[Deafsoundguy]

So after my car worked so well yesterday, this morning the squirrels inside were apparently asleep or something. Regen did not work until down the road.

A few mornings, when leaving my neighborhood I swear that my regen paddle wasn't working. But it seemed like L worked. But this morning for sure my regen paddle was NOT working, and L wasn't working either :ill:. This is the first time that my L has not worked. I went down the road a mile or so switching into L mode and testing the regen paddle and nothing. I got to the 3 mile mark and I see a school bus coming and know I have to stop because it's got it's lights flashing. As I roll to a stop and I have the non functioning regen paddle pulled back, right before I actually stop I hear and feel a "thunk". At that last few miles an hour I feel the regen paddle start to work.

I take off and then it's fine after that... Anyone ever have that issue?

 

[hightech-guy]

Never have seen that, but I'm certain you use the regen paddle more than anyone - perhaps ever.

One thing of note was your recent post of getting a very large estimated EV range of 60 miles. That is not typical, and if it was done by lots of regen on top of a charged battery (L, paddles, brakes, downhill, etc) you may have actually reached the limit where additional regen charge cannot be accepted by the battery. This is not typically ran into with these GM EREV drivetrains as they have a large upper buffer where the top part of the battery is reserved (as is the bottom). But it is something that some BEVs experience (Tesla) - those which allow you charge to actual 100% battery. It also may not be an instant 'shut off', the car may have gone into this limit mode after the subsequent ignition cycle - seeing a high level of charge.

The way to know would be to deplete the battery and look at your kWh usage meter before recharging again. For a 2016 ELR, 11.5 to 12.5kWh is a typical number from full to empty. If you exceeded the 12.5kWh by a quite a bit, you know you had extra charge in the battery - and that was why no regen was allowed.

 

[Deafsoundguy]

Never have seen that, but I'm certain you use the regen paddle more than anyone - perhaps ever.

One thing of note was your recent post of getting a very large estimated EV range of 60 miles. That is not typical, and if it was done by lots of regen on top of a charged battery (L, paddles, brakes, downhill, etc) you may have actually reached the limit where additional regen charge cannot be accepted by the battery. This is not typically ran into with these GM EREV drivetrains as they have a large upper buffer where the top part of the battery is reserved (as is the bottom). But it is something that some BEVs experience (Tesla) - those which allow you charge to actual 100% battery. It also may not be an instant 'shut off', the car may have gone into this limit mode after the subsequent ignition cycle - seeing a high level of charge.

The way to know would be to deplete the battery and look at your kWh usage meter before recharging again. For a 2016 ELR, 11.5 to 12.5kWh is a typical number from full to empty. If you exceeded the 12.5kWh by a quite a bit, you know you had extra charge in the battery - and that was why no regen was allowed.

HaHaHa! Yes, I may have that lovely distinction of being ELR Regen paddlemaster! I am actually afraid that the Borg might come to our planet just to assimilate that technology!!!

Well I have to say that's a well thought out explanation, and not sure many would ever think of that one... good job! Your hypothesis sounds totally plausible. This morning my EV range meter said 51. I didn't use my whole battery yesterday, plugged in and topped off the charge again. My Regen and L mode worked fine from the get-go this morning. Yesterday was taking my wife to the hospital in downtown PDX which was 50% slight downhill and of course 50% uphill coming back. Used about half the juice and the speed was rush hour slow so I think that helped my car think I was trying to save juice again.. I dunno. It does seem though that the jump just from 55 - 60 degrees to now around 70-80 degrees has made a slight difference in range from what I can tell, by a few miles, could be wrong.

 

[hightech-guy]

If you run into it again, to confirm just let the electric run down before fully recharging - and check the kWh used number. You should have an unusually big number for kWh consumed, given the higher charge level.

Yes, temperature affects range even with HVAC removed from the equation. Warmer air has less resistance / drag, and tires have more pressure. The same thing happens in gas only cars, but less obvious given the larger range in general, and better MPG at speed given transmission gearing.

 

[reciprocity]

The car reverts to friction braking when the battery is completely full. That's common first thing after a charge. It usually lasts for a couple blocks at most. The same thing would happen if you fully charged the car at the top of a big mountain. The car is smart enough not to overcharge the battery regenerating electricity on the way down the hill. My guess is this is the primary reason the car is not rated for towing of any kind—you wouldn't be able to "downshift" going down a grade and control the extra weight without overheating your brakes.

 

[Deafsoundguy]

That makes even simpler sense.. and yes I notice this usually for a couple blocks. That one day it was a few miles though... haven't had that happen since. There's so many little hills where I live in Happy Valley that I'm constantly reaching for that paddle instead of the brake....

They should name Happy Valley "Escalade Valley" because there's more Cad Escalades here than anywhere else on the planet I swear... But go over 5 miles to the west inner SE Portland and it's a #@&^% Prius every 5 cars... Ugh.

 

[DialM4Speed]

I haven't had exactly the same thing happen but my paddles have stopped working off and on. What happens is after the car reaches a full charge (I charge at work) and I take off the EV range is usually around 45. As I'm driving the range goes up sometimes as high as 60 mi. When I get to the end of the street and grab a paddle the car begins to buck and kW gauge quickly switches between .05 and 1 kW. At first it was just the paddles but it eventually spread to the brake pedal as well with more pronounced bucking. There are no codes and restarting doesn't help. After about 20 miles it goes back to normal.

 

[hightech-guy]

Yes, if you are fully charged and then go downhill for an extended period, you will reach a point where the battery cannot accept more energy. At which point only friction breaking will be available. You can see this two ways, by seeing negative kW on the power meter over some distance, and by watching your energy consumption kWh number on the Energy Info screen.

Just the topography of your location, and the level of charge when you start your drive. There is a buffer to accommodate this, but it can be maxed out if your decent is significant or extended. Temperature also factors in, the present cell group balance of the battery, etc. It is not a fault condition so no codes.

Regarding bucking, I assume what you have going on there is you are regen-ing for your stop, and you reach the max battery level during the stop itself. As if you are right on the threshold of the limit - with not any hysteresis implemented by the car. I've not seen this on my 2016, but they did make enhancements to the blending braking system vs. 2014 - so perhaps that scenario was addressed in the model year changeover. The other thing that could cause this is if you are a two foot driver, as regen doesn't work when the accelerator is pressed.

 

[DialM4Speed]

I should clarify the EV range goes up in a matter of minutes after I start driving. Any use of paddle/braking causes bucking but it only happens occasionally so I won't worry about it.