Hybrid News

Like a lot of people here probably did, we loaded down the MMH for a road trip over the holidaze. My wife, both parents and I drove 2,400 miles on a trip to Grandma’s in Iowa and utimately to Minneapolis, then returning to Colorado Springs. Trips like this were one of the main reasons for buying the Mariner–winter road trips where weather is unpredictable and everyone has a decent amount of luggage.

On the way out, we hit 30mph winds with blowing snow over black ice in Des Moines but the MMH was a champ. It plowed through 6" drifts in the Wendy’s parking lot so we could get some chili and stayed it’s course on the ice at low speed just fine. I would guess we saw over 50 trucks/suvs/cars in the ditch from that morning when the ice was worse so we had a constant reminder to keep the speed down.

Overall, we managed 25.0mpg for the trip which began with the "green" engine reading only 400 miles on the odometer at the start of the trip. That seems a little lower than I was hoping for on the highway, but temps were mostly in the low teens and the car was pretty loaded with four adults and a trunk full of stuff. I can’t imagine a situation that would have been much more taxing on the engine.

We averaged about 55mph on rural highways and 65mph on the interstates unless we were able to draft. When conditions allowed, I would hang out about 3 car lengths behind semis and would follow up to 75mph. That seemed to have a 3-5mpg impact based on the Scan Guage’s output. I used the engine block heater whenever we knew we were going somewhere in advance, but there were lots of cold starts too.

It liked "real" gas better than ethanol blend in terms of MPG (BTW, anyone know the blend ratio in Iowa?), but from a miles per $ standpoint, ethanol came out slightly ahead when purchased in Iowa where there is a subsidy. This is a little hard to quantify though since none of the gas/ethanol was purchased at the same station or in the same town so the price difference varied.

The comfort was great with leg room for everyone. The back seat passengers were just as warm as the front seaters, even in really cold temperatures. The ride was great unless on a concrete interstate where it frequently had a jackhammer-like ride on small expansion cracks. Does anyone else have this problem? This is with the stock-from-the-dealer 35psi in the tires.

Anyone else have any road trip stories to report? Post ‘em up!

Hi

With insights from the "Prius_Technical_Group" group, I’m working on reconditioning individual cell assemblies for NHW11 batteries. For example, the cell assembly in the photo has an ending capacity of 3.2 Ahr, enough to match the cells in a used pack that has suffered one or more failed cell assemblies:

The automated battery conditioner first discharges the cell assembly to 1 VDC. It then charges it up and records the capacity. Currently appear to give consistent results. NiMH charging generates gas so the battery must be clamped to prevent the sides from bowing out and destroying the cell.

The batteries have interlocking ‘cups’ and ‘dimples’ and using just a flat board would lead to local, mechanical stress on the sides. So a pair of plastic shims cover each side providing strain relief for these raised surfaces. One board has a capacitive, load sensor to detect excessive gas pressure:

This approach takes usable cell assemblies from a salvage battery or one with bad modules (preferred) and reconditions the working cells. Someone with a failed battery pack can get replacement cell assemblies, ~$30-40 each, and replace just failed cell units. This won’t be a ‘new’ battery pack but a reworked pack, good enough to keep the Prius rolling for a lot less than the $2,300 of a whole battery pack.

Questions? Comments? Concerns?

Bob Wilson

We are just about to hit 10k on our FEH. We recently changed the oil and instead of using the recommended 5-20 synthetic blend, we used 5-20 premium synthetic (motorcraft). There have been a couple of significant differences in the way our FEH is performing. I have gone about 200 miles since the oil change.

First, the transition from ev to ice is significantly smoother. This might sound crazy, but there is a noticeable difference.

My fuel mileage has increased SIGNIFICANTLY….

Could this be due to just the oil change or could there be a change in the way the truck performs at 10k?

We have not changed our travel routes, we are not hyper anything.. We are driving the truck the way we always have. 99% of our driving is rural, straight, flat roads with a max speed of 55, most roads are 35 however. The weather has been high 60′s to low 80′s and dry.

We normally average about 34-36mpg..since the oil change, we are averaging 42-43… (it has been as high as 46 but no lower than 42).

Now to add another twist to the story, On my last tank of fuel, I ran the truck to 0 miles to empty (but not out of fuel).
I wanted to COMPLETELY fill the tank, so at the end I patiently held the nozzle at a slow rate until it could take no more. I could see fuel in the neck when I removed the nozzle.

The slip said 16.235 gallons!! Is this possible in a 15 gallon tank (per owners manual)?? Could this station be over charging?

The kicker is, I have gone 106 miles since filling up and the miles to empty says 531. The fuel guage is still pegged on F. Could the float be stuck in the tank or something?

The avg right now is 42.3 and we always reset just after filling. So it is a 106 mile avg.

Help me understand some of these changes!

AM I GOING TO GET 600 miles out of this tank???

08FEH

I recently had the heater control module replced on my 2003 HCH. Although the repair was not too expensive ($350), I was amazed at how many things this board controls. Basically, the problem started when I accidently hit a speed bump way too hard. All of the sudden, the lights on the heat/AC knobs went out and the heat came on — full blast! Soon my car was nearly 90 degrees on the inside.

As if that wasn’t bad enough, the defogger mode was non-operational and the rear-window defogger was also offline. The idle-stop no longer triggered at stops either. Of course, the fan blower cranked so hard that the IMA battery kept draining down to 1 or 2 bars, which would trigger a forced recharge. That did *wonders* for my fuel economy (not!)

Well… The car’s fixed now and it’s back to the usual 42-45 MPG.

Funny thing about my car: as the vehicle has aged, only the CITY mileage has decreased. When I visit my mom and to that 3-hour straight shot on Route 70, I can usually get 47-51 MPG just like when it was new.

Hi all,

I just bought a civic hybrid 2003 and the former owner didn’t leave me the owner manual, does anyone know where I can find it for free of course :D?

Thank you.

Hi all,
I currently own a 2006 Mustang GT. I just had to get the car after a stint in Iraq due to the fact that I had previously owned a ‘65 Mustang for over 10 years. However, the reality of 21MPG and a 25 mile commute (one-way) staring me in the face is changing my desire for the Mustang. Add in the fact that it can’t carry my family of five and there aren’t a lot of positives for the Mustang. I get tons of great comments where ever I go and it does wonderful smoky burnouts,,, but that’s about all it’s good for.

Are there any for muscle car owners in here that regret their decision to buy an HCH? I’m going to the dealer on Monday to buy one before the full credit runs out this year and need reassurance that I’m making the right decision. Thanks.