It IS a hybrid.
Any GTAM'ers own an electric vehicle?
- Thread starter PrivatePilot
- Start date
The hypermiling game calls on the same fundamental skills required for racing, ie smoothness, anticipation. It helps make people better drivers.
Now that I have a better understanding of things, the stories I've about lacklustre heat makes more sense - it's people that are hypermiling and sacrificing *hot* heat for *lukewarm* heat in order to achieve maximum electric (vs hybrid gas) miles.
Having done more reading now...if you switch the HVAC into "comfort" mode vs "economy" mode there's no problem at all in scorching yourself out of the cabin if you want, but it does (understandably) come at the expense of electric miles.
The ERDTT (using the engine cycling on and off for heat vs relying entirely on the electric grid heating) makes more sense now and is the best possible compromise between the two.
Now that I understand it better, this is no longer a big deal for me. I'd explain to my wife to preheat before leaving (so the cabin is toasty warm using the 220v home power feed while the car is still plugged in), drive away with the system on "Eco", and if she's not comfortable enough, switch it to "comfort" instead.
On the flipside, everything I've read about the AC indicates it has surprisingly little impact on electric miles as it's a very efficient system.
Iceman
Well-known member
I gave in, bought the odessey. Thanks by the way, I'm loving it.
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That sporadic operation can sometimes increase maintenance. For example if the engine only runs long enough to produce condensation, but not long enough to evaporate it out of the systems. Or if the fuel gets old enough to cause fuel system problems without stabilizer (which has its own problems). Or infrequent use of brakes may encourage the buildup of rust.
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White? Blasting down Bathurst today?Actually C43 with perf exhaust. Bang's bigtime on upshift and crackles on downshifts. It even regen's on braking.....so it's kinda a hybrid.
-D-
Banned
I feel like everyone I've seen is white. That's racist. Also DSG farts offend me.
I think most of us get the sense that if Honda had the brains and will to create technology like Voltec, you would not call it "hoop jumping", eh?
The only time hybrids make sense to me is In SUV application with towing requirement. Done correctly, which is none hybrid offered today, the battery should be large enough to get you EV only commute (for the average commuter) and you have the ICE for long hauls and towing.
Any other hybrid application offered by Honda and others is just a game to get a tiny little bit better fuel economy. But up until now the price to pay this game just makes no sense. Seems like the prices are coming a bit down now, but te batteries remain too small.
If GM really wanted .... I think they still play games, making sure they don't lose their profit margin performers .... they could put Voltec easily into Terrain .... But they don't, because it would cost them profit coin they cannot part with as it is their bee's knees. The market will force their hand as crossovers and SUV's are where the market is, not sedans .... You would see the numbers just take-off ...
There's pretty meaningful difference between Voltec and let say Honda Accord hybrid. It's unfortunate they both fell somehow into hybrid category.
It is indeed the future.
I think the engineers have probably thought about the condensation issue and made sure that when the engine *does* start, it runs long enough to avoid that. Sporatic usage doesn't necessarilly equate automatic issues however - simply look at standby generators for example, they are the perfect example of engines that see sporadic usage but are required to be reliable for when they're called into action - and they work fine and typically last decades.
I deliver to a lot of small-town water treatment plants as part of my job and many of them have large backup generators inside the buildings...and some of them appear to be decades old but are still in service and doing their thing when required. Yes, they do get serviced and exercised, but they're not operating like a typical engine in a car would, but are still going long after many equivalent cars have gone to the grave.
As for the stale fuel issue, I would agree on that one - for someone with a Volt who does 100% of their driving on EV alone, stabilizing the fuel would probably be wise.
x2 Thanks LBV.
As for charging, a 110v outlet will do the job just fine, just slower, and (as I understand it) the preheat function in the winter can't run solely off 110V (not enough amps) so it uses what it can from the receptacle and some off the top of the battery as well to achieve the goal - again, best compromise possible.
So, if you have access to 110v plugs, IMHO it's still a very viable option for you even if 220 isn't available.
The official tow rating is zero, but there appears to be no shortage of people that have done so with no ill effects within reason. Look at it this way - 4 'average' people inside a Volt can easily exceed 500 pounds, so a single moderately sized driver with a 500# trailer in tow is unlikely to be any different aside from the wind drag the faster you go. Lots of variables, but a 500-1000# trailer probably is doable, when done properly.
It is indeed the future.
The official tow rating is zero, but there appears to be no shortage of people that have done so with no ill effects within reason. Look at it this way - 4 'average' people inside a Volt can easily exceed 500 pounds, so a single moderately sized driver with a 500# trailer in tow is unlikely to be any different aside from the wind drag the faster you go. Lots of variables, but a 500-1000# trailer probably is doable, when done properly.
Good to know, wonder if there is a European version with a tow rating. Also can you put the car into hybrid mode to keep the batteries topped up right from the start or does it have to reach a certain depletion before the generator kicks in? Is it possible to put more load on the batteries than the generator can keep up with like say an extreme headwind?
Good discussion ...
@Slowbird - thanks. The new Volts will get you 100 km and they're even quicker than the old ones. On that point, let me stress that electric power is INSTANT ... no comparison to driving a non EV hybrid - I've amazed many people.
@CruisnGrrl - not sure on the towing but I can't see 500 lbs being an issue if you're not driving a full load of passengers as well. Afterall, 3 avg guys people would total that anyway.
@fastar1 - exactly on the anticipation - much like riding as you look down the road and react accordingly. Re the short engine runs, it runs long enough and in regards to the stale gas, GM has engineered a step where the gas engine will automatically start and run for 10 mins if it hasn't been on in so many km (&/or time .. not sure on the rule). It will actually ensure that the gas will not be older than 1 year in the tank. If you don't expect to use much gas anyway, just run half a tank or less so you're not constantly carrying the un-needed weight around.
@PrivatePilot - your routine for the wife is perfect & yes the AC has very little impact on range and surprised me actually (just about as much as the heater the other way). You really do need to take one for a test drive as that'll be the clincher.
@Joe Bass - cool ... it's happening more & more. Bramalea City Centre has 2 spots I use if available ... free.
@Slowbird - thanks. The new Volts will get you 100 km and they're even quicker than the old ones. On that point, let me stress that electric power is INSTANT ... no comparison to driving a non EV hybrid - I've amazed many people.
@CruisnGrrl - not sure on the towing but I can't see 500 lbs being an issue if you're not driving a full load of passengers as well. Afterall, 3 avg guys people would total that anyway.
@fastar1 - exactly on the anticipation - much like riding as you look down the road and react accordingly. Re the short engine runs, it runs long enough and in regards to the stale gas, GM has engineered a step where the gas engine will automatically start and run for 10 mins if it hasn't been on in so many km (&/or time .. not sure on the rule). It will actually ensure that the gas will not be older than 1 year in the tank. If you don't expect to use much gas anyway, just run half a tank or less so you're not constantly carrying the un-needed weight around.
@PrivatePilot - your routine for the wife is perfect & yes the AC has very little impact on range and surprised me actually (just about as much as the heater the other way). You really do need to take one for a test drive as that'll be the clincher.
@Joe Bass - cool ... it's happening more & more. Bramalea City Centre has 2 spots I use if available ... free.
Looks like PP and I were typing at the same time as he got some answers down pat.
Regarding the comment by CruisnGrrl "Also can you put the car into hybrid mode to keep the batteries topped up right from the start or does it have to reach a certain depletion before the generator kicks in? Is it possible to put more load on the batteries than the generator can keep up with like say an extreme headwind?"
The car has a button to allow you to put it into 4 Modes of driving (Normal, Sport, Hold, Mountain) if you so prefer ... or for those who don't. This is different than the transmission Modes of Park, Drive, Reverse, & Low btw.
Normal and Sport are similar except with Sport being better throttle response (my preference). The car drives in electric until the battery depletes fully then the gas engine kicks in to charge the battery.
Hold will hold the battery at the same state of charge as when you enter that Mode. It started in the European versions where gas combustion engines aren't allowed into some downtown cores due to pollution. So a driver out in the suburbs of Paris or wherever would start driving with 75 km range & put his Opel Ampera into Hold mode right away or later in the drive. The car's engine will come on as required to keep that charge state at 75 km's so when he gets into town he puts it back into Normal or Sport and is in pure EV mode ... brilliant!
Mountain is used when you're expecting to be driving in hilly terrain which of course will drain the battery quicker on the uphill runs. The car will maintain a larger buffer of battery range to ensure you get up the hill safely with adequate power. This is the only thing I can think of where the driver needs to "think" about driving the Volt ... otherwise, start it, put it in gear, go if you so prefer.
Regarding the comment by CruisnGrrl "Also can you put the car into hybrid mode to keep the batteries topped up right from the start or does it have to reach a certain depletion before the generator kicks in? Is it possible to put more load on the batteries than the generator can keep up with like say an extreme headwind?"
The car has a button to allow you to put it into 4 Modes of driving (Normal, Sport, Hold, Mountain) if you so prefer ... or for those who don't.
This is different than the transmission Modes of Park, Drive, Reverse, & Low btw.Normal and Sport are similar except with Sport being better throttle response (my preference). The car drives in electric until the battery depletes fully then the gas engine kicks in to charge the battery.
Hold will hold the battery at the same state of charge as when you enter that Mode. It started in the European versions where gas combustion engines aren't allowed into some downtown cores due to pollution. So a driver out in the suburbs of Paris or wherever would start driving with 75 km range & put his Opel Ampera into Hold mode right away or later in the drive. The car's engine will come on as required to keep that charge state at 75 km's so when he gets into town he puts it back into Normal or Sport and is in pure EV mode ... brilliant!
Mountain is used when you're expecting to be driving in hilly terrain which of course will drain the battery quicker on the uphill runs. The car will maintain a larger buffer of battery range to ensure you get up the hill safely with adequate power. This is the only thing I can think of where the driver needs to "think" about driving the Volt ... otherwise, start it, put it in gear, go if you so prefer.
