Plug-in Prius Battery Upgrade

I do not think you'll need an additional battery unless you are willing to give up some benefits.

By adding more batteries you have to add more weight to the vehicle that can reduce your MPG on regular hybrid mode or effective MPGe in all electric mode. You would also be losing more cargo space and potentially void Toyota's warranty. The capital cost would probably outweigh any MPG/range benefit.

The solar charging station is an intriguing idea.

 

I can't remember the details, but there are a number of add-on battery packs available for the Prius, all of which compromise some of the interior space.

I proposed solar charging a while back, but that idea got shot down fairly quickly, mainly due to the large amount of power needed, and the relatively small amount of power that solar panels produce. Rough numbers, but it would take many thousands of dollars to build a solar array large enough to practically charge the Prius, which is off-set by the fact that an equivalent investment would buy many years worth of electricity from a utility.

I still think that if solar panels are used to supplement plugging-in, they can be useful.

 

Ben,
I'll save you a lot of time and research.... Those of us that have been here a while have seen requests like yours over and over again. The standard response is- if it was easy and economical to do- Toyota would have done it from the getgo! Currently there is no reputable company that can do what you want at a reasonable price without voiding your warranty.

You have have some choices at your disposal though:
1) Use your PIP as it is, learn to drive more efficiently or take different routes to maximize mpg.
2) Sell your PIP and get a car that gets more EV miles right from the factory- you have a lot of choices nowadays.
3) Wait and see what the next gen PIP and Volt bring, then trade in your PIP.


Lets assume that the PIP gets 11-12 EV miles... what kind or EV range would you like to get?

 

The best concept idea would be to acquire a secondary OEM PiP battery from a dismantling outfit. It will come with everything necessary to parallel both batteries and extend your electrical range to above 20 electrical miles.
But, if this is your concern about more range, let me tell you that you bought the wrong vehicle.
The next best thing would be be a Ford "Energy" for about the same electric range.

 

For mostly electric commuting, I'd have to recommend the Volt.

But for all-around best fuel economy, power and cargo capacity, the Prius is the best of all worlds.

 

search the skies if you want to minister, i think i'll have a large brandy.

 

Is this the one you're looking for?:
Aminorjourney.com | Life is one little trip… | Page 5

 

thank you.

 

Welcome!
It's kind of scary, it could have burned down his house...

 

It's not the fire we were looking for, but it's more than enough to make the point!

 

was there another fire?

 

The thought occurs to me that had they been lithium cells instead of nickel, it could have been a fireball instead. It's a bit scary actually, knowing that batteries have been known to catch fire or explode, and in a hybrid, you are sitting on a very big pile of them (no pun intended. -well, I actually it was).

Here's one: Famous Toyota Prius Plug-In Conversion Catches Fire, Then Explodes | Inside EVs

 

One of the guys I work with is a volunteer Fire Fighter- they just came back from a car fire...
The guy had 18 deep cycle 12 volt marine batts in the back of his modded Suburban.
It went boom! in the mid 90deg afternoon temps today- it also took out the Monte Carlo sitting next to it

 

You need to set your expectations properly. The current 4.4 KWh battery weighs, IIRC about 175 lbs. Note that the regular Prius has a battery that weighs about 100 lbs. Even if you could double the battery size, where would you put it? It is roughly the size of the spare tire that is missing plus the size of the regular Prius battery (probably minus some space for the charging circuits).

Battery technology is improving at roughly 5% per year, on average, so its not like this 2-3 year old technology has improved so much that you could find a battery the same size with lots more capacity to "replace" the battery you have. And even if you could find a battery that was better, as a replacement, what would you do with the old one -- which is actually new and perfectly usable?

Mike

 

If there is a trend for a 5% increase every year in capacity, there also seems to be a trend towards increasing risk. Lithium cells are unquestionably more risky than nickel-cadmium, which were more risky than lead-acid batteries.

If we eventually get to fuel cells, we need to remember that it's a bad scenario when one of them explodes in a spacecraft, but quite a bit worse when thousands of cars use them, traveling the roadways and carrying passengers.

 

If you are referring to Apollo 13, what exploded there was an oxygen tank, due to an electrical short in a stirrer required in the zero-G environment. For terrestrial use, we fortunately don't need oxygen tanks.

 

What is it with your focus on fear? Geez!

The simple matter of warranty & longevity is a great incentive for the industry to continue to advance their usage (hardware & software)... which can directly relate to safety. You don't want to stress cells, since that will shorten their life.

As for NiCd batteries, why bring up such an ancient chemistry? They were abandoned ages ago in favor of NiMH.

 

Part of the history of battery technology.

Not ignoring risk isn't the same as being fearful.