XC90 T8 Hybrid mode

XavXC90

Hi everyone,

I was wondering if someone could help me here.

I just got an XC90 T8 Hybrid RDesign/Polestar with 102500 KMs in total.

The question is, why does the car engine and electric motor vs battery range are the same between Pure and Hybrid mode?

I am new to Hybrids but here is the thing, I am expecting more battery range and involvement in hybrid to lower the fuel economy.

Let's take the 3 main modes:

Polestar Engineered for max power, involving the combustion engine as well as the 2 electric motors.
Pure for electric only, until the battery is completely depleted (around 25kms) and then the combustion engine kicks in.
Hybrid for best fuel economy, mixing the combustion engine and electric motors as well as max regeneration on break or deceleration to recharge the battery while driving and keep using it, alternating between both energies.

Now, when I am on hybrid mode, the battery deplete itself as fast as the Pure mode, although the engine kicks in if I ask for more power.

Also, if I use the charge button on the display, the car will charge, to yet again, vanish within 20kms as soon as I go back to hybrid mode.

My fuel consumption is about 9.5l/100kms which is way higher than the specs of the vehicle.

When the battery is plugged in, it charges as intended but will deplete as explained above, as if I was only driving Pure mode only.

Am I missing something here or should I expect more battery range on Hybrid mode, due to regen?

Please help as Volvo doesn't want to answer this simple question (which is a sales point) without checking the car in for diagnostic.

Thanks in advance

Ex850R

Might have been a question for Philip Bear but he isn’t active now. Ask Mark at Berrys he has Volvo dealer and workshop contacts.

XavXC90

Ex850R thanks. Do you mean Berry in NSW?

VolvoMike

The scale on the graph in hybrid mode is much smaller. It runs from 9 to 11 whereas pure is from 9 to 3. You need to be much gentler on the throttle in hybrid to not use as much battery.

The quoted fuel consumption is on a specific test and you'll basically never get that in the real world. I'm averaging 3.5 l/100 over 35,000km but most driving is done in pure and charged a couple of times a day.

Best economy is to drive the car in pure until you have 3km left to empty and then switch over to hybrid. Using the engine to charge the battery is much more expensive in fuel than what it's worth.

Ex850R

VolvoMike

Thanks Michael! Saved the day!

XavXC90

VolvoMike

Hi Mike, thank you for your reply. I will not use the charge function while driving then, and I did notice my fuel range going significantly low when using this and driving.

My problem is that I do around 400kms a day and can't keep charging. I thought that was the point of the hybrid system.

I also noticed that the lightning bolt icon in electric mode stays always full as opposed to the drop being full when using the engine and empty when using electric. The manual says it should actually show up but be empty when using the engine.

This made me think that perhaps, the car is still draining some current even when using the engine, hence not charging as efficiently as it should when in regen….just not sure