Went on a decent trip today which had numerous up & downhill moments. During a couple of the longer downhill moments my battery charge shown on the dash was full. Of course I'm coasting, lightly using the brakes, but the hills & traffic were never enough to use the "B" mode. I noticed what sounded like the engine running but it didn't sound "normal". Sort of muffled. I looked at the energy monitor and seen the display didn't show the engine running. Am I hearing things? Sidenote: Driving a "C" on tight curvy roads can indeed be a ton of fun.
When the battery fills up, the engine will spin up for some engine compression braking, without burning any fuel. This synthesizes the 'touch and feel' of regular non-hybrid vehicles, which exhibit light engine drag when the pilot's foot is off the gas pedal.
