[WaileaKid]

Generally cars that have stayed for too long on dealer lots get better discounts. For PacHy, are there any downsides of buying such a car, particularly given the battery and the likelihood of it not being charged or maintained for 8-10 months? Is it worth 1K discount? 2K? 5K?

I know a few folks here have bought cars that were almost a year old. Does anyone have any experience to share regarding such a car, either positive or negative?

 

[CANADAHYBRIDGUY]

Well any car either ice or electric has affects for sitting on a dealer lot for a long time . The body has potential to be damaged greater , the battery would be a crap shoot depending on climate and if it was moved back and forth . We could take about gas , oil , etc . If it was in a climate controlled indoor show room then it’s another story .

 

[WaileaKid]

Well any car either ice or electric has affects for sitting on a dealer lot for a long time . The body has potential to be damaged greater , the battery would be a crap shoot depending on climate and if it was moved back and forth . We could take about gas , oil , etc . If it was in a climate controlled indoor show room then it’s another story .

Thanks. How long is long? is 3 months bad? how about 6 months? a year?

 

[CANADAHYBRIDGUY]

Long is like a year

 

[Shadow5501]

I purchased an early build 2018 that had been sitting on the lot for about 9 months. (August 2017 build, May 2018 purchase). Now 2.5 years down the road it hasn’t suffered much in the way of ill effects. The body, paint and interior look fine. The ESS mostly shows battery charging, but I think that has more to do with my driving habits than any issues with the van (Small town, short trips, not much long out of town driving during COVID...). The small battery was replaced while having some recalls addressed, but the main battery is original. I’ve never had a dead battery, the van has never failed to start or exhibited any random electrical weirdness. Prior to COVID I used to travel a lot so it has sat unstaffed for 30 days straight many times, but always fired right up upon return. So I wouldn’t hesitate to buy. Pricing from 2+ years ago probably isn’t all that relevant, but I think I paid about $30.7k on a near $39k sticker, between incentives and dealer discount. I don’t recall how much was rebate and how much the dealer knocked off.

 

[AZBean]

In 2019, for the hybrid Pacificas, there were many reports of strange glitches in leftover 2018s that were traced to 12 volt batteries that had been allowed to fully discharge on the dealer lot. Generally these problems went away when the 12 volt battery was replaced. The hybrid is designed to recharge the 12 volt battery from the high voltage motive battery every three weeks or so. But it won't do this if the high voltage battery has no charge left, which is often the case for vehicles that were test driven a few times and then left to molder on the lot. I haven't seen as many reports like that recently so maybe they put in better batteries now. There should be no issue with the high voltage battery being left in a low state of charge since the battery control system is set up to not use the bottom 20% of the battery capacity.

 

[CANADAHYBRIDGUY]

Everybody assumes that when you see 0 % of battery left that it’s high and dry . I’m interested to see how the Jeep 4xe real work experience is , as it utilizes a 8 spd transmission .

 

[rudiger]

FWIW, I once read that there was a dealership in Minneapolis that routinely replaced the 12V battery in PacHys that had been sitting, idle, on the lot during the coldest winter months. If true, that was a solid preemptive maintenance measure and, sadly, all too rare for an FCA dealership.

 

[stop-eject]

The HV battery life suffers if it sits at high or low state for extended periods of time. PacHy has a large safety buffer on the bottom of the charge and the smaller one on the top. I'd be concerned after months at indicated 100%.

 

[WaileaKid]

The HV battery life suffers if it sits at high or low state for extended periods of time. PacHy has a large safety buffer on the bottom of the charge and the smaller one on the top. I'd be concerned after months at indicated 100%.

What do you mean by safety buffer? That it can stay at the low end of charge (or completely discharged) for long time?

 

[CANADAHYBRIDGUY]

The battery never completely discharged or runs down to 0 % . And also driving between ice and electric it charges .

 

[WaileaKid]

The battery never completely discharged or runs down to 0 % . And also driving between ice and electric it charges .

What about when the car is sitting on the dealer lot for 8-10 months? There won't be any driving and I am sure the dealer won't charge the battery either.

 

[CANADAHYBRIDGUY]

So if you’ve bought it or going to buy it get the dealer to charge the battery fully for you for a test drive . The dealer will either accept or decline your request , this giving you just cause to move forward or negate the proposed purchase . Just remember , the ball is in your court as your the buyer .

 

[WaileaKid]

yes. planning to do that. The idea is to ensure that there is no degradation of battery right? I assume there is a place where you can see the battery health percentage?

 

[stop-eject]

What do you mean by safety buffer? That it can stay at the low end of charge (or completely discharged) for long time?

Generally, a Li-Ion battery is considered fully charged when each cell is at 4.2 Volt, and fully discharged at 2.8 or 3V depending on who you ask. When PacHy shows 100%, the cells are charged to 4.1V. Indicated 0% is at 3.5V. The discharge curve is not linear, there is maybe 15% of the remaining capacity between 3.5 and 2.8V.

The battery degrades when it sits with a lot of stored energy or fully depleted. I'd be wary of a van that spent months on a lot fully charged.

 

[PacDave]

Generally, a Li-Ion battery is considered fully charged when each cell is at 4.2 Volt, and fully discharged at 2.8 or 3V depending on who you ask. When PacHy shows 100%, the cells are charged to 4.1V. Indicated 0% is at 3.5V. The discharge curve is not linear, there is maybe 15% of the remaining capacity between 3.5 and 2.8V.

The battery degrades when it sits with a lot of stored energy or fully depleted. I'd be wary of a van that spent months on a lot fully charged.

Of course for a lot of people who own a PacHy the situation is pretty much the same. Either they keep it topped off every night in the garage or they just let it discharge to it’s minimum level and drive it around as a hybrid rarely charging the battery.

 

[WaileaKid]

Generally, a Li-Ion battery is considered fully charged when each cell is at 4.2 Volt, and fully discharged at 2.8 or 3V depending on who you ask. When PacHy shows 100%, the cells are charged to 4.1V. Indicated 0% is at 3.5V. The discharge curve is not linear, there is maybe 15% of the remaining capacity between 3.5 and 2.8V.

The battery degrades when it sits with a lot of stored energy or fully depleted. I'd be wary of a van that spent months on a lot fully charged.

Thanks. This is very helpful. How would the degradation surface and is there a way to detect it? I am looking at vans that have been on dealer lots 3-6 months and wondering if there is something I can check as part of the test drive that will show the degradation.

Other way of course is to ask on the forums. I'm sure there are people on the forum who have purchased vans that sat on the lot for long. Wonder if they have anything to share.

 

[CANADAHYBRIDGUY]

Whatever dealer and vehicle your most interested in get them to fully charge it before year drive .

 

[stop-eject]

Of course for a lot of people who own a PacHy the situation is pretty much the same. Either they keep it topped off every night in the garage or they just let it discharge to it’s minimum level and drive it around as a hybrid rarely charging the battery.

There is a difference between buying new and used.

Thanks. This is very helpful. How would the degradation surface and is there a way to detect it? I am looking at vans that have been on dealer lots 3-6 months and wondering if there is something I can check as part of the test drive that will show the degradation.

Other way of course is to ask on the forums. I'm sure there are people on the forum who have purchased vans that sat on the lot for long. Wonder if they have anything to share.

I don't know a truly easy and reliable method to determine battery health on the spot. You can pull the readings with AlfaOBD, but they are hard to interpret. The degradation might become measurable years later.

 

[chuckers]

Generally cars that have stayed for too long on dealer lots get better discounts. For PacHy, are there any downsides of buying such a car, particularly given the battery and the likelihood of it not being charged or maintained for 8-10 months? Is it worth 1K discount? 2K? 5K?

I know a few folks here have bought cars that were almost a year old. Does anyone have any experience to share regarding such a car, either positive or negative?

I bought my new 2018 PacHybrid inOctober 2019... So it may have been at the dealer for nearly two years.
It is wonderful. No complaints at all. I put 31k miles on it in the first year.
No detectable battery issues. On a full change I get 34-36 miles of pure electric love, then it's on into hybrid mode where it uses gas as a primary then electric here and there depending on the type of driving...