2007-09-30 06:55:52 · 6 answers · asked by katietaylor91010 1 in Cars & Transportation ➔ Car Makes ➔ Toyota
The displayed charge on the battery (seen on the Energy Monitor) rarely ever reaches "full" or "empty" but prefers to stay at a happy medium. The display only shows you the useable area of charge on the hybrid battery, displayed "empty" is about 40% and displayed "full" is about 80%. Actual charge levels of a NHW20 Prius (like yours) can be seen at:
http://www.privatenrg.com/#Full_SOC
The two bottom pink bars are about 40-47.5% battery charge.
The most common middle four blue bars are about 45-66.5% battery charge.
The two top green bars are about 64-81% battery charge.
Quoting from a June 22, 2004 Toyota press release:
http://pressroom.toyota.com/photo_library/display_release.html?id=20040623
http://pressroom.toyota.com/Releases/View?id=TYT2004062345528
The Prius battery (and the battery-power management system) has been designed to maximize battery life. In part this is done by keeping the battery at an optimum charge level - never fully draining it and never fully recharging it. As a result, the Prius battery leads a pretty easy life. We have lab data showing the equivalent of 180,000 miles with no deterioration and expect it to last the life of the vehicle. ....
To quote from Toyota:
http://www.toyota.com/html/hybridsynergyview/2006/fall/battery.html
"'Q: Do they [the hybrid batteries] ever run out of power?
GS: No. A computer makes sure the batteries never discharge completely. They never fill completely, either. "
So yes, it is normal to not see the battery display on the Energy Screen reach green/full very often. (Even when it does read "full" - like after coasting down a long hill/mountain - the battery still isn't charged to full, to prolong the battery life.) It is also not common to see a low/pink battery icon either - usually a long uphill climb or heavy AC use (since the AC is electrically-powered off of the hybrid battery, and is not a conventional belt-driven off the engine AC).
There is no reason to be concerned at all to see the battery level at either extreme. The car takes care of itself, and you don't have to do anything special. (Turn off the display, or just stay on the more useful Consumption Monitor.) If the hybrid battery is too low on charge, the Prius will just turn on the gasoline engine to recharge it if necessary. If the hybrid battery is too high on charge, it'll bleed off as much energy as needed by running on electric only or occasionally by spinning the gasoline engine with the electric motor (similar to B mode).
2007-09-30 07:41:10 · answer #1 · answered by mrvadeboncoeur 7 · 3⤊ 0⤋
mrvadeboncoeur is correct. The Prius battery varies between 40% and 80% charged. When the battery in the display is green, that means it's close to 80% charged. When it's blue, that means the charge is a bit lower, and it will recharge itself soon. I've never seen it go below the blue myself.
2007-10-01 12:51:14 · answer #2 · answered by Dana1981 7 · 3⤊ 0⤋
Uh. That the battery is low.
2007-09-30 14:00:03 · answer #3 · answered by hakim1125 6 · 1⤊ 2⤋
It's just telling you it's low on charge.
2007-09-30 14:00:32 · answer #4 · answered by Jackolantern 7 · 0⤊ 1⤋
It's gonna croak. Plan on buying a new battery.
2007-09-30 14:06:17 · answer #5 · answered by ? 5 · 0⤊ 4⤋
Battery is bad. Replace it and you may also check your alternator if it charges good
2007-10-01 03:13:50 · answer #6 · answered by BoyBenny 2 · 0⤊ 5⤋