I'm crossposting a Reddit thread I made a couple weeks ago voicing my thoughts/experience/concerns about Project Lithium as I believe this needs to be shared with the Prius Community. @mudder confirmed my realizations I had just over 6 months ago that the product is not only poorly made... but Dangerous with the implementation of the Signal Soother. I would not recommend their Batteries as they are not well made at best and Dangerous at worst. @mudder's YouTube Videos evaluates the issues with the Battery Modules and Signal Soother from a technical standpoint: Here is the Direct Link to the Reddit Thread that bypasses the PriusChat viewing software. Reddit Thread Below:
The part that bothers me the most about all this is @jacktheripper's continued public silence regarding the several safety issues I've outlined in his products. If someone made a safety claim against any product I've designed, I would certainly make a public statement ASAP (whether or not said issue actually existed). For the sake of all their existing customers, I sincerely hope that V3 resolves Project Lithium's existing NexCell design deficiencies. Ideally NexCell offers a free upgrade program for all existing V1.x & V2.x customers. Properly designed V3 hardware could certainly resolve all the safety issues I outlined. To meet these goals, the V3 hardware would need a properly designed supervisory control method (I outlined two different methods in the first video linked above). I intend to evaluate the V3 hardware's safety aspects as soon as I can get my hands on it (send me a PM if you're interested in anonymously collecting a bounty for providing said V3 hardware). Note that if the V3 design uses the existing LFP cells, it's likely the cell failure rate remains high; these cells fail rapidly under heavy assist/regen. I haven't finished my long term test gauntlet on the V2.8 LFP cell I received, but if it's anything like the V1 cells I tested earlier this year, they simply don't perform well long term when subjected to the high charge/discharge currents typical in hybrid traction batteries.
All fine and dandy whatever Very cool all of that Just looking at one you can tell maybe it's not the thing to be doing like I've asked a million times what's so hard about building a 211 volt DC battery for whatever it needs to go in a car slot car doesn't matter what is so complicated how did we get to liquid and bags inside a plastic housing I mean why can't they do it like the clown who makes the electric cars all those little tiny round little bit bigger than AA things whatever I mean everybody makes this so complicated Why is that does it have to be this way I guess so so I just go by the battery that was made for the stupid thing that last 10 years approximately or more and be done with it hell they're selling it to me for less than it cost me to buy 28 modules from questionable people that say whatever they want to make a sale. But now the funny thing is is Toyotas advanced agenda since 2010 is too well not be the Toyota that your father was used to if you will so they're just like Chevrolet and Hyundai now can't be trusted basically better vet carefully everything
It’s up to buyers to decide if an aftermarket product is safe and reliable, unless there are some laws I’m unfamiliar with. Threads like this are helpful
How many buyers are schooled enough in battery tech to be able to make that call? I actually disagree fundamentally. Buyers should be able to assume that any product that is offered for sale is safe and fit for purpose.
The Consumer Product Safety Commission is on the verge of making some currently-voluntary standards mandatory, at least for e-bike and e-mobility batteries: CPSC to Propose Mandatory Requirements for Batteries in Micromobility Products | Covington & Burling LLP
how many fires/properties damaged/injuries/deaths will it take to regulate aftermarket car batteries? they tend to focus on oem, which is easier to control.
I'm also not sure CPSC would be the one to mandate standards for those, or would it be NHTSA, or, is there anyone it would be?
there is a product safety commission somewhere, but idk how well they identify/regulate small time internet sales.
The car battery fires might be in Underwriter Laboratories bailiwick. They cannot regulate anything, but if they start testing them and only allow the ones which won't burn down the owners garage/house to use the UL stamp, buyers could begin to reject batteries without that stamp. That's also the case for skateboard and ebike batteries. Hmm, wait,why speculate, this info must be out there. Searching... There is indeed a program for e-bikes: E-Bikes Certification:Evaluating and Testing to UL 2849 | UL Solutions and there are e-bikes for sale which are UL certified under that program, for instance: UL Certified Ebikes for Sale (2849) | Free Shipping with Ebike Purchase For EVs there are UL programs for charging stations. I could not find anything about UL certification for the car batteries themselves though. Seems like the certification would have to include both the battery and the on car charging electronics. Because the best designed Lithium battery in the world is probably going up in flames if the charging system starts sending it 100 kV pulses. Fake UL stamps are everywhere on garbage Chinese electronics, like wall warts. I would be less worried about that for products coming from major car manufacturers.
Also, the CPSC can go further and require compliance with such a 'voluntary' UL standard, as they do with hoverboards and UL 2272. https://www.cpsc.gov/s3fs-public/SelfbalancingScooterLetter.pdf "The CPSC Office of Compliance and Field Operations staff considers self-balancing scooters that do not meet the safety standards referenced above to be defective, and that they may present a substantial product hazard under Section 15(a) of the CPSA, 15 U.S.C. § 2064(a) or could be determined to be an imminent hazard under Section 12 of the CPSA, 15 U.S.C. §2061. Should the staff encounter such products at import, we may seek detention and/or seizure. In addition, if we encounter such products domestically, we may seek a recall of these products."