Quote:
Originally Posted by starlifter737
From what I've read it is a HUGE NO - NO to drive the TCH on battery power alone. My guess is that is will let you do it but you will be damaging the battery in the process. I'd rather pay for a cab to and from a gas station than pay the big $$$$ to replace the battery.
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The battery won't wear out. Really. "We think it's a life-of-the-vehicle battery," "We don't expect to have any claims for battery failure."
A hybrid battery has an easy life compared to the battery in your laptop, cell phone, or digital camera, which may last 500 to 2,000 charge-discharge cycles. Most stressful on the battery is the top and bottom 20 percent of the charge cycle, meaning from 80 percent to fully charged, or from 20 percent down to discharged. Hybrid car batteries live in the middle 60 percent and are actively monitored, cooled (by fans in the battery packs), and not subjected to charge/discharge in temperature extremes. That's why a hybrid car's gasoline engine may start up immediately in cold weather whereas in warm weather, it would drive off under the electric motor.
Some first-generation Prius owners have hit 200,000 miles, and some current-model Priuses (the ones with the split back window) are hitting 100,000 miles, Toyota says, all with no battery failures. According to a Toyota statement: "We have not had any service replacements, warranty or beyond, for decreased capacity." This seems to mean that if there have been replacements, they haven't been because of tired batteries. Toyota warrants the hybrid battery for 10 years or 150,000 miles. If you needed a new battery, and it wasn't covered under warranty (say if you crashed the car), it would cost just north of $2,000.