Towing - What Mode

[littlescrote]

What clues do you get that you're neither regen or powering ?

2. One is the power gauge being neither negative nor positive. The other is the power flow diagram showing neither.

 

[littlescrote]

"good" in what way? Once the charging process is complete (at ~80% full) the car will use the energy in the battery until it's dropped a few percentage points and then recharge it again (referred to as a 'hysteresis' cycle). Without charge mode selected, exactly the same thing happens but with the battery 'empty' (in reality, ~15% charge left). Selecting save mode does the same, but at whatever level of charge is present when you press the button.

As long as you remember to turn charge/save mode off and arrive at your destination with the battery 'empty', you'll consume very similar amounts of fuel, whichever strategy you adopt.

The difference being that if you do that at 80% charge you will have some battery to assist the engine up long hills when it's either in direct drive or running the generator at maximum capacity. If you do it at lower charge, you may run out part way up said hill (mountain in reality).

 

[littlescrote]

That's not how my 2014 appears to work.
It drives on battery only until I select CHG.
Then the ICE starts and doesn't turn off until I deselect CHG.

Well, it won't drive on battery if the battery is empty.

 

[mountkay]

the car will use the energy in the battery until it's dropped a few percentage points and then recharge it again

As this video shows, below 42mph, the car will use only the electric motors.

The motors can use 80HP each, total of 160HP. The generator can only supply 94HP of energy. So it is possible to use more energy than the generator can supply.

Thus it is important to keep a large buffer of energy in the battery and not just rely on the generator kicking on when the battery is in a critical low state begging to charged.

Letting the genny kick on at low battery when you are driving the car solo is mostly fine since there is always a small buffer left in the battery. But when towing it is better to keep a large buffer of energy in the battery for when you are using more energy for the motors than the generator can supply.