Hybrid vehicle and downshift strategy in a hybrid vehicle

摘要

A vehicle includes an engine, an electric machine, an engine disconnect clutch, and a transmission input configured to transfer power from the engine and the electric machine to a transmission. Further, the vehicle includes a controller configured to respond in response to an anticipated downshift of the transmission, wherein a predicted speed of the transmission input after the downshift is outside a predetermined speed range, or a torque capacity of the electric machine after the downshift is less than a predicted one Required torque is to close the disconnect clutch and start the engine before downshifting.