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Custom Enginer PHEV (8kWh)

Discussion in 'Prius PHEV Plug-In Modifications' started by krousdb, Aug 29, 2009.

  1. atfsi

    atfsi New Member

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    Sounds like a conspiracy of one.....
     
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  2. plugmein2

    plugmein2 New Member

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    Where is Krousb? I want to hear more about his 8KW kit. Is it working?

    JOANNA
     
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  3. krousdb

    krousdb NX-74205

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    Everything is working fine. I have just been too busy to post lately. Mileage is down to about 80MPG due to colder, wet weather and a higher percentage of highway mileage. Still struggling with balancing, but hopefully tis weekend I will solve that problem.
     
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  4. krousdb

    krousdb NX-74205

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    Averaging 77 MPG now due to cooler weather and more % highway miles. Normally I would get 62 MPG. As it turns out, I will not be able to plug in at work as I had been promised so running one converter with 8kWh gets me to work and back, about 135 miles. Actually I normally run out at about 125 miles but that is good enough for me.

    Ive been very busy lately so I havent been able to check in very often. If you have any questions, just send me a PM.

    Dan
     
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  5. banshee08

    banshee08 Member

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    Dan,

    I wanted to thank you for the wealth of information here. I am waiting for all the parts for my 2010 version of the 8KWH 2 converter system. I am planing to put 4KWH of batteries in the spare tire well. I do have one question though. I was wondering how long did it take charge the 8KWH pack with only one charger?

    Thanks,

    Chan
     
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  6. krousdb

    krousdb NX-74205

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    It takes twice as long to charge 8 kWh, about 10 hours.
     
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  7. banshee08

    banshee08 Member

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    Thanks Dan. Just went on my first run and the RED LED started flashing in about 11 miles. I check the battery and the voltage read 53.3V. I changed out the converter to my second converter and all was working again. The second converter was charging the OEM much much faster. Do you think my first converter is bad??
     
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  8. kiettyyyy

    kiettyyyy Plug-In Supply Engineer

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    Are you using the Mottcell batteries? Were you attempting to use 2 DC/DC converters at the same time?

    If so, that just won't work. Even though the spec sheet says that these batteries are rated for <=3.0C, it's really <=2.5C. What's 2.5C? 97.5 amps.

    If you use 2 DC/DC converters, you'll be pulling roughly <= 110 amps.

    This explains the blinking red LEDs. I had the same problem. I remedied the problem by paralleling in an additional 2kWh using Thundersky batteries. These batteries have a better tolerence on the instantaneous and continuous current usage..
     
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  9. banshee08

    banshee08 Member

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    No I was just trying to use one converter. I received the wrong converter in my kit. It is for 320V system and boy did it get hot. I ran it for just 5 miles and it melted the rubber terminal covers on the Mottcells. I mounted teh 240V converter back and will be testing again after a full charge and balance tonight. As soon as the system test out fine I will mount the the system in the proper place and will be putting another 4KWH of batteries in the tire well along with adding a second converter to the case.
     
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  10. krousdb

    krousdb NX-74205

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    A quick update. Over the past few months I have been busy load testing my cells and trying to get them to balance. I found a number of underperforming cells and replaced them with new ones that Jack sent. My range is now back to normal.

    As far as the balancing goes, it makes sense that one tries to balance at the low end but I dont have enough hours in a day to balance then charge. I have been successful at balancing at the high end however and now that all of my cells have the same capacity, they end up at 3.0 to 3.1V when fully discharged.

    The way I balance at the high end is to set my timer for 4 hours (2 chargers) which gets me almost fully charged without any overcharged cells. At that point the cells are out of balance. Then I use a 4A trickle charger over night that shuts down automatically at 54V. In the morning all cells are balanced, at between 3.36 to 3.38V.

    I have been reading about the buddy balancing in DOAX's thread. I see some advantages with that method and might give it a try. The main disadvantage, that a good cell might mask a bad cell is a valid point, but that particular buddy set would still alarm low first. In that case, you just need to do a load test to find which buddy is bad.
     
  11. LeeD

    LeeD Junior Member

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    krousdb, thank you for sharing such detailed information. I'm very detail oriented and also collect much detailed data when I run test (comes from my R&D background). It's nice to be able to read such well presented information that occurred some time ago. Thank you.

    I just bought my first hybrid, a '01 Prius with only 55,000 miles. I've only had it about a week, but have already been considering the Enginer 4KWH system. Your shared experiences have been priceless in helping me to predict and prepare for my own purchase.

    Cheers,
    Lee
     
  12. ericbecky

    ericbecky Hybrid Battery Hero

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    This thread is from 2010.

    Enginer is out of business in the US.
    A PHEV kit in an '01 Prius is not great anyway. Better in the second Gens.
     
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  13. NortTexSalv04Prius

    NortTexSalv04Prius Active Member

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    I know old thread Eric becky . I am curious which install on a 6kw-8kw Enginer would be be a path preferred to choose. I really do not like the two converter. From enginer website you must have to dual enginer 16 BMS
     
  14. NortTexSalv04Prius

    NortTexSalv04Prius Active Member

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    update please
     
  15. banshee08

    banshee08 Member

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    My 8KWH system is still running although I am no longer using two 3000W converter anymore, instead I am using one 5000W converter and my MPG is hovering around 80mpg. I have the system running on a MiniBMS+ now and things are going really well. Although my Motocells are starting to show signs of age as some of the cells are cutting out sooner than the rest. My range has drop to about 80miles of highway assist and with one converter I really cannot get much EV miles before the converter cannot keep up. I have put about 75,000 miles on my enginer kit at this point and I hope to keep it running for another 2 to 3 years. I have a 4kwh realforce kit that is sitting in my garage as a backup at this point.
     
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