Gen 2 Hold Mode -- weaker "grip" than Gen 1?

6751 Views 45 Replies 22 Participants Last post by MikeyCVolt, Mar 30, 2018

VoltenRock

Discussion Starter · Oct 8, 2017

My early impression--subject to revision--is that my Gen 2 does a worse job "holding" EV miles than my Gen 1 using it on the same commute.

I can't figure out if Gen 2 tries to "get back" to the held SOC setpoint, especially if it requires battery power beyond the ICE alone. On my Gen 1, the ICE (mostly) added charge to maintain the HOLD setpoint--but it also operated in a serial hybrid capacity. On my Gen 2, it seems that whenever it needs battery + ICE (like hard acceleration), it doesn't try to "replace" it. Maybe a characteristic of the parallel hybrid setup? Or maybe it tolerates more deviation?

It seems this member also noticed this issue on a 2000-mile trip where he used "hold" the whole time and lost half his EV miles. http://gm-volt.com/forum/showthread.php?284690-Questions-about-Hold-mode

What's going on here? Is the battery just augmenting the ICE in Hold mode? Do I need to drive within the (lower) power demands of the ICE alone in hold to avoid drain? Under what conditions (if any) will Gen 2 maintain the Hold setpoint?

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alfon

· #7 · Oct 9, 2017

It does take a little while for the 2016-17 gas engine to heat up to full operating temp but the engine does see to add the extra mile or two to the electric range that was used when hold mode was engaged.

With our 2016 Volt we always use hold mode when we have extended trips to Portland Oregon as it sure is nice to have 20 miles or so of electric range at your finger when you are stuck in heavy traffic, or city driving.

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alfon

· #33 · Feb 15, 2018

We use hold mode a lot with our 2016 Volt. The first few miles the engine and battery both run until the engine reaches normal operating temperature. The gauge will display perhaps .5 miles or so on the battery for the first few hold miles. After that when driving in hold mode for maybe two miles or so in slow city type driving the battery will kick in and start using electric miles for maybe .2or.3 miles then the gas motor kicks in. Once temps is 195-202 F the engine is quite efficient at a steady 55 mph gas miles is over 50 mpg even with our winter temps. In warm summer weather I have seen mpg's just on gas over 55 mpg for trips down the coast of Oregon.

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