Added Cruise Control to New Prius! - Page 6

 wrote:


What I have read says that the Prius reverses on electric power alone
(and, with no transmission other than the power split device, that seems
logical).  The engine may turn on for many unconnected reasons, such as
recharging the traction battery, maintaining engine temperature, and the
like, but there is no reverse _gear_.

 

Is there a forward gear?

 Tom Cole wrote:


The MG2 electric motor is the only device that powers the wheels when
reversing.  If the ICE starts, it is doing so to charge the battery but
it cannot directly supply to the wheels in reverse but it CAN do that in
the forward direction, as long as MG2 is also turning.  If your
reversing requires more power than is available in the battery, the ICE
will start to charge the battery which then supplies battery current to
MG2 to maintain the reversing.  The ICE can't directly power the wheels
in reverse because the ICE (like every ICE) only rotates in one
direction. It would take a 'reverse' gear box to translate the ICE
'forward' rotational direction into the reverse direction...and such a
gearbox does not exist on the Prius...which also does not have a
'transmission' to power the vehicle forward with different 'gears' since
the MG2 can supply the necessary torque for slower speeds without the
need for gears.


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The ICE can't directly power the wheels

The Prius ICE only rotates in one direction however this behavior is not
universal.   Some internal combustion engines will run in whatever direction
they are started.  A good example of this is found in model airplane
engines.

 

I believe that, in general, two-stroke ICEs can in either direction
while four-stroke ICEs can run in only one.

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