General Disclaimer:   (HV) (DC) injury or death hazard,   use at your own risk,   may void warranty.

Difference between revisions of "Prius EV Mode Button"

From My wiki
Jump to navigation Jump to search
(from history page.)
(corrections, spelling ,header)
Line 1: Line 1:
'''Enabling the EV-mode Button, The missing secret missing feature.'''
+
'''Enabling the EV-mode Button, The secret missing feature.'''
  
The EV-Mode Button is a standard part of the Japan and EU Prius but was not installed in the US versions, perhaps because of extended warranties in Ca due to AT-PZEV regulations and qualifications criteria.  The US Prius is still entirely aware of the EV-Mode though it can never get the signal or command to enter or exit the mode because a wire, light and button are missing.  EV-Mode is a very ''enlightening'' feature as it ''encourages'' the Prius to stay in its electric mode for far longer than it normally would.
+
The EV-Mode Button is a standard part of the Japan and EU Prius but was not installed in the US versions, perhaps because of extended [[Warranty|warranties]] in Ca due to AT-PZEV regulations and qualifications criteria.  The US Prius is still entirely aware of the EV-Mode though it can never get the signal or command to enter or exit the mode because the wire and button are missing.  EV-Mode is a very ''enlightening'' feature as it ''encourages'' the Prius to stay in its electric mode for far longer than it normally would.
It will normally drive 1 to 2 miles and up to 3 miles on a fully charged battery, after which it must restart the engine and use gasoline to recharge the battery.
+
It will normally drive 1 to 2 miles on a fully charged battery, after which it must restart the engine using gasoline to recharge the battery.
It is not a good idea to fully cycle the battery often as this decreases any battery's life and is not helpful for mileage if used improperly.  If used correctly is can be advantagious for times when you know you won't need to start the engine.  It's also fun for showing off and offers a small glimpse of the potential of electric vehicles.
+
It is not a good idea to fully cycle the battery often as this decreases any battery's life and is not helpful for mileage if used improperly.  If used correctly is can be advantageous for times when you know you won't need to start the engine.  It's also fun for showing off and offers a small glimpse of the potential of electric vehicles.
  
 
The ev-mode function itself is activated and deactivated by grounding the H14 #27 pin on the HV ECU located behind the glove box(s).
 
The ev-mode function itself is activated and deactivated by grounding the H14 #27 pin on the HV ECU located behind the glove box(s).
Line 10: Line 10:
  
 
Things you need to add the feature.
 
Things you need to add the feature.
* '''22 gauge wire''', about 6 feet.
+
* '''22 gage wire''', about 6 feet.
* Standard Philips screwdriver.
+
* Standard Phillips screwdriver.
* Small Jewler's screwdriver.
+
* Small Jeweler's screwdriver.
 
* Soldering may be required.
 
* Soldering may be required.
 
* 1/2 to 3 hours of time.
 
* 1/2 to 3 hours of time.
Line 18: Line 18:
 
** momentary switch, batteries, drop cord?
 
** momentary switch, batteries, drop cord?
  
----
+
==Parallel Packs==
  
I'm aware of a few other people who have added additional battery capacity to Prii, although they did not grid-recharge, those projects are rather close to becomming PHEV projects.
+
I'm aware of a few other people who have added additional battery capacity to Prii, although they did not grid-recharge, those projects are rather close to becoming [[PHEV]] projects.
 
*Wayne Brown ( ev-button ''discovery'', extra batteries, no plug-in ) [[Image:04 HV & PbAcidParallelTie2.jpg|thumb|100px|right|HV tie-in]]
 
*Wayne Brown ( ev-button ''discovery'', extra batteries, no plug-in ) [[Image:04 HV & PbAcidParallelTie2.jpg|thumb|100px|right|HV tie-in]]
**Much thanks to Wayne for discovering and then sharing his discovery of how to install the ev-button at [http://groups.yahoo.com/group/2004-prius/message/38329 Yahoo] in Feb of 2004. He also shared with us some interesting [http://groups.yahoo.com/group/2004-prius/message/36429 technical info] regarding the effects of the ev-mode, "136 Amps (136 Amps X 202 VDC = 27.4 KW = 36.7 Horsepower)" vs "45-50 Amps (10 kW or 13 Horsepower)" in stealth mode (non ev-button electric mode). Wayne was doing a lot of work with [http://groups.yahoo.com/group/2004-prius/message/35978 additional battery capacity tie-ins]. He [http://groups.yahoo.com/group/2004-prius/message/35023 wrapps it up] here, [http://groups.yahoo.com/group/2004-prius/message/25039 Button Part Number], [http://groups.yahoo.com/group/2004-prius/message/34813 31% gain], [http://groups.yahoo.com/group/2004-prius/message/34613 re-enable confirmation], [http://groups.yahoo.com/group/2004-prius/message/34622 more details], [http://groups.yahoo.com/group/2004-prius/message/34818 BMS details], [http://groups.yahoo.com/group/2004-prius/message/34725 some speculation], [http://groups.yahoo.com/group/2004-prius/message/29437 7.5ah aux battery].
+
**Much thanks to Wayne for discovering and then sharing his discovery of how to install the ev-button at [http://groups.yahoo.com/group/2004-prius/message/38329 Yahoo] in Feb of 2004. He also shared with us some interesting [http://groups.yahoo.com/group/2004-prius/message/36429 technical info] regarding the effects of the ev-mode, "136 Amps (136 Amps X 202 VDC = 27.4 KW = 36.7 Horsepower)" vs "45-50 Amps (10 kW or 13 Horsepower)" in stealth mode (non ev-button electric mode). Wayne was doing a lot of work with [http://groups.yahoo.com/group/2004-prius/message/35978 additional battery capacity tie-ins]. He [http://groups.yahoo.com/group/2004-prius/message/35023 wraps it up] here, [http://groups.yahoo.com/group/2004-prius/message/25039 Button Part Number], [http://groups.yahoo.com/group/2004-prius/message/34813 31% gain], [http://groups.yahoo.com/group/2004-prius/message/34613 re-enable confirmation], [http://groups.yahoo.com/group/2004-prius/message/34622 more details], [http://groups.yahoo.com/group/2004-prius/message/34818 BMS details], [http://groups.yahoo.com/group/2004-prius/message/34725 some speculation], [http://groups.yahoo.com/group/2004-prius/message/29437 7.5ah aux battery].

Revision as of 09:34, 13 March 2006

Enabling the EV-mode Button, The secret missing feature.

The EV-Mode Button is a standard part of the Japan and EU Prius but was not installed in the US versions, perhaps because of extended warranties in Ca due to AT-PZEV regulations and qualifications criteria. The US Prius is still entirely aware of the EV-Mode though it can never get the signal or command to enter or exit the mode because the wire and button are missing. EV-Mode is a very enlightening feature as it encourages the Prius to stay in its electric mode for far longer than it normally would. It will normally drive 1 to 2 miles on a fully charged battery, after which it must restart the engine using gasoline to recharge the battery. It is not a good idea to fully cycle the battery often as this decreases any battery's life and is not helpful for mileage if used improperly. If used correctly is can be advantageous for times when you know you won't need to start the engine. It's also fun for showing off and offers a small glimpse of the potential of electric vehicles.

The ev-mode function itself is activated and deactivated by grounding the H14 #27 pin on the HV ECU located behind the glove box(s). CoastalTech.com (ph) has a well integrated 3-wire EV-Button kit with easy instructions or prius-evbutton-install.pdf from calcars.org and EV-button-Y.html from vfaq.net have more information for "do it yourself" kind of people like me. I also found a factoryEV.pdf by ScubaX at PriusChat which I had hoped would lead to the ev-status illumination solution, but instead simply found that the dimmer switch white/black stripe wire to be ground(-) and the grey wire to be illumination control. I'm looking for the steering pad wire diagram as I'd like to use the recirculation button as the ev-button, but it's probably not a simple ground.

Things you need to add the feature.

  • 22 gage wire, about 6 feet.
  • Standard Phillips screwdriver.
  • Small Jeweler's screwdriver.
  • Soldering may be required.
  • 1/2 to 3 hours of time.
  • optional components:
    • momentary switch, batteries, drop cord?

Parallel Packs

I'm aware of a few other people who have added additional battery capacity to Prii, although they did not grid-recharge, those projects are rather close to becoming PHEV projects.