Do low temperatures inhibit parallel mode?

[maby]

Something I've noticed a few times in the last week - driving on the same stretch of relatively flat road at 60mph or more, my car is remaining in serial mode when I would expect it to be in parallel. It seems to get stuck there. In all cases, I've started the journey in temperatures around zero with the car cold. It has been around 60% charge and running on "Save" because I'm driving fast enough that the battery would contribute very little and it's going to be several days before I can plug in. The car simply refuses to go into parallel mode. After ten or fifteen miles, I stop for a while to go into a shop, then restart and continue at the same speeds on basically the same road - and everything is back to normal - flipping between serial and parallel mode based on speed and power demand.

 

[ThudnBlundr]

Apparently yes (in answer to the original question)

 

[MikkB]

Could it be trying to get the battery temperature up, then when it's up to a more efficient operating temperature will revert back to using parallel mode? Just a guess.

 

[anko]

Happened to me this afternoon, but not this morning when it was quite a bit colder. Was the very first time this happened to me in 5 years time. I have seen much colder days. The difference: I engaged Cahrge mode when the battery was well above 80%, what I normally avoid. The only times I normally do that is when towing. And I have seen it sticking in serial mode a few times then. It would only engage in parallel mode when SoC was below 50% or so. Never happened before.

Could it be trying to get the battery temperature up, then when it's up to a more efficient operating temperature will revert back to using parallel mode? Just a guess.

I don't see how serial mode would warm up the battery quicker than parallel mode.

 

[Trex]

Ok,

So I am guessing that both anko and maby mean series mode and not cereal mode, oops , serial mode :lol: I have seen my oldest Phev get stuck in series mode some years ago.

Now from memory it was on the section of the 110 kph zone on the motorway just out of town where I live and I am on the way to Sydney and there is a hill that I know the Phev can climb silently in parallel mode. But this time I was in normal mode emptying the drive battery to get it into a lower SOC for fuel economy reasons driving on ACC and as the PHEV started climbing the hill and there was not enough power alone, and stay at the same speed, to climb the hill with just EV mode so it started the petrol motor to assist and of course went into series mode. Now this is a long hill of approx a couple of kms and instead of going into parallel mode after awhile it just stayed in series mode screaming its little head off like the old Prius I owned when it climbed that hill.

Now before I start climbing that same hill now I make sure I am in parallel mode (using Charge mode) at the bottom of that hill and it just climbs it silently.

Just probably the grade of that hill I think that the phev decides ok if in series mode stay in it or if in parallel stay in that.

Ps C'mon guys (anko and maby) you have been around long enough to know its series mode IMHO. Please stop teaching us newer members bad habits of saying serial mode. Or :idea: are you doing it to try and trick us newbies.? :lol:

 

[anko]

Hi trex,

Of course you are right about series vs serial, but if you insist on making an issue about it I have to insist on all of us switching to Dutch :lol:

In my case power drawn was no more than 25 - 30 kW. So, power demand was not an issue. Same when it happened while towing. Even when power demand would rise above 60 kW you would still expect battery supported parallel hybrid mode. Only when power demand would be above 60 kW + what the engine was capable of in parallel mode you would expect series mode. Assuming your battery wad not flat.

 

[Hypermiler]

I also got stuck like this the other day - the only time I’ve ever not have the ice switch to direct drive at 45mph +. Car was running for about an hour before it finally gave me the orange arrow. I was towing an empty trailer and presume I’d pressed charge at too high a soc.
It was disconcerting to not hear the engine note drop when I hit the right speed. I was worried that the soc wouldn’t cope with it - I needed to keep it up for the return uphill trip with loaded trailer. But it worked out fine.
Cheers
H

 

[anko]

As a matter of fact, when the car is stuck in series mode it is much better capable of maintaining soc (when towing). To me it was a bless.

 

[Mitch]

So I am guessing that both anko and maby mean series mode and not cereal mode, oops , serial mode :lol:

BTW, in German, we call it serial mode

I never had this "issue", even driving at -10 Celsius.
For what should this be good?

I heart in a German forum, somebody had the same, but even warmer weather.

Carzy. We should Mitsubishi, what logic is behind this "setting".

 

[maby]

As a matter of fact, when the car is stuck in series mode it is much better capable of maintaining soc (when towing). To me it was a bless.

Well, there certainly are circumstances where series/serial mode is the correct choice, but that was not the case for the examples I was referring to - high speed, flat road, lightly loaded. I now think that it is more a case of charge level than temperature - I was driving yesterday afternoon in reasonably high temperatures but with a battery close to 100%. I put it into Save because I was going to be doing about 100 miles at motorway speeds and it refused to go into parallel mode. I turned off Save and let the battery down to about 80%, then selected Save again and it went straight to parallel mode. I think that the behaviour of the car has changed recently - for the last five years I have followed the same pattern of usage on long journeys and I have not noticed it stuck in series mode.

 

[anko]

I am familiar with the car not engaging in parallel mode when you select Charge mode at very high SoC, although maybe not from the first two or three years. But like I said, when it happened to me the other day, it would not engage parallel drive before SoC had dropped to about 50%.

 

[Trex]

Hi trex,

Of course you are right about series vs serial, but if you insist on making an issue about it I have to insist on all of us switching to Dutch :lol:

Ok so I had to look up what the Dutch call series. Well bugger me, they call it "serie". Sorry mate, IMO you have no excuse to come on an English speaking forum getting it wrong and teaching us newbies bad habits. :lol: So I guess I will have to train you to speak proper (Aussie) English . :lol: Or I guess you could stay on your Dutch speaking forum instead of you expecting us to change. :lol: But then you would miss me. :lol:

 

[Trex]

I am familiar with the car not engaging in parallel mode when you select Charge mode at very high SoC, although maybe not from the first two or three years. But like I said, when it happened to me the other day, it would not engage parallel drive before SoC had dropped to about 50%.

Sorry to be the bearer of bad news anko but it sounds to me like your clutch is buggered from too much towing. I think you probably need to get it checked.

 

[anko]

Sorry to be the bearer of bad news anko but it sounds to me like your clutch is buggered from too much towing. I think you probably need to get it checked.

You must think that over. It is not the trailer that puts a strain on the clutch, it is the power coming from the engine. And you and I have the same engine :ugeek:

 

[greendwarf]

Hi trex,

Of course you are right about series vs serial, but if you insist on making an issue about it I have to insist on all of us switching to Dutch :lol:

Ok so I had to look up what the Dutch call series. Well bugger me, they call it "serie". Sorry mate, IMO you have no excuse to come on an English speaking forum getting it wrong and teaching us newbies bad habits. :lol: So I guess I will have to train you to speak proper (Aussie) English . :lol: Or I guess you could stay on your Dutch speaking forum instead of you expecting us to change. :lol: But then you would miss me. :lol:

Could be double Dutch :lol:

 

[elm70]

Something I've noticed a few times in the last week - driving on the same stretch of relatively flat road at 60mph or more, my car is remaining in serial mode when I would expect it to be in parallel. It seems to get stuck there. In all cases, I've started the journey in temperatures around zero with the car cold. It has been around 60% charge and running on "Save" because I'm driving fast enough that the battery would contribute very little and it's going to be several days before I can plug in. The car simply refuses to go into parallel mode. After ten or fifteen miles, I stop for a while to go into a shop, then restart and continue at the same speeds on basically the same road - and everything is back to normal - flipping between serial and parallel mode based on speed and power demand.

I had something similar ... but the "serial" mode did last not that long ... maybe only 30 seconds max 1 minute of drive before switch to parallel

It was looking like that with a cold engine block, if the power demand is limited (it is not needed much power for drive 100/110km/h on a flat surface) ... the engine like to start at low rpm and low power .. so providing a partial contribution to the EV consumption

Once the engine block is warm .. then I guess the PHEV switch to a more "standard" mode , which is normally parallel mode

I have also cases in which I did press charge, and the car did not start the ICE in the next 30 seconds since it was very cold ... I guess if there is enough battery and the engine block is cold, charge and save take a more "lazy"/safe approach ... taking care to slowly warm up the engine before asking it to produce "lot of power" .. maybe it is not always intuitive ... but I think it is a good design from Mitsubishi to take care to preserve as much as possible the condition of the ICE

 

[Trex]

Sorry to be the bearer of bad news anko but it sounds to me like your clutch is buggered from too much towing. I think you probably need to get it checked.

You must think that over. It is not the trailer that puts a strain on the clutch, it is the power coming from the engine. And you and I have the same engine :ugeek:

Hi Anko,

Ok, pretty sure I did not say it is "the trailer that puts a strain on the clutch". But the power coming from your petrol engine (and battery) to pull that trailer I am also pretty sure has been more than my petrol engine (and battery) not pulling a trailer.

But Anko, who I dealt with in emails on and off since I have turned up on this forum including hopefully helping you with your battery problem with Mitsubishi Netherlands recently, I actually thought you would know I was only pulling your leg when I gave you that wink emoji ( ) when I said it sounds like your clutch is buggered. Hope I did not cause you any distress.

Regards Trex.

 

[Trex]

Hi trex,

Of course you are right about series vs serial, but if you insist on making an issue about it I have to insist on all of us switching to Dutch :lol:

Ok so I had to look up what the Dutch call series. Well bugger me, they call it "serie". Sorry mate, IMO you have no excuse to come on an English speaking forum getting it wrong and teaching us newbies bad habits. :lol: So I guess I will have to train you to speak proper (Aussie) English . :lol: Or I guess you could stay on your Dutch speaking forum instead of you expecting us to change. :lol: But then you would miss me. :lol:

Could be double Dutch :lol:

:lol: :lol: Like I said before IMO you have one of the best sense of humour here except after me of course. :lol: