I am seriously considering doing this mod http://www.eaa-phev.org/wiki/Prius_OEM_fan_control The reason I want to do it is because I work in the desert and regularly drive over 500 miles a day, much of that driving is stop and go. In the summer months its common for the outside temps to reach into the 120s. Since this mod will allow me to cool the batteries more, it seems like something that would be worthwhile. My question is this - Does this mod, when turned off - have any effect on the stock use of the fan? For instance, I plan on using a toggle switch to turn it on and off, and during the cooler months I would probably never use it. I would want the stock controller to still control the fan. Also I was thinking of using a time delay relay on it, so that when you turn the car off, the cooling fan would stay on for about a minute, to continue to cool the traction battery. I doubt it would drain the 12v battery too much. Thanks for any info you can provide!
Can't help you with your question but did I read this right?? You drive 500 miles a day?? If that is right you have one hell of a commute!
ya You read it right! I did 800 miles one day last week! I inspect vacant homes for the bank. I live in Orange County Ca and my territory starts in Indio and goes all the way east to Arizona and South to Salton City. Thats why I bought a hybrid. I dont work many days a month, but when I do its a lot of miles. I put 60k miles on last year.
Wow thats all I can think of to say right now!! Do they pay you for mileage?instead of fan mod buy a small solar panel for roof of car since you are in so much sun light and install a few computer fans in car to circulate are all day will not drain anything you will not need to hack car. ebay sells them cheap.
Blowing 120F outside air over the batteries is already going to put them outside their comfort range. What is the temperature inside the car when it is 120 outside?
I have the AC blasting, but I also have to have my windows down to take pictures. (I take about 800 pics a day) So its hard to say exactly how cool it is in the back seat because I have all the AC vents pointing at me and I guarantee alot of the cool air escapes out the windows. I still figure the more air over the batteries the better.
I would consider using a Thermo-Electric cooler in the battery fan air supply duct to cool the air going into the battery. You could salvage one from a Auto/Truck beverage cooler (less than $100 at a truck stop). They pull 4-5 amps (only have it work in "Ready" mode or it will drain your little 12v battery) of 12v power to maintain a temperature differential between two heat sinks. JeffD
If you hold the camera as close to the window glass as possible, you'll cut down on a lot of the window glare. What kind of camera are you using? On my SLR, I use a rubber hood like this: rubber hood slr - Google Search ... that allows me to press the front of the lens up onto the glass, and the hood seals off any glare. If you can disable the flash on your camera, that'll help too, as the flash will cause more glare than it'll help with the exposure.
Yes! see: Polarizing filter (photography) - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia Just get the 12v polarity right. A Thermo-Electric module can be used to efficiently heat or cool. JeffD
