Loss of power when the battery fan turns on?

[chanterelle]

Yesterday when I was driving, the battery fan turned on, and there was almost no acceration power. I was stopped to make a left turn, and the engine really felt like it was straining to go. There were no idiot lights telling me something was wrong, but there was almost no power, either. Luckily, I was only going about 5 blocks, but it felt really strange. It was fine the next time I drove the car.

I only noticed the strain on the motor once before when driving up the Cajon Pass towards Las Vegas (from Los Angeles) with the battery fan on, and it seemed to be less stressed that time.

Is this somthing that is so weird I should go get it checked at the dealer, or is it normal? Should I chalk it up to our abnormally high temperatures?

[john1701a]

It's normal for extreme high temperatures.

More burden is placed on the engine then. The system goes into a protective mode, to reduce the amount of resulting heat on the battery-pack from acceleration.

The only time my fan ever came on was last week... and it just happened to be right before I pulled out onto a country highway going uphill. The result was reduced power. But the climb went just fine, though slower at first.

So as you could imagine, the opposite happens in the winter. The electric is quite generous, since keeping cool is pretty easy then.

[seasalsa]

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(chanterelle @ Jul 28 2006, 04:57 PM) [snapback]294052[/snapback]</div>

Is this somthing that is so weird I should go get it checked at the dealer, or is it normal? Should I chalk it up to our abnormally high temperatures?
[/b]

It is normal if you drive with the windows down in hot weather. Just roll them up and turn the climate control to AUTO AC set at about 78+ degrees and the problem won't happen.

[jamarimutt]

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(seasalsa @ Jul 28 2006, 10:02 PM) [snapback]294119[/snapback]</div>

It is normal if you drive with the windows down in hot weather. Just roll them up and turn the climate control to AUTO AC set at about 78+ degrees and the problem won't happen.
[/b]

It's not that simple. My battery's fan comes on regularly after a long drive climbing mountains, regardless of inside or outside temperature.

[Presto]

The fan comes on frequently, but you may never notice it unless the battery gets SUPER hot and it runs the fan at full blast. When you stop your car in your garage, and before you turn it off, put your ear near the vent, and you should hear the fan going quietly.

I wish the fan would stay on after the car shuts off. Kinda like a turbo timer to cool off turbos, but instead, it would be cooling the battery. I bet that would eliminate the EV denials when I turn on the car for my commute during the hot summer months.