engine (ICE) cycling on and off a little. The little consolation I have for you is 23mpg moving little to no where in 2 hours is really very good :)

[acdii]

While it wasnt that cold the other day, 18*, it was still snowing and traffic was terrible, averaged about 3.5 MPH to go 34.5 miles in 2 hours(I think, math isnt my strong suit), and still managed to get 34 MPG. Quite pleased with that, however, I have my main grill covered, heater on fan setting 3, floor and defrost, and seat heaters on. These 3 items is what helps boost MPG up in our cold northern winters.

 

One thing I did notice, that I might do something about if it warms up here soon, is that snow was on the inside of the cover, which means getting more air around the cover than I should, which may help a bit more. Going to take the cover off, I need to get some cushion between the cover and the grill so I dont damage the chrome, and will fill in the outer areas with something when I put it back on. I dont expect to see any marked improvement by doing this, but every little bit helps.

[hybridbear]

While it wasnt that cold the other day, 18*, it was still snowing and traffic was terrible, averaged about 3.5 MPH to go 34.5 miles in 2 hours(I think, math isnt my strong suit), and still managed to get 34 MPG. Quite pleased with that, however, I have my main grill covered, heater on fan setting 3, floor and defrost, and seat heaters on. These 3 items is what helps boost MPG up in our cold northern winters.

 

One thing I did notice, that I might do something about if it warms up here soon, is that snow was on the inside of the cover, which means getting more air around the cover than I should, which may help a bit more. Going to take the cover off, I need to get some cushion between the cover and the grill so I dont damage the chrome, and will fill in the outer areas with something when I put it back on. I dont expect to see any marked improvement by doing this, but every little bit helps.

Let me know what you do and I can look at doing the same.

[hybridbear]

I was just thinking about something relating to grille covers...foam vs plastic...

 

I foamed the C-Max Energi grille and its coolant temp reached >190F driving on the freeway. I foamed the Prius grille and its coolant temp reaches >190F with outside air temps of -5 to -10F on the freeway. The FFH has both top & bottom plastic covers, yet it never gets much above 180-184F even after 45 minutes at 65-70 MPH. The C-Max with foam reached 180F after less than 8 minutes on the interstate and 190 after about 20 minutes. The FFH with plastic takes at least 20 minutes just to get to 175-180F. I'm thinking I might need to go to Menards and buy some more foam and try an experiment of foam on the FFH instead of the plastic grille covers to see if the foam does a better job of insulating the ICE. Any thoughts?