Traction Battery Preventative Maintenance - Hybrid Automotive Chargers

I have the Prolong system and love it. I don't need it now as I finally had to replace the battery in the '07 due to my own screw up. (Well, didn't HAVE to replace it, but chose to.) Now it has a full set of cells from a 2015 and doesn't need grid charging yet. And grid charging isn't an option on the PiP's battery.

 

Please explain your screw up! You used the system and your battery died anyway? Isn't that proof it does NOT work?

 

You asked him to explain his own screw up. Without even knowing what happened, how in the world do you get to the conclusion that it's "proof" the Prolong system doesn't work? Please explain your logic behind that conclusion.

 

No. It's proof that I screwed up. When you don't follow instructions and stuff goes wrong, it's not the product's fault, it's your own stupid fault. I didn't use the system; I misused it.

And I did something stupid. I was in a hurry and left out a super important step. I finished the final charge and did not let any of it bleed off before I jumped into the car and drove off in 98 degree heat. A 100% full battery (not 100% on the meter, but really 100%) that's hot from charging and hot from ambient temperature, plus getting charged from an engine going through its initial warmup and controlled by a computer that hasn't yet realized what the actual state of charge is because it just woke up? That battery is going to object to that treatment. Mine did so by a failure in block 14. I could have just replaced the failed part, but the car is 10 years old and it's my wife's. I don't want to fool around with her car; I want it to be as reliable as possible. So now it has essentially a two year old batteyr with only 18,000 miles on it.

Edit to add the link that tells the story:
Augh!! P3000, P0A80, P3021, C1259 on an '07 | PriusChat

 

[QUOTE="jerrymildred, post: 2584687, member: 149132"
...I I finished the final charge and did not let any of it bleed off before I jumped into the car and drove off in 98 degree heat. [/QUOTE]

Yikes!
I had no idea that you could kill a working battery if you make a simple mistake like that.
Thanks for the warning!

 

Yikes is right! I edited the post above to include the link to the story.
The moral of the story is: follow the directions. In fact, next time I do a grid charge, I think I'll let is set a half hour or an hour before turning it on and THEN run the A/C full blast for a while. I may even install an EV mode button in her car for that purpose. If you put it in EV within about seven seconds of powering up, the engine won't start till there's a demand from the throttle or battery.

 

I've learned to always let the system sit for an hour or so following a final charge. This year, particularly this summer, I've been using the A/C more than usual thinking that by doing so I'm being nicer to the TractionBattery since it is cooled by the same cabin air that cools the occupants!

 

Till now I was only worried about killing myself with high voltages.
Now I have to worry about killing the car, too!
How long does the manual say (in GIANT BOLD LETTERS) you have to wait before driving?

 

Step six: 6) Disconnect the charger and allow the battery to rest for at least 30 min (one hour is recommended) before attempting to start the vehicle.
Battery Reconditioning – Hybrid Automotive

 

Jeff,

I bought your charger through Bumblebee in PDX. Sadly my '08 was totaled recently and I no longer have the wiring harness. What would it cost to get another harness? I have just picked up another '08 and would love to cycle the battery. But - no wiring harness.

Thanks.

PS: Bumblebee has yet to respond to email, text, or voice messages.

 

Go to HybridAutomotive.com and you will find prices.
Gen 2 price shows currently as $149 plus shipping
Prolong® Battery Systems Car Harness - Discharge Ready – Hybrid Automotive

 

$150 bucks? Ouch!

 

Yes, Prolong products aren't cheap, but they seem to be of excellent quality. That harness includes a cooling fan controller, too.

 

Wish list item for next gen: a conditioning cable wired at the factory, with a standardized plug?

 

It's more than just a cable. There's also a controller to run the battery cooling fan when the charger is running and then step out of the way so the car can control the fan under normal conditions. Also, preinstalled clamps along the cable to secure the cable to various conveniently located bolts in the car. And it is a for profit business, not a charity that sells stuff at cost. I'd probably ask about the same if I was selling them.

 

You can build your own controller from parts at digikey or mouser I suppose.
Time or money.
If you know how to make a pwm fan controller and safely wire a HV harness go for it.

 

Agreed. It's not rocket science, but it will take some time and cost some $ in parts. If the whole deal is better than $150, then sure go for it. I think it's on an expensive side for what it is, but also it is reasonable enough when trying to save a few hours of time.

 

Hi Jerry,
A question for you. Does the Hybrid Automotive's charger cable and embedded software runs the cooling fans at a specific speed or does it change the speed based on the temperature and the cooling requirement of the battery?

Reason is that I bought the Deluxe kit earlier this year for my recently purchased 2010 HiHy Ltd with 160k miles. Tried cycle charging in late Jan and after 2 cycles got a bit scared when I could not determine whether the cooling fans were running or not by sensing the air at the inlet vents. The HiHy cooling fans have 6 speeds and when we were installing the harness we connected the charger for a few seconds to make sure that the cooling fans were running. Recently I have acquired an OBD LX bluetooth reader which in conjunction with the Hybrid Assistant app shows the traction battery temperature (max of all blocks) and the fan speed.

If the harness and associated software runs the cooling fans based on the traction battery temperature - then that might explain why I could not feel the cooling fans running since at the lowest speed I am unable to feel anything at the vents nor any sound of the fan. At that time the temps in my garage were in the 50's and 60's.

Hare Krishna!

 

Thanks. With luck I can stick the insurance co for the price.

 

@jeff652 could better answer your question or a call to Hybrid Automotive would work too.