B Mode

It seems that the B mode is very aggresive, slowing the car down considerably. Would be nice to have a "C" mode that allows you to coast down hills better yet still getting some considerable regen out of it. Using B brings you to a stop.

I like the B Mode. The one thing that concerns me is the brake lights come on REAL FAST when you are not accelerating. A wish you could adjust.

Kinda funny.... When I see that around here it is usually an older older person riding the brake

It is said to be one of the smoothest B modes around. No jerking and very predictable. Love it. In fact it's the only mode we drive in. I have yet to be in D. The reward is 98 to 106-mile, 63 mph freeway range.

I love B mode as well and I am glad the break lights come on the way they do. In fact, when I try to maximize regeneration and not step on the break pedal, I sometimes end up "gliding" through a stop sign. My old "California Roll" on a stop sign bad habit is fighting to come back!

I thought they call that a "New York Stop"

I just took the car camping to lake Chabot from San Jose and still had 26 miles of range left after 86 miles driving in b mode. I wonder what the difference would have been had I done the highway miles in d...

We own a 2nd generation Leaf with B mode and have test driven the Kia.
The Kia B mode in our opinion is just a little more aggressive (and better) and we are going to purchase a Kia as a second car

JimGord said:

we are going to purchase a Kia as a second car

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Don't buy. Lease.

Yes, lease then a Tesla Model 3 in 2019 !

The Soul EV's B mode works great and I really enjoy hauling off the highway and putting it in B mode to engine brake. It would be nice to have the ability to program the amount of B mode (ala the Model S) but Kia did a great job it.

I haven't driven a Soul EV yet. It's on my todo list. Meanwhile, i've been scouring the net looking for an answer to this question with no luck. So I registered here to ask you guys and gals the following:

What happens if you are in B mode and you gradually/slowly let up on the accelerator (say we are on a flat road traveling at ~60km/h/40miles/h).... do you slowly go from accelerating, then to just maintaining speed, then to gliding with NO regen, then to coasting with a small amount of regen to coasting with progressively more regen until your foot comes off the pedal and you are slowing down quickly with maximum regen? Is that what happens?

I'm a prius owner and many prius fans know that coasting is not the same as gliding.

I want to be able to glide (with no regen!!) in whatever EV I end up buying. So can I achieve a true "prius style" glide in B mode, by holding in the accelerator at a sweet spot so there is neither any regen OR power to the wheels?

Has anyone here figured this out yet?

BTW, gliding is a great tool for maximizing range/mileage and how to glide in a prius is explained here: http://mikewithaprius.blogspot.ca/2011/04/prius-ing-for-dummies-beginner-prius.html#glide

Given my experience on several sites (including here up to now!) I think you will be unlikely to get an accurate answer.

You will likely hear many opinions expressing the way others like to drive, and advice as to how you might do so, but as to hearing a correct technical explanation as to exactly how the 'B' mode works I have strong doubts. If you do get one, please let me know!

It sounds like the brake lights come on when letting off the pedal in B mode based on the 2nd post but it isn't explained explicitly. Is this correct?

Yes, there is a sweet spot when driving in B where there is no power consumption or regen. I also use Neutral alot when I am driving instead of regenerating. This is because however efficient the regeneration is, it is not able to regenerate 100% of the energy, so I use the energy to just roll in Neutral and then putting it in D or B when I need to.

I also tend to find I switch between ECO and non-ECO, depending on how far I have to coast/glide to a red light and how aggressive I want the braking/regen to be ... I like the idea of using Neutral too, to increase that coasting distance.

hybridbear said:

It sounds like the brake lights come on when letting off the pedal in B mode based on the 2nd post but it isn't explained explicitly. Is this correct?

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Not the Soul EV, though it does on cars with even more aggressive regen like the BMW i3.

EEStorFanFibb said:

What happens if you are in B mode and you gradually/slowly let up on the accelerator do you slowly go from accelerating, then to just maintaining speed, then to gliding with NO regen, then to coasting with a small amount of regen to coasting with progressively more regen until your foot comes off the pedal and you are slowing down quickly with maximum regen? Is that what happens?

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I'd not heard of 'gliding' until reading your post. I usually drive my Soul EV in B Mode, so I tried this a little on the way in to work today. I'm not used to modulating the throttle to find a sweet spot, like you've described, so I found it difficult to find (let alone maintain) the break even point between maintain speed and regen and didn't feel any sense of 'gliding' -- maybe with more practice?

Perhaps your car is different than mine, but my brake lights absolutely come on when I let off the throttle in B mode. I can see the reflection of the brake lights in bus windshields at night in my rearview.

Birkeland said:

Yes, there is a sweet spot when driving in B where there is no power consumption or regen. I also use Neutral alot ...[snip]

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Thanks, Is it really hard to find that sweet spot? Is that why you use neutral instead?

me said:

What happens if you are in B mode and you gradually/slowly let up on the accelerator do you slowly go from accelerating, then to just maintaining speed, then to gliding with NO regen, then to coasting with a small amount of regen to coasting with progressively more regen until your foot comes off the pedal and you are slowing down quickly with maximum regen? Is that what happens?

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you said:

I'd not heard of 'gliding' until reading your post. I usually drive my Soul EV in B Mode, so I tried this a little on the way in to work today. I'm not used to modulating the throttle to find a sweet spot, like you've described, so I found it difficult to find (let alone maintain) the break even point between maintain speed and regen and didn't feel any sense of 'gliding' -- maybe with more practice?

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Thanks, please let us know if it gets easier finding the sweet spot with practice. you might find that the sweet spot is bigger (easier to find) at lower speeds.