Regenerative braking best practices

I use level 3 regen in ECO, 99% of my driving. Allows mostly 1 pedal driving until it slows near to a stop, and then have to apply some gentle braking. Works very well for me and my wife.

ECO mode allows for more throttle control, esp on acceleration. Too easy to spin front tires on Normal or Sport mode. Still have full power available, though, when you stomp it.

 

I also leave it at Level 3 in ECO, thought I've been thinking of trying setting it to Level 1 to see if I can get better efficiency taking more direct control and coasting freely. Now that the weather is getting better and more consistent I might give it a try...

The downside to such great regen braking, of course, is the brake rotors feel and sound like sandpaper for lack of use!

 

Not mine. I guess I still use them enough with stopping, they stay clean.

It may be my imagination, but after the brake recall (and I had several others done at same time) seems that the regen strength fades out more as you slow down, requiring more brake usage as you near the stop. Is anyone else seeing this?

 

I have the 2021 Ultimate with Smart Regenerative Braking. This feature is like the adaptive cruise control in that it applies the regenerative braking as required by what is in front of you and what you are doing with your regular brakes. You can also still use the paddles and 4 levels of control if you wish.

 

Yes, that is a separate feature, too, and needs to be turned on in the settings. But the regen I was referring to is another setting from 1 -3 for each drive mode. Like I said, I have my ECO mode set to level 3 regen.

And the paddles is yet another way to apply regen braking. But I hardly ever use those, as with level 3 regen not needed, just control the amount of regen braking with your throttle pedal.

 

That is certainly correct but I'd suggest that the use of regen levels when needed (or auto) is just personal preference, on an idealised level. The practical exception is that level 0 does avoid inadvertently imposing regen (and incurring the resulting losses) if you're not very steady on the accelerator pedal.

Using the brake pedal when regen is needed is not much different than using the paddles, and it's potentially better because it's variable. In fact I'd suggest that using the pedal may be infinitesimally more efficient because power cannot be recovered from the motor right down to zero speed. At some point input power is required to bring the motor to a controlled stop and hold it in a static position. The pedal reverts to the friction brakes rather than use that small amount of power.

 

I do exactly what the OP described at 100%

 

I think KiwiME has got right. The foot pedal is 80-90% regen and only the last bit using the friction-brakes.
As for my driving style, I use two modes. By preference I use a L3 one-pedal approach and then the left paddle to pull up at lights. When my wife is in the car, this mode aggravates her motion-sickness, so I then use L1 and no-paddle, making it akin to an ICE car style.
One question for all: I found with a L3-all-the-time style that I was getting lazy with my right foot and getting to the brake pedal a bit late in some circumstances. With a mixed style, I'm keeping my brain tuned up to get to the brake pedal quickly. Anyone else felt this laziness with an L3 style?

 

No, I like the one pedal driving. Still have to use the brake pedal to stop, so not like you never use it.

 

Primarily I'm concerned that when I drive my newly-acquired older ICE car that my subconscious reactions may be dulled if an emergency stop is required.
I certainly use the fixed regen levels on hilly long-distance driving but tend to avoid the left-paddle-hold for around-town stopping.

As an aside, I'll bet none of you have seen one of these roaming North America, a 2-door Suzuki Grand Vitara

 

It really depends on the traffic conditions for me.

Regen 3 is left on during heavy bumper-to-bumper traffic, because it is great for 1-pedal driving. It slows down very dramatically when I let go of the accelerator. I pull and hold the left paddle when I need to brake instantly. But this level is very jerky. But stop-and-go bumper-to-bumper traffic is jerky even in an ICE car.

Regen 2 is left on for moderate to light traffic. I let go of the accelerator and it slows down like a normal ICE car, without the jerkiness of regen 3. I increase to regen 3 when I need to turn near corners, and the regen does well without using the friction brakes.

Regen 1 is absolutely great for steep downhills. I don't even use the accelerator. You don't get the dramatic increase in speed going downhill, as you normally would when you set the regen to 0, but your car maintain a static current speed with the regen sucking in as much energy back into the battery.

I hardly use regen 0, unless there are absolutely very little to no cars.

 

OK this is a very interesting and informative thread. I clearly have to give more thought to my regen driving strategy (or lack thereof).

 

Not a chance, it's totally electromagnetic. You can feel it rock slightly after stopping in certain conditions like hills, something that would not happen if the calipers were clamped tightly on the disks. Engineers call that looseness 'deadband' and the purpose is to decrease winding heating when stopped. The motor's rotor is being being pushed in both directions by the windings at once to hold it still, so there is a small power draw. A deadband allows a larger tolerance around the target position.

The motor in our Konas has positional feedback and a four-quadrant controller. As a result the car has complete control of the motor down to a degree or two of rotation. This is the same as every industrial robot, programmable machining center, etc, and most other EVs and hybrids. This sort of precise control is why a Prius is able to start the engine without causing a perceptible bump in the driving.

The Auto Hold (pushbutton) setting is a different animal. It uses the sophisticated braking system to hold the brakes "on" after coming to a stop using the brake pedal. That's entirely separate from the motor.

 

(Kia Niro EV EX Premium driver here)
I love Auto Regen, and have it on all the time. I use baseline level 1 regen otherwise. I was excited to see paddles on the early pix of Ioniq 5 and Ka EV6!

 

I am living in Norway, where they salt the roads quite a bit during winter. As much as I like to use as much regen as possible, it is necessary to friction brake once in a while to cleanup the braking discs. I am having a Czech produced Kona 2020 Ultimate and use the auto regen setting.

 

I prefer not to overthink it, and I don't believe there's any reason to relearn how to drive with this car. Zero Regen and minimal use of both accelerator and brake pedal is most efficient in my understanding (just like any ICE car). The paddles are a clumsier way to apply the regenerative braking. The brake pedal does the same thing, allows modulation, and allows normal pre-EV efficient driving habits.

Nate

 

Just a speculative note, that while the motor slowing is ever stronger for higher settings, the amount of energy that the batteries can re-absorb is finite. It seems unlikely that the batteries can restore a larger portion of higher regen settings. So for efficiency, range, and minimal carbon footprint, the setting would need to be as low as safe driving allows. The design engineers of these cars can further comment. Thanks.