I'm concerned by messages from users who have had a discharged 12V battery in the plugin Niro. On my 2020 Kia Niro EX PHEV Premium, the battery label says it has only 42 Ah and 410 cold-cranking amps. By contrast, the battery on our old Subaru had 55 Ah and 640 CCA. Recently, I used the car to take my telescope 12 miles to a dark sky site. I'd loaded the telescope earlier and the rear hatch hadn't closed completely because my eyepiece case hadn't cleared. Thus the "Liftgate room lamp" was on for about 4 hours. The car worked although a voltmeter plugged into the 12V socket seemed to read very low (was dark & hard to see). While observing, I closed the latch (with liftgate open) to turn off the light. (The latch must be completely closed to turn off the light. See photo.) Fortunately, the car also started for the trip home and I used HEV mode part of the way and now the voltmeter indicates that the battery is charged. Does the car have an indicator or warning to alert a driver of a low 12V battery? Does it charge from the traction battery? If so, then I need not have used HEV mode. (I do have the Aux. Battery Saver on.) I'd like to pry the liftgate room lamp out in order to install a small switch next to it so I can turn it off except when I want it, especially to protect the 12V battery in case the hatch does not close completely. I tried gently prying with 2 screwdrivers in the slots indicated by arrows on the attached photo. But, I'm afraid that I'd break the light. Has anyone pried out the light without breaking it? Or does it take a special tool?
