[HafNHaf]

ok gang, heres the deal: i am getting lots of recals. up to one a day. the car is a 2000 MT with 60kmi on it. the 12v battery is original, and i have load tested it at 150 amps and it tests perfectly. the recals seem to happen after local stop-and-go traffic, or after hard acceleration on the highway or showing off the low-speed gitupandgo. my normal driving is 35 minutes to work: 10 minutes from home to interstate, 35-55mph, 5 stoplights. 20 minutes interstate 60-65 mph. 5 minutes interstate to work, 50-55 mph, 3 stoplights. i get 60-65 mpg, depending on temp, traffic, and a/c use. small hills only enroute. slight pedal pressure to get 4 bars of assist, back off a hair to get mpg bar up a bit. no more than 15 seconds, and just to keep my speed up.

i have sumitomo tires, a hot air mod, and a pair of 55 watt fog lights on all the time.

so.... 2 questions. is the mpg i'm getting reasonable? and would a forced recharge (IMA reset) help any? it sure seems the battery SOC gage is losing track of the actual SOC a lot.

andy g.

 

[Insightful Trekker]

An IMA reset is always the first step.

The Sumitomos have definitively shown to be a 12% MPG reduction.

http://www.insightcentral.net/forum/vie ... php?t=2738

By my read your route, AC, and the above puts you in the better than average category.

HTH!

 

[HafNHaf]

thanx john. nice to hear from somebody who knows whats going on that i'm at least in the ballpark with my driving style. also, does the IMA reset have to be initiated with the SOC gage at the bottom? i never know when that will happen. btw, while driving around town today it reset again! 3 times in 3 days. maybe i have a bad cell???? (i hope). 5 yrs old, 60kmi. maybe time to push it really hard and then take it to honda??? hmmm.....

andy g.

 

[Insightful Trekker]

Doesn't matter where the IMA SoC gauge is.

http://www.insightcentral.net/encyclope ... orage.html


Sorry, but until a source is located for the OEM sticks DIY is not possible. So replacement of one cell group isn't an option. Nor would it be the "best" long term repair choice for most failure cases.

HTH!

 

[HafNHaf]

no......what i meant was if i can get it to fail under the 8 yeay/80000mi warrenty i might end up with a new pack.

the other thing i might try tomorrow is cleaning all the ground cables in the engine compartment, and their attach points. maybe even replace the cables with some better ones.

andy g.

 

[HafNHaf]

well, i cleaned all the ground cable attach points. looks like they were installed over wet paint. i scraped the terminals and the castings, and then reinstalled the bolts with stuff that looks like anti-sieze, but is really contact enhancer goop. couldnt hurt! i think i will make up some new ground cables though. the wires looked nasty where they entered the terminals.

we shall see.....

andy g.

 

[Insightful Trekker]

Just replaced my 12v battery also. Did the ground connection cleaning too. But at least here in east Tennessee little deterioration was apparent. Higher salt areas seem to be more prone to the condition.

So you are seeing _true_ recals :?: Not simply forced charging or a more fragile IMA SoC :?:

http://www.insightcentral.net/forum/viewtopic.php?t=750

While you didn't specifically reply an IMA reset should also be performed. Which you effectively did, unless you went to the extra effort of keeping the 12v battery in the circuit when cleaning its B- cable connection to ground.

HTH!

 

[HafNHaf]

john: silly me, i jumpered the negative post to ground when i cleaned off the connection at the firewall. didnt want to loose my radio settings

i am also trying really hard to get my first 60mpg tank, while still using the car for running around town on short trips to save gas compared to the minivan. shouldnt be a problem if i just used it to go to work, since i am getting 60-66mpg every day. even with a recal on the way to work.

i guess i will do an IMA reset on the next tank. also, i am getting the car tinted on monday. limo in the back, almost legal in the front. the poor thing sits outside in the full sun at work. at least its in the shade at home.

andy g.

 

[Insightful Trekker]

i am also trying really hard to get my first 60mpg tank,
<snip>
i guess i will do an IMA reset on the next tank.

Why wait :?: If your tracking MPG simply use one of the *3* available trip meters.

 

[HafNHaf]

so far i am using the A trip for "since i have owned it", the B trip for the current tank, and the segment for each day to/from work. after a while i will be less anal about it all. maybe when "my" mpg catches up to the LMPG.

andy g.

 

[dfiore]

Make sure it can breathe

Make sure your not blocking the 2 small vents in the hatchback. They are vents for your IMA pack. Also, you are factory warranted on your IMA for 8yrs/80k miles, so get it checked now.

 

[Insightful Trekker]

Just remember that all three trip meters automatically rollover at 1999 miles. LMPG is the only exception.

HTH!

 

[HafNHaf]

dfiore: i looked in the right hand vent today while checking out the dead space for a subwoofer. it was packed with black foam rubber blocks. i have not looked inside the left hand vent yet. i will be stripping out all those foam blocks and gluing foam sheets to the inside of the fenders. that should give it some heat and sound insulation and plenty of air flow.

john: i didnt know about the rollover on the trip meters. thanx! might be getting close on the A trip.

andy g.