Hybrids & Heat

[hybridbatterysolutions]

Quite a few people ask me how to best look after their hybrid Battery packs during hot weather.

All Lexus / Toyota Hybrids are equipped with at least 4 thermal sensors, in most cases more, so theoretically if all those & their associated cooling fans / ECU's / wiring / ducting / grills etc are all in good clean working order then the vehicles should 'look after themselves' so to speak so no real great cause for alarm or worry - however - issues arise when any of these fail or become broken or clogged.

Also we are all human so when it's hot we want our AC Air Conditioning on, it is not generally known by hybrid owners, however, that our Air Conditioning compressor motors are not driven by a belt & pulley from the engine as the vast majority of other vehicles are. No! ours are driven by quite a heavy three phase electrical motor directly fed via a converter from our Hybrid Battery.

If our Hybrid Battery &/or system is not in good condition & we are sat in traffic, for instance, the engine not running & the air-con working to cool us - the hybrid Battery will quickly drain & be topped up by our hybrid system resulting in a bit of a see-saw effect (discharge/charge) which in itself is not very good (whatever anyone else says)  for the health of our Hybrid Battery in effect it eats away at the capacity of the Battery.

What can we do about it ? Some simple steps like setting our A/C's at a specific normal temperature say 20 degrees & placing it in automatic mode, this will ensure the compressor runs only when absolutely needed, not having windows open while A/C is on as we are then trying to cool the entire planet, other simple things like parking in the shade where possible, keeping all vents & air intake grills clear of detritus.

If you know your Hybrid Battery is a bit weak you are probably better off not using the AC at all.

Hope this helps

[IS300Hdriver]

The s-flow option definitely seems to help with energy efficiency.

I know it's obvious but best to open all your windows and doors for a couple mins before starting off to let as much hot air out as possible, a windscreen shade also helps but I keep forgetting to put mine up.

[NemesisUK]

In the current high temperatures here, I've noticed the car runs much longer on Battery power alone than before. I also run the a/c with the S-Flow option enabled but as the handbook says, the system will ignore that setting if cabin temps dictate and as the Battery cooling ducts are in the rear of the cabin, it makes sense?

[ganzoom]

1 hour ago, NemesisUK said:

In the current high temperatures here, I've noticed the car runs much longer on battery power alone than before. I also run the a/c with the S-Flow option enabled but as the handbook says, the system will ignore that setting if cabin temps dictate and as the battery cooling ducts are in the rear of the cabin, it makes sense?

Virtually all batteries run more efficiently in 15-20 degree than 5-10 degrees. So the recent warmer weather will mean the Battery charges/discharges more efficiently so the car will run longer in EV mode.