should the 2018 honda accord hybrid Ev be usable with a cold engine?
Asked by oneofakindjerry Mar 04, 2019 at 02:39 PM about the 2018 Honda Accord Hybrid Touring
Question type: General
I just purchased a 2018 but EV has failed to engage on a few occations
already! From a cold start it has failed daily and once the computer said the
engine was too cold after a 35 minute drive. NO errors are showing but i would
think it should work under 25 mph no matter what unless the batteries are
dead!!
5 Answers
How cold is it where you are? If the engine does not warm up after 35 minutes the thermostat may be faulty. What does your dealer say?
Is it the engine or battery that is too cold?
oneofakindjerry answered 5 years ago
Temp is in the low 30s this week. The car says the engine is too cold for EV to work
You need to talk to your dealer about this. You have a warranty. Electric cars are pretty much useless in the cold which a lot of people learned this winter! Save the planet ;)
It's normal. Both the gas engine and the HV battery work better when they are warm. So the computer will force the gas engine to charge the battery (which heats it) until it is warm enough. Then it will allow EV mode. But you may be under the misunderstanding that forcing EV mode saves energy. It doesn't. The car alternates between using more gas than it needs to in order to charge the battery, then using that charge in EV mode. The reason this helps, is that the charging phase allows the engine to run more efficiently than it otherwise would, so the whole cycle is more efficient. Forcing it to use EV mode just makes it have to work harder and more often in that phase.
