Hello, I recently purchased a used 2007 prius. The car has not been driven for some time. I won it in an auction from a used/wreaked car lot and am in the process of fixing it up. I need to know if it is possible to charge the hybrid battery when the car is idling or will this only discharge the hybrid battery and if so, is there any way to charge the hybrid battery other than driving the car? Thank you.
No running the engine is the best way and only way to charge the traction battery short of taking it out of the car and bench charging it. Be mindful however, that there is also a 12 volt battery used for normal startup and accessories. If it's about 5 years old and has been dormant, it likely will need replacement. Normally the 12 volt gets charged when you just run the car.
You left out a comma: "No, running the engine..." In other words, running the engine *is* the best way. Tom
I think some key info has been left out here. Running the engine in "P" will only charge the battery for about 40 seconds. If you want to "force charge" it, you will need to put the car in "D" and hold the brake while giving it gas. You will need to balance it by viewing the "Energy" screen. Power will go from the engine to the motor and to the battery. You will have to "feather" the throttle pedal to get this indication/state. Its also not easy to hold.
Thanks everyone, so the front wheels are elevated off the ground right now. Can I just give it gas and let the wheels spin? I assume that will charge the hybrid battery the same as if the wheels were on the ground and I was pushing the break.
CAUTION- spinning front tires is a problem (I think) I am not expert but you are touching the third rail the elec motor is sensitive to over spinning Somebody correct me if I am off base
NO! The battery will charge just fine for however long it takes while in "P". DO NOT put the car in "D" while on a lift. It's dangerous! DO NOT try to charge in "N", it won't work. Use "P" and let the car do its' thing. You don't need to press the accelerator, stand on your head, face east, or anything else. Just get it in "ready" (you will see the light on the dash) and leave it alone. Normally the engine will shut off after about 20-40 seconds, but if the battery is discharged it will run to get some charge in it. Finally, there are two batteries as mentioned above. The 12V one is used to power the computer systems and is needed to get the car ready to start. It closes a relay in the hybrid battery allowing it to be used. The 200V hybrid battery or traction battery is used to actually start the engine.
I am in a similar situation except I let my car undriven for two months and the battery has partially discharged. The battery checked out at local shop and just needs to be charged. If I repeatedly turn the car on and let it charge in P, to what level do I do this? The console shows the battery at 3/4 level but sometimes dips to half while driving.
The car's strategy is to try to keep the battery as close to 60% state of charge as it can. It will follow its strategy if you just put it in READY mode and let it do what it does. There's no need to try to outsmart the car. A Gen 1 can occasionally run a balancing-charge sequence, where it will take the battery to a much higher state of charge while driving, hold it there for several minutes, and then let the charge drop again to the normal 60% target. Again, the car will do that on its own when its measurements of the battery condition suggest.
That is very helpful! So based on this, the car is where it needs to be. The car is a Gen 1 Prius. I had the dealer replace the battery free years back and put in Gen 2 cells. Just to alleviate my concerns, I do not need to worry about it because the car is where it needs to be?
