Charge Meter ('Fuel' Gauge)

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meltdown

Member
Joined
May 28, 2016
Messages
5
So i was curious, making it home will depend on it, can I assume I get the same range on the 2nd half of the gauge as i did on the 1st half or is it like every gas gauge in the world where you get more milages out of the 1st half?

On the highway I got 25 miles before it dropped below half
 
It's nonlinear... I think it's slower at first, faster in the middle, then slower at the end. So, although not constant, I think the two halves should be roughly equivalent (depending on how you drive, etc.). I take it as a rough rule of thumb that, if I haven't got down to the halfway point yet, I should have enough for the return trip. But usually I don't push it that far anyway. :)

(I've never run out of charge... never ran out of gas, either, in my pre-EV days.)
 
Inevitably, the second half of the fuel gauge seems to go down faster than the first, and when the second bar starts blinking you get added emphasis. You can drive a bit further on the sixteenth bar, relative to the others, but for me, judging by the miles/bar (4-5), the bottom half is about the same as the top half - but the gauge DOES get watched a bit more. As a rough rule of thumb, midway (8 bars) should be RR>=32 miles, so with you seeing 25 miles you might consider driving a bit more efficiently (easiest to simply slow down and accelerate gently).

Edit 7/17/16): I had written "first bar" which I had meant to be the "sixteenth bar" (the one on the top)
 
i think you will make it home if you can drive slower than you did on the first half. Try to not get the red power needle above the letter 'c' in the word 'Eco' on the meter when you are at cruising speed--maybe shift into 'E' mode to help limit your acceleration power draw. Also you will need to turn off the Air Conditioning--just run fan only with outside air and maybe roll down a window slightly if you need fresh air.
 
I pay lots more attention to the RR gauge than I do to the 'gas gauge' though I usually do check it at the half-way point to see that I have about 40 miles RR, which is normal for us if we're not using the freeway

I think the gas gauge is fairly linear, with about 4 to 5 miles per bar, though you do go farther on the 16th bar - The 'full' one than any other

If I start from home with a full 'tank' on any trip where I think range might be a bit iffey, I drive very conservatively on the outward leg, using little if any climate control and then once I'm at the halfway point, I reassess things and use the A/C more on the trip home when I know for sure I'm going to make it with no problem. This strategy has served me well for more than 4 years . . . . we've never come close to not making it home :mrgreen:

Don
 
Don said:
I think the gas gauge is fairly linear, with about 4 to 5 miles per bar, though you do go farther on the 16th bar - The 'full' one than any other
You go farther on the top bar AND there's some reserve left after "empty". Or so I'm told; I haven't been there myself. :)
 
Those bottom two bars seem to disappear pretty quickly...at least on my old pack. I haven't had the new one down that far to lose the last bar. SoC wise, the top bar ranges from 100% to 92%, the 15th bar goes from 92% to 85% (8% for top bar, 7% for 15th bar). The second bar goes from 23% to 17%, just a 6% range. And the first bar goes from 17% to 12%, just 5% range. The turtle light comes on at 10.5%. From there, the car will continue to travel until:

1. A cell hits 2.75 volts
2. SoC reaches 0%

Whichever is the limiting factor will depend on your battery health and BMS accuracy. I almost always have a RR of around 40 miles at 8 bars (half charge) under normal driving, or around 30-35 miles when on the highway.
 
PV1 said:
The turtle light comes on at 10.5%.
But the gas gauge (and usually the RR meter too) are both at zero before that happens. Hard to compare SOC with what the 'gas' gauge is showing - I agree there's no linearity there!

Don
 
Think of it as having 18 bars with two not shown. ;)

Actual 50% charge is right where the 8th bar disappears.
 
wmcbrine said:
You go farther on the top bar

This is true, however only if you drive your EV straight after charging.
Leave your EV for 24 hours after charging and SOC (and range) will drop by about 1.5% or so.
The SOC gauge factors this in, so if you drive straight away after charging you get a bit of a bonus.
 
Don't assume anything with the I-MiEV gauge. The other day my gauge dropped like the Titanic and the last bar was blinking and I was scared that I was going to be stranded. Luckily I made it back to my house but that was no fun. I do not trust the I-MiEV gauge any more especially when you have a few bars left. I have been told by Mitsubishi to not let the car get below 4 bars before recharging. I was letting it get to 1 or 2 bars before recharging. I would like to know what other owners are doing. I am getting full recharges with a 120v evse in around 7.5 hours. I plan on purchasing a Level 2 evse in the future but I understand since the on board charger is 3-3kw and the battery pack is 16kw that the best I can expect is around 4.84 hours and I was hoping for 2-3 hours. What are other owners getting ?
 
If you're getting a full charge from 1-2 bars in less than 8 hours on 120 volts, then something still isn't quite right. I'd definitely invest in an OBDLink MX or LX and a phone or tablet that runs Android to see what is going on with the car.

I normally charge from 11 bars and will be full in about 2 hours. 120 volt charging is usually 1 bar per hour (slightly faster at 12 amps, slightly slower at 8 amps), and 3 bars per hour on level 2 (240 volts). Longest I've seen on level 2 was 5.5 hours.

For now, I would continue doing uninterrupted full charges from 2 bars or less to try and calibrate the gauge/balance the battery pack.
 
allsmiles277 said:
Don't assume anything with the I-MiEV gauge. The other day my gauge dropped like the Titanic and the last bar was blinking and I was scared that I was going to be stranded.
What was your Range Remaining over the last few bars relative to the miles you were covering? What did RR say when your last bar was blinking? What speeds were you traveling at? Normally, except for the sixteenth bar, it's pretty linear at 4-5 miles/bar.
allsmiles277 said:
I have been told by Mitsubishi to not let the car get below 4 bars before recharging.
Are you serious - they really said that to you? Amazing!
allsmiles277 said:
I was letting it get to 1 or 2 bars before recharging.
If they told you the former, why did you do the latter?
allsmiles277 said:
I would like to know what other owners are doing.
The only time I fully fully charge is just before a long trip, as usually I only charge to 11-12 bars and rarely get below 3-4 bars. This does not mean you can't go below four bars. I rarely need more range in my daily driving and simply plug the car in during the day as needed to avoid depleting the battery further.
allsmiles277 said:
I am getting full recharges with a 120v evse in around 7.5 hours. I plan on purchasing a Level 2 evse in the future but I understand since the on board charger is 3-3kw and the battery pack is 16kw that the best I can expect is around 4.84 hours and I was hoping for 2-3 hours. What are other owners getting ?
I opportunity charge wherever possible and haven't measured how long it takes to fully recharge in ages. My rule of thumb: at L1 8A the recharge rate is four bars for five hours, at L1 12A the recharge rate is six bars for five hours, and at L2 the recharge rate is three bars/hour. Close enough. If you're fully fully charging, add an hour at the end for the balancing stage.

Perhaps you need to get yourself a bluetooth ScanGauge LX or MX and an Android tablet or phone and Canion and EvBatMon and check the state of health of your battery pack.
 
allsmiles277 said:
I am getting full recharges with a 120v evse in around 7.5 hours. I plan on purchasing a Level 2 evse in the future but I understand since the on board charger is 3-3kw and the battery pack is 16kw that the best I can expect is around 4.84 hours and I was hoping for 2-3 hours. What are other owners getting ?
*IF* you are getting full recharges in only 8 hours with the OEM Level 1, 8 amp EVSE, then you would get a full charge with a Level 1, 12 amp EVSE in only 6 hours. From there, going to Level 2 at 12 amps it would be exactly half, or just 3 hours

The big *IF* is that you shouldn't be getting a full recharge using Level 1 at 8 amps in only 8 hours - Even if you're not down to 2 bars, it should take more like 12 or 14 hours. Your OEM EVE is 960 watts and as you say, the battery pack is 16 Kw - You do the math

The 'best buy' in Level 2 EVSE's is to just send your OEM EVSE in to evseupgrade.com and have the modify it - You'll get both Level 1 and Level 2 at up to 12 amps and you can adjust that number down to whatever you like. It's automatic in that it charges using whatever voltage you plug it into

TRUST the instruments and gauges - They're telling you the truth, once you have a better understanding of WHAT they are telling you. In more than 4 years with two of these cars, neither the wife or I have ever had any issue with barely making it home . . . . because we know how far we can go with what the instruments are telling us

Don
 
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