[gerrith]

Got a new Kia Niro PHEV, and am very happy with it.
Does anyone know if there is a way to find out how much the gasoline engine is used?
Is there an hour counter as part of the on-board computer?
I got my car two weeks ago, put 600 miles on it, and the gasoline gauge hardly moved. (Man, I love that)
The manual tells me to change the engine oil when the car reaches 7500 miles. At the rate that I am driving, the gasoline engine only will have run for less than 10 % of that, or 750 miles.
Why would I change the engine oil after it ran for only 750 miles?
If there is a way to find out how many minutes/hours or miles the gasoline engine actually ran without going to the dealer and have it plugged into the diagnostics monitor?
Suggestions?
Thanks.
Gerrit

 

[Idon12no]

Did I understand correctly that this car gets 26 miles on the electric engine and then the gas engine kicks in? Or is this the non plug-in hybrid?

Got a new Kia Niro PHEV, and am very happy with it.
Does anyone know if there is a way to find out how much the gasoline engine is used?
Is there an hour counter as part of the on-board computer?
I got my car two weeks ago, put 600 miles on it, and the gasoline gauge hardly moved. (Man, I love that)
The manual tells me to change the engine oil when the car reaches 7500 miles. At the rate that I am driving, the gasoline engine only will have run for less than 10 % of that, or 750 miles.
Why would I change the engine oil after it ran for only 750 miles?
If there is a way to find out how many minutes/hours or miles the gasoline engine actually ran without going to the dealer and have it plugged into the diagnostics monitor?
Suggestions?
Thanks.
Gerrit

Sent from my LG-H872 using Tapatalk

 

[gerrith]

Mine is the Plug-in Hybrid. Kia calls it a PHEV as supposed to the HEV (The non plug-in version)
It runs on electricity alone for about 24 miles on a full charge, then the gasoline engine kicks in. However, if you want to run on the gasoline engine, there is a button om the console that lets you engage it. The default is the electric motor though.
Even if you elect to drive on gas, it still will act as a hybrid, as in: turns of the engine when the car comes to a stop, and pull up from stops on the electric engine alone. Step on the accelerator with gusto, and the gasoline engine kicks in right away.
I am still new to this concept and learning as I go along. What an amazing piece of automotive technology.

 

[gerrith]

Nobody knows how to track the actual gasoline engine usage? No KIA professionals are scanning this forum?
The question again: Of the miles one drives with a PHEV, how many of those miles are gasoline engine miles? How many miles or hours does the gasoline engine actually run?
Is there a diagnostic tool I can buy and plug in, that would be able to tell me?
I don't mind bringing in the car for service every 7500 miles, but I don't need an oil change if
the engine has run less than 1000 miles. That is a waste of money and resources.

 

[ron1004]

Nobody knows how to track the actual gasoline engine usage? No KIA professionals are scanning this forum?
The question again: Of the miles one drives with a PHEV, how many of those miles are gasoline engine miles? How many miles or hours does the gasoline engine actually run?
Is there a diagnostic tool I can buy and plug in, that would be able to tell me?
I don't mind bringing in the car for service every 7500 miles, but I don't need an oil change if
the engine has run less than 1000 miles. That is a waste of money and resources.

Unfortunately the limited number of Kia specialists left a few years ago, and it's my guess the abuse they encountered by ill mannered members chased them.

You're reliant on knowledgeable members popping in and by participating.

 

[Chief_10Beer]

Nobody knows how to track the actual gasoline engine usage? No KIA professionals are scanning this forum?
The question again: Of the miles one drives with a PHEV, how many of those miles are gasoline engine miles? How many miles or hours does the gasoline engine actually run?
Is there a diagnostic tool I can buy and plug in, that would be able to tell me?
I don't mind bringing in the car for service every 7500 miles, but I don't need an oil change if
the engine has run less than 1000 miles. That is a waste of money and resources.

Is it not 7500miles or every 6 Months which ever comes 1st?...................

 

[gerrith]

You are missing the point. Why do I need an oil change when I have so few miles on the gasoline engine. I drive about 5000 miles in six months. If I go in for service every six months, it means I will have had the gas engine running for about 10% of that, or 500 miles.
It does no need an oil change every 500 miles. My 2007 VW GTI required an oil change every 10000 miles and in that car the engine runs every one of those miles.

 

[ron1004]

You are missing the point. Why do I need an oil change when I have so few miles on the gasoline engine. I drive about 5000 miles in six months. If I go in for service every six months, it means I will have had the gas engine running for about 10% of that, or 500 miles.
It does no need an oil change every 500 miles. My 2007 VW GTI required an oil change every 10000 miles and in that car the engine runs every one of those miles.

Look forward to hearing how Kia treat this when it comes to warranty.

There's virtually no maintenance on the electrics so what have the listed in the Owners manual to be done at 7500 miles, and I agree, there's no point in servicing the gasoline engine at anything less that 5000 miles or one year.

 

[jerrytaff]

I'm not sure whether the argument holds. By the same argument, the engine should be good for several million miles.

Although the Internal Combustion Engine (ICE) is off for much of time, when it does operate, it does so at cold for a much greater proportion of the time. Therefore engine wear, and crud being deposited in the oil and sump could be as high as it would if it had been operated continuously. (A counter argument, perhaps, is that it is never being put under heavy load to pull away from parked). Also, do we know whether the electric motor operates the oil pump? I can imagine that very heavy wear would ensue if the ICE switches on when accelerating up hill at 70mph without previously circulating the oil.

Interestingly, in the UK, the service interval is 12 months / 10,000 miles. I think that might be because we use better quality oils in Europe - at least they should be, considering the prices we pay!

 

[ishould]

Did you ever find out how to track the ICE-only miles? I would like to find out as well