RPM of ICE during series mode when drive battery is depleted

[ufo]

Hi Everyone,

I am a new owner from down-under (Sydney)
I put this question under a different heading and it didn't pick too much of interest so I am starting a new tread hoping to get some answers from more experienced owners.
My impression was that ICE runs at constant speed (1000 RPM) while charging the battery in series mode regardless of power requirement and the drive battery being depleted or not. But what I noticed is that ICE seems to run at a higher speed (audible engine sound) in series mode when more power is needed such as going steep uphill when drive battery is depleted. On flat section of the road when ICE kicks in to charge due to drained drive battery ICE is not audible at all. I know it is running & charging because I was watching the display all the time ( not watching the road, collision avoidance system warning sound came on and orange warning display came on so it works )
What's your experience on this? Does RPM of ICE change when running with a depleted drive battery in series mode depending on power requirement?
I know it charges at constant 1000 RPM if drive battery is not depleted and you hit the charge button regardless of if vehicle is moving or stationary.

 

[jaapv]

Even with a full battery. If you drive at low to moderate speeds and ask for more power than the battery can supply the ICE will kick in at the RPM that are needed to supply that power. E.g. if you floor the accelerator at for instance 50 KpH it will come in at full revs. The same when dragging a heavy trailer.
It is a bit disconcerting at first as a normal car will rev depending on gear selected and speed, and this one will do so based on power demand.

 

[ufo]

Even with a full battery. If you drive at low to moderate speeds and ask for more power than the battery can supply the ICE will kick in at the RPM that are needed to supply that power. E.g. if you floor the accelerator at for instance 50 KpH it will come in at full revs. The same when dragging a heavy trailer.
It is a bit disconcerting at first as a normal car will rev depending on gear selected and speed, and this one will do so based on power demand.

Thanks, so basically ICE might run at higher than 1000 RPM in series mode to boost the power regardless of the drive battery being depleted or not if more power is required.

 

[jaapv]

Correct.
And at higher speeds the ICE will couple directly to the drive to provide extra power so in parallel mode the engine speed depends on the vehicle speed In that case surplus power will be used to charge the battery. From about 120 KpH upwards there will be no battery charging.
This is also the reason the maximum speed is limited to 170 KpH. That is maximum revs for the ICE.

This is all switching between EV, series hybrid and parallel hybrid is regulated rather intelligently by the on-board computers.

 

[ufo]

Thanks again,

One of the main features of this vehicle that I liked was its quietness of operation and during all my test driving the ICE was inaudible in series mode when it kicked in (I suppose there was no high power requirement during the test drive) . I was very impressed with that and made the assumption ICE will be inaudible in series mode all the time and it will be audible only in parallel mode when driving at high way speeds. Do you also hear ICE running at high RPM in series mode in your vehicle?
Can running of ICE at higher speed than regular charging speed of 1000 RPM during the series mode be avoided by hitting the charge button before depleting the battery completely? Lets say you hit the charge button when there is 30-40 % battery capacity left and ICE is charging running at 1000 RPM and will keep running at that RPM even if there is a higher power requirement because there is still plenty of capacity left in the drive battery and electric motors can suck up all the power from the battery without ICE needing to increase RPM to supply extra juice to drive battery.
Also I would like to ask above questions to all other PHEV owners reading this tread around the world.
Could you please let me know what your experiences are?

 

[jaapv]

No, there is no advantage in keeping the charge. The electrics can deliver 120 KW but they can only pull 60 KW from the battery so they need 60 KW from the ICE for full power.
The car will retain a battery reserve for the purpose.
It is pretty quiet running at speed, btw.