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Questions about new RAV4 Prime!

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#22 ·
You might want to consider running the RAV4 in HV mode while the engine break-in period is in effect. It is enjoyable to drive around in EV mode, but a lot of people (including me) have resisted the urge and have let the ICE run for the first 1000 miles.

After the engine is broken in, you also have to keep in mind that the ICE should be run occasionally, partially to keep it lubricated, but also to keep the gasoline from sitting in the tank too long and going stale. The car will actually warn you if you haven't added any gas for an extended period of time.

The EV range will likely change as you use the car. Part of it is having the car learn your average electrical consumption rate (miles/KWh) but also because the battery pack increases it's capacity a little bit after a few charge cycles.

Keeping the car plugged in after it's fully charged is not a big problem, but the manual warns against leaving it plugged in too long after the charging is complete. The biggest problem is that when the car is charging, the computers that take care of the charging are running off the 12V battery. However, since the car is not in READY mode, the 12V battery isn't being recharged like it normally would be while you are driving. Seems like an oversight, but I think it was a way to reduce complexity and to avoid other potential problems. It's simpler to recommend that the car be unplugged after charging.

As for settings, it's up to you to determine what works best for you. You might want the car to unlock all doors instead of just the door you're opening. For people who just charge at home, it makes sense not to have the car lock the charge plug in place. There are a lot of options you can change, and I think Toyota did a good job of making the default ones the most popular settings, but it's great that you can adjust a lot of them. Be sure to check the manual, which has a list of all the options and shows which ones you can change, and which ones have to be changed by the dealer.
 
#23 ·
CarChick said:
#3. Probably one of the most important settings is your charge schedule. Check with your utility company and ask if they offer time of day rebates as well as any other EV rebates. Also, don’t forget to download the Toyota app for remote access to charging, maintenance info, manuals, etc.
Click to expand...
Unfortunately for both myself and the OP, the Toyota app is worthless since we have the SE. Maybe Toyota will add the capabilities for us in the future, but for now it just takes up space on my phone.

Note to Toyota: In the fine print of your webpage you say that the Toyota app is compatible with select 2010 or newer vehicles. However, you're promoting it on pages describing the RAV4 Prime. It might be a good idea to have some sort of footnote to the effect that this feature is only available at this time on the XSE.
 
#25 ·
rosiegirl said:
Hi all,

Very happy to find this forum! We finally purchased the RAV4 Prime (SE) this week after passing up on a few over MSRP. We are totally new to the EV world (the other car is a Prius V with 115K on it) so I have a few questions.

Background: we had an electrician install a 240 wall outlet (excuse my poor terminology) and I just installed the JuiceBox 40 (which just fits on my garage wall and doesn't hit the car when I pull it out). We are mostly doing local driving so on a normal weekday we're not going over the 37 or so miles. So far, in a week we've been 100% electric.

Questions:

1. Should I be charging the car every time I'm home (should it be plugged in every time I'm not driving)? Is there a such thing as letting the battery run down to 0 or not charging if it's almost full?

2. We're only getting about 35 miles on a charge...is it supposed to 42? I know when we first got the Prius we had to sort of build up to more mpg with good driving?

3. Any settings I should change from the defaults? I changed the key/door setting and the trunk height (after it hit the ceiling bracket on day 1) but there are so many other choices and I haven't had time to read the entire manual yet!

4. I know with my Prius, it was recommended that if I was stopping somewhere for a few minutes that it was more efficient to keep the car on than to turn it off and back on. Is there similar advice for the RAV4? If I'm just using the electric engine, do I leave it on if I'm stopping for a few minutes or turn it off and back on?


Thanks so much!
Click to expand...
Lithium ion batteries do not degrade when charging at more than empty. Toyota has built in some protections for your battery because it only can charge to 90% of capacity.
I to have owned a Prius and I have never heard of leaving it running. That sounds like advice from the car-theft community.
I think I started this thread and I am finding that people are having very big swings in projected mileage in EV mode. My first vehicle got over 50 miles in EV and the second about 32. This was the same driver the same conditions the same roads. So I am pretty sure there are variations in the secondary stage of battery power which is the inverter which is supposed to boost the nominal 355 V on the battery to 650 V as needed. I don’t think this is working right on my new car and Toyota has done nothing to dispel that concern.
You should be getting at least 42 miles of EV driving if you drive conservatively as we have done. Again we got well over 50 miles on the first prime.
The one warning that is in the manual is on the gasoline for your engine. Toyota is concerned that if you do not use the gasoline for months it will begin to gum. That suggests that the engineers anticipated you could drive the car on EV indefinitely but on occasion you should run the engine and replace the gas. We do this with long trips but we can week we run exclusively on EV.
 
#26 ·
tim_the_tiller said:
Lithium ion batteries do not degrade when charging at more than empty. Toyota has built in some protections for your battery because it only can charge to 90% of capacity.
I to have owned a Prius and I have never heard of leaving it running. That sounds like advice from the car-theft community.
I think I started this thread and I am finding that people are having very big swings in projected mileage in EV mode. My first vehicle got over 50 miles in EV and the second about 32. This was the same driver the same conditions the same roads. So I am pretty sure there are variations in the secondary stage of battery power which is the inverter which is supposed to boost the nominal 355 V on the battery to 650 V as needed. I don’t think this is working right on my new car and Toyota has done nothing to dispel that concern.
You should be getting at least 42 miles of EV driving if you drive conservatively as we have done. Again we got well over 50 miles on the first prime.
The one warning that is in the manual is on the gasoline for your engine. Toyota is concerned that if you do not use the gasoline for months it will begin to gum. That suggests that the engineers anticipated you could drive the car on EV indefinitely but on occasion you should run the engine and replace the gas. We do this with long trips but we can week we run exclusively on EV.
Click to expand...
You should not expect to get 42 miles in EV when the temperature is below freezing. Much more likely to get in the mid 30s when it's cold.

And you did not start this thread.
 
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