New PHEV owner - few questions

[06blade]

I've taken delivery of a new 2016 model GX4H. Covered 50 miles today, so still learning lots about this great vehicle.
If someone could help me out with a few questions I would be ever so grateful

1. The front camera doesn't show anything. When stationary I can't really see much except a white sticker with the word "Nippon". Once the vehicle is moving the view is just plain grey. I'm assuming the camera is out of alignment here and will need the dealer to check it out.

2. iPhone app - in the Timer section I've created Timer 1, and set 2.00am to 7.00am - and will leave the cable on the car overnight. I can't workout what the Full Charge ON/OFF is all about. The dealer said the car will stop charging when full, so I'm confused with this ON/OFF setting in the app.

3. I've been using the B3 on the drive/gear selector to assist in slow down of the vehicle. It appears you can still accelerate even when in B3 (or any other B number) - but I assume it's "best practice" to go back to Drive (D) mode upon normal driving.

4. Is there a way to lock the electric charge lead in the charge socket. Even when the car is locked I can remove the lead from the car. At a car park today I saw someone charging up another make/model of EV vehicle and they had to unlock their vehicle in order to release the cable.

 

[jthspace]

I've taken delivery of a new 2016 model GX4H. Covered 50 miles today, so still learning lots about this great vehicle.
If someone could help me out with a few questions I would be ever so grateful

3. I've been using the B3 on the drive/gear selector to assist in slow down of the vehicle. It appears you can still accelerate even when in B3 (or any other B number) - but I assume it's "best practice" to go back to Drive (D) mode upon normal driving.

4. Is there a way to lock the electric charge lead in the charge socket. Even when the car is locked I can remove the lead from the car. At a car park today I saw someone charging up another make/model of EV vehicle and they had to unlock their vehicle in order to release the cable.

3. I leave it in B3/5 all the time - it is the regenerative braking setting and works when you take your foot off the throttle - same as "engine braking" on a normal (?) car.

4. On the push button release, there is a small hole, I use a baggage padlock to lock the cable to the car.

I am sure others will answer 1 and 2 (I dont have the facelift model / don't use the timed charge.

Jeff

 

[jaapv]

If you use a public Mennekes type chargepoint that needs a card swipe the cable will be locked in at the charge point side until you release it by your card again.
The simple way to secure a cable is to park with your wheel on it.

 

[anko]

2 - When you reach the end of the programmed charge window before the battery is full, it will complete the charge cycle until it is full.

 

[greendwarf]

I've taken delivery of a new 2016 model GX4H. Covered 50 miles today, so still learning lots about this great vehicle.
If someone could help me out with a few questions I would be ever so grateful

3. I've been using the B3 on the drive/gear selector to assist in slow down of the vehicle. It appears you can still accelerate even when in B3 (or any other B number) - but I assume it's "best practice" to go back to Drive (D) mode upon normal driving.

3. I leave it in B3/5 all the time - it is the regenerative braking setting and works when you take your foot off the throttle - same as "engine braking" on a normal (?) car.

There as many different answers to this as PHEV drivers - so, although the above is correct, you will lose the ability to coast (using just momentum instead of fuel) with your foot off the gas unless you go to B0. This is useful on slights declines (you'll be surprised how many roads are not actually horizontal) - I have a section of the Sarf Circular here in Dulwich where I can get 2 miles of "free" motoring by coasting - and also in stop/start traffic to drift up to the back of the queue.

Others will tell you that you can achieve the same by gentle pressure on the accelerator to "cancel" the braking effect but my old limbs are not that subtle anymore nor my brain flexible enough to bother with the effort :lol:

 

[maby]

....

There as many different answers to this as PHEV drivers - so, although the above is correct, you will lose the ability to coast (using just momentum instead of fuel) with your foot off the gas unless you go to B0. This is useful on slights declines (you'll be surprised how many roads are not actually horizontal) - I have a section of the Sarf Circular here in Dulwich where I can get 2 miles of "free" motoring by coasting - and also in stop/start traffic to drift up to the back of the queue.

Others will tell you that you can achieve the same by gentle pressure on the accelerator to "cancel" the braking effect but my old limbs are not that subtle anymore nor my brain flexible enough to bother with the effort :lol:

If you are going to use the paddles at all, then you probably need to use them quite actively. "D", which is equivalent to "B2", is a pretty general purpose setting and you can leave the car in that all the time with no unacceptable side effects. You can increase it to B3, B4 or B5 for regenerative braking down steep hills, but leaving it on those settings is likely to impact on your fuel consumption on the flat. You can drop it to B0 which can improve fuel consumption, but that can increase wear on the friction brakes on hill descents.

I tend to turn it up to B4 or B5 for hill descents, but don't often drop it to B0.

 

[jaapv]

Same here.

 

[lg1726]

Re the paddles - there is a small stretch of steep hill near us and in B4-5 over a stretch little more than 800feet, I can gain over a mile on the EV range. Even our little street with only a slight incline and about the same distance can give back about a mile. It is amazing just how much you can squeeze out of downhills with the regen!

 

[maby]

Re the paddles - there is a small stretch of steep hill near us and in B4-5 over a stretch little more than 800feet, I can gain over a mile on the EV range. Even our little street with only a slight incline and about the same distance can give back about a mile. It is amazing just how much you can squeeze out of downhills with the regen!

As an aside on the paddles, they also seem to set the maximum braking effort that the cruise control (not ACC) will apply to control speed. We have a long descent on the approach to our home with a 40mph speed limit. I normally traverse it in cruise control which has been set to 40mph for the several miles preceding the hill. If the car is in "D", it will run away down the hill and I run the risk of tripping the speed camera half way down. If I pump it up to "B5", then the descent is perfectly controlled, speed stays dead on 40mph and the power gauge shows the level of regen being adjusted dynamically to maintain that speed.

This did rather surprise me - the regen setting is clearly controlled electrically over the CAN bus, so it would have been perfectly easy to let the cruise control turn it up temporarily if necessary.

 

[jaapv]

Don't forget that the Guess-O-Meter will calculate the distance based on your driving history. The estimated distance is calculated whilst you are not touching the accelerator, thus being wildly optimistic. Coming down a long mountain pass regen managed to get my expected range up to 98 Km. Used up in 18 Km climbing up the next incline.
The only reliable indication of the state of charge is the bar diagram.

 

[Oscarman]

ref Question 1 yes looks like your front camera needs attention - have you cleaned it? I get a full birds eye view.

 

[Claymore]

If the word 'Nippon'appears it might be that a protective sticker is covering it.

Good luck finding it though, my dealer couldn't find the camera on front last time I spoke to them.

JimB

 

[anko]

W.r.t. B0 - B5 keep in mind: You can make B5 behave as B0 (as in coast) by operating the go-pedal. But you cannot make B0 behave as B5 (as in max regen) by operating the brake-pedal.

In lower B settings, the maximum amount of regen force is limited compared to higher B settings. Even when you push the brake pedal. So, unless you want to drive around as a moving road block, you will be using your friction brakes more often and longer when using lower B settings and thereby waste more energy.

 

[raymie]

If you can't find the camera and think it has a label on it get someone to move a bright torch along the front. That should shine through the label and narrow down the location the camera is at

 

[Vince31]

Ouote "You can increase it to B3, B4 or B5 for regenerative braking down steep hills, but leaving it on those settings is likely to impact on your fuel consumption on the flat"

I don't understand this statement? Why would leaving the regen at B3, 4 or 5 on the flat lead to increased fuel consumption? Surely once your foot is on the throttle, no matter how gentle, then regen is automatically turned off until you take your foot off the throttle to slow down again when it returns to the regen effect previously set; so fuel consumption is the same whatever B setting you have selected?

 

[Claymore]

Ouote "You can increase it to B3, B4 or B5 for regenerative braking down steep hills, but leaving it on those settings is likely to impact on your fuel consumption on the flat"

I don't understand this statement? Why would leaving the regen at B3, 4 or 5 on the flat lead to increased fuel consumption? Surely once your foot is on the throttle, no matter how gentle, then regen is automatically turned off until you take your foot off the throttle to slow down again when it returns to the regen effect previously set; so fuel consumption is the same whatever B setting you have selected?

You won't be able to coast.

 

[Vince31]

I can see what you mean by coasting in B0 and I certainly agree with your logic there, but the original poster of the quoted message gave the impression that leaving it in D (or the equivalent B2) all the time was better for MPG than using B3/4/5 on the flat.

 

[greendwarf]

W.r.t. B0 - B5 keep in mind: You can make B5 behave as B0 (as in coast) by operating the go-pedal. But you cannot make B0 behave as B5 (as in max regen) by operating the brake-pedal.

In lower B settings, the maximum amount of regen force is limited compared to higher B settings. Even when you push the brake pedal. So, unless you want to drive around as a moving road block, you will be using your friction brakes more often and longer when using lower B settings and thereby waste more energy.

Which is why I use the B3/B5 gear stick settings to act as an engine brake first (like changing down on a normal car) to slow down so that when I eventually use the brakes I am getting max regen and minimum brake wear. :mrgreen:

As I said - as many different answers as there are PHEV drivers :lol:

 

[lg1726]

Which is why I use the B3/B5 gear stick settings to act as an engine brake first (like changing down on a normal car) to slow down so that when I eventually use the brakes I am getting max regen and minimum brake wear.

I also use the paddles in a sort of gear change way. I used to have a SAAB convertible which had gear change paddles on the steering wheel, so I use the flappy paddles in the same way. As I slow toward lights, roundabouts, junctions etc I move up the regen B2/3/4/5 until and if I need to stop, then I go to B2 to pull away. Now I have no idea if this is better or worse in terms of efficiency than any other method, but I see the degree of regen I'm getting on the graphic and I see the EV range either going up, or at least not going down, and that pleases me! When I had the PHEV for an extended test drive, the sales person came out with me for a bit and told me she had a PHEV and this is how she used the regen baking system.

 

[Tipper]

W.r.t. B0 - B5 keep in mind: You can make B5 behave as B0 (as in coast) by operating the go-pedal. But you cannot make B0 behave as B5 (as in max regen) by operating the brake-pedal.

In lower B settings, the maximum amount of regen force is limited compared to higher B settings. Even when you push the brake pedal. So, unless you want to drive around as a moving road block, you will be using your friction brakes more often and longer when using lower B settings and thereby waste more energy.

Which is why I use the B3/B5 gear stick settings to act as an engine brake first (like changing down on a normal car) to slow down so that when I eventually use the brakes I am getting max regen and minimum brake wear. :mrgreen:

As I said - as many different answers as there are PHEV drivers :lol:

But no brake lights to warn those behind that you are slowing! And brake pads are cheap too.

I'm firmly of the opinion that using the brake pedal is better except where you want to hold speed back on a long descent, exactly as you would use a lower gear on a conventional car for engine braking.

BTW changing down a gear to slow and hold the car back is no longer taught by driving instructors in the UK, they say you only change down a gear to go faster! You can imagine the discussions with my kids when they were learning to drive and I had to sit with them. :roll: