How to charge 2012 hyundai sonata hybrid battery

I have a 2012 Sonata Hybrid. I was driving through a state park couple days ago. Speed limit was generally 20mph and climbing the mountain was a little slower. I was at about 13,000 feet when the car said the battery was nearly empty and to pull off to the side of the road and place the vehicle in park. Can the car not run on just the engine only? I was concerned as I was not near the 14,000 summit, and that is a long way down to be stuck. Coming down the mountain I had a full battery almost the whole way down. Ran on the battery most of the way down. Anyone have any insight?

From what I've seen, the hybrid system doesn't like an empty battery. Part of it is that an empty battery may be a sign of a problem (battery not charging) but also that the hybrid system could be damaged by trying to turn on with no available battery life.

In this case, the electric motor was being used, along with the gasoline engine, to provide additional power to get the car up the mountain. Pulling to the side of the road would allow the battery to recharge before going further up the mountain. Once you started going down the mountain the regenerative braking would have kicked in as you went down, recharging the battery.

This hybrid technology is a whole new world to me. Fascinating, in fact. @kota904: all's well that appears well, it seems. Fascinating.

These hybrids were using Lithium Ion batteries, and Lions do NOT like 0 charge! I'm guessing that when the meter reads 0% it's really saying the batteries are at the lowest point before having to be charged, for a LiIon that's ~2.7-3.2V.

THe charging circuit should have kicked in before that. If it doesn't start charging soon (like NOW) bring it in to thave it looked at.

My experience is with Prius; the batteries are LiIon about the size of a C cell and produce something like 275V fully charged. I don't know what Hyundai uses; they may be using IMR batteries (higher output current, safer chemistry and more forgiving when going over/under voltage...but not much).

Again, not knowing the Hyundai hybrid system, in a Prius I would have turned around, put the gear selector on "B" and coasted down the mountain and see if it charged. If not, something is wrong.

Hyundai uses lithium polymer instead of lithium ion.

I have a 2012 Sonata Hybrid. I was driving through a state park couple days ago. Speed limit was generally 20mph and climbing the mountain was a little slower. I was at about 13,000 feet when the car said the battery was nearly empty and to pull off to the side of the road and place the vehicle in park. Can the car not run on just the engine only? I was concerned as I was not near the 14,000 summit, and that is a long way down to be stuck. Coming down the mountain I had a full battery almost the whole way down. Ran on the battery most of the way down. Anyone have any insight?

When the battery SOC (State of Charge) is low, and the car is stationary, the engine can run and charge the battery. However, once the vehicle starts to move, the vehicle immediately will switch into electric mode. And, then, when it needs to, it will then turn the engine on. However, based on this operating logic, the car always needs some SOC in order to start from a dead stop. Therefore, if the SOC gets too low, you get the warning message.

In essence, this car needs both the Internal Combustion Engine (ICE) system and the electric battery/motor system both operational in order for the car to function even though once in operation only one of those systems may actually be operating at any given time. So, the fault system makes sure that both are operational and functional in order for the car to operate.

These hybrids were using Lithium Ion batteries, and Lions do NOT like 0 charge! I'm guessing that when the meter reads 0% it's really saying the batteries are at the lowest point before having to be charged, for a LiIon that's ~2.7-3.2V.

THe charging circuit should have kicked in before that. If it doesn't start charging soon (like NOW) bring it in to thave it looked at.

My experience is with Prius; the batteries are LiIon about the size of a C cell and produce something like 275V fully charged. I don't know what Hyundai uses; they may be using IMR batteries (higher output current, safer chemistry and more forgiving when going over/under voltage...but not much).

Again, not knowing the Hyundai hybrid system, in a Prius I would have turned around, put the gear selector on "B" and coasted down the mountain and see if it charged. If not, something is wrong.

In the Sonata Hybrid, it worked the way it appears to have worked correctly -- it just didn't have a chance to charge the battery. As I mentioned above, the Sonata Hybrid uses both the electric engine and the ICE to climb hills. Because all available power is going to the wheels, the battery is not being recharged. Hyundai is working under the assumption, which is good in most cases, that the climb will end before the battery is discharged.

The problem comes in with steep, long climbs; in this case the battery power is used up prior to the top of the hill. It was exacerbated by the altitude; at 13,000 feet there is much less air, making the ICE is less efficient. In this case, you merely need to pull over to the side of the road for a few minutes, which will give the battery time to charge while the car idles. It is only, if you pull over and the battery fails to recharge, that you have an issue.

Thanks for the response....just never had it happen before so I was wondering.

It probably was that very long drive under 20mph that drained your battery. You will notice that when you take off from a stop it will be EV up to about 22mph and then the ICE will take over. The main propulsion of our HSH is the electric motor assisted by the ICE. Wayne Gerdes went up Pikes Peak in a 2012 HSH but averaged about 25 mph without any problems.

Thats where I went, it was like 20 mph most of the time. Especially getting toward the top. Was not sure if it was normal.

Can you use one of those PowerStation psx-2 charging systems to start the car? or are the specific charging systems that are seperately made for hybrid batteries?

Can you use one of those PowerStation psx-2 charging systems to start the car? or are the specific charging systems that are seperately made for hybrid batteries?

Call a tow truck. This is not one of those hybrids like the Chevy Volt as the battery is charged by the car's engine.

It probably was that very long drive under 20mph that drained your battery. You will notice that when you take off from a stop it will be EV up to about 22mph and then the ICE will take over. The main propulsion of our HSH is the electric motor assisted by the ICE. Wayne Gerdes went up Pikes Peak in a 2012 HSH but averaged about 25 mph without any problems.

So- you guys.. Well all of you... certainly know all there is to know about these cars; so I'm betting my question is quite silly. But since I don't know the answer, I wanted to ask you all.

Can you use one of those PowerStation charging systems (I have the psx-2 version) on the little hybrid battery in the trunk? If not, is there a specific charging system that's meant for my 2012 Hyndai Sonata hybrid?

As a women without a lot of knowledge, it was nice... in previous years....that I could at least jump my car with my little battery charging system....but I don't know now? Am I to be stranded?/Can I use this thing?/ Or should I buy another type for the future?

Thanks...:|
Amy Elizabeth

Call a tow truck. This is not one of those hybrids like the Chevy Volt as the battery is charged by the car's engine.

I just saw this. Sorry.

Thankfully, I'm not stuck anywhere. But I tend to be....if you catch my drift. I dunno why, actually.

Anyhow,... I have this charging system that worked on the old car and I'm confused about if this is now wasted money or if I will be able to use it, in the time of need. It wasn't cheap when we bought it.:frown:

Thanks so much-
AE

And- is it always safe to use a jump from another car?

again- I do recognize these are stupid questions. Sorry. I really don't know the answers.

The 12V battery in the trunk is for starting the car along with all the electronics and can be jump started. It is not part of the 270V hybrid system battery that is being displayed which shows the state of charge 0-100. When that goes to 0 then call a tow truck which is very rare.

And- is it always safe to use a jump from another car?

again- I do recognize these are stupid questions. Sorry. I really don't know the answers.

Yes as I have jump started mine 3 times with my Santa Fe.

Call a tow truck. This is not one of those hybrids like the Chevy Volt as the battery is charged by the car's engine.

One minor point, if you are operating the car and the hybrid battery is at 0%, the manual actually states to pull over and see if the battery will charge while idling. While it likely shouldn't happen, it is technically possible that going up a mountain or other extended incline could discharge the battery (particularly if both engines are running to provide added power).

So, if the car is running, pull over and see if the battery will recharge. If it doesn't recharge then you need to call a tow truck. Even if it recharges, I'd still likely have the car checked by a dealer to ensure there isn't a problem with the hybrid system.

My experience is with Prius; the batteries are LiIon about the size of a C cell and produce something like 275V fully charged. I don't know what Hyundai uses; they may be using IMR batteries (higher output current, safer chemistry and more forgiving when going over/under voltage...but not much).

Off topic... but since when did the Prius have Lithium ion batteries??? Not until next year (2015 model). This is part of the reason I switched from a Prius to the HSH. Prius uses NiMH not Lithium Ion (or Lithium Polymer like HSH); old technology!

The Prius plug-in has lithium ion, as does most plug-in hybrids.

Off topic... but since when did the Prius have Lithium ion batteries??? Not until next year (2015 model). This is part of the reason I switched from a Prius to the HSH. Prius uses NiMH not Lithium Ion (or Lithium Polymer like HSH); old technology!

The Prius plug-in has lithium ion, as does most plug-in hybrids.

I could have sworm they were LIons, however NiMH is a MUCH safer battery than LIons.