The Good, The Bad & The Weak HV Module

Well , it’s my turn to face the “Triangle of Death” on my 2007 Prius with 174,000 miles. But I was in a hurry to get it fixed, so after several online searching, I decided to opt for a reman module pack with 1 year unlimited warranty with mobile installation. The engineer came from Orange County, CA to the Bay Area and I was happy with his service before and after the install.

However, my curiosity has started and has to be satisfied because I want to take control the next time it happens. I have read, reread and reread again the post on “Gen II Individual Battery Replacement” started by “ryousideways” last April 13, 2013.
For a start, I have ordered 4 Gen II module packs on ebay whose seller claims static voltage of 7.3V each. Plan on ordering the Hitec X4 or the DC6 chargers along with Techstream and mini VCI.

I have some questions that I need help with:

First clue of a faulty module is in the Static Voltage measurement result of the 28 modules which I read is usually the distinctly low readings. Actual measurements below:

7.61
7.6
7.61
7.6
6.2<----low
7.6
7.6
7.29<----low
7.61
7.59
7.62

Question 1: After the balancing the module packs, how would I characterize a faulty module against a weak module with regard to charging and discharging characteristics?


The low static V above showing a reading of 6.12V showed the above discharge/charge characteristics.


Question 2: Is this module still good after attaining the required charging capacity?

This one showed a static V reading of 7.61V but after balancing process showed the below characteristics:



Question 3: Is he The Weak and I better replace him. I notice also at the 2nd and 3rd discharge that they differ only 26.6mAh plus a low final charge of 6961 mAh.

Below chart is definitely “The Good”.



Your comments are greatly appreciated.

Danny G

Had to learn uploading charts so did a lot of editing.

 

nh70,

I thought plotting the behavior in excel shows a more graphical presentation of what's happening. The REMAN is still doing well after 500 miles and those voltages were from other posts. I am just trying to get a good understanding of the behavior of the BAD and the WEAK compared to the GOOD module.

I am going full blast on this so I have ordered 4 Gen II modules, a Thunder T6 Quad charger and a mini VCI cable. Down the road, I'm also looking for a whole Gen II Hybrid battery pack and another set of quad charger. I want to setup my own charging system and take personal control of the situation when the Triangle of Death shows up again . Besides, I promised my granddaughter a car when she goes to College, so a Prius would be my best choice.

I'll try measuring the Module Resistance as well when I get started with my setup. For sure, I'll have more questions when I get goin.

Why are you saying "It will probably need replacement down the road, sooner rather than later". Is the car exhibiting any abnormalities or change from the norm now? Not hoping for it but just in case, please post what you observed prior to it happening.

On my 07 Prius, it showed up all of a sudden with 2 bars left on the gas. After 2 days, I filled her up and to my surprise, the Triangle of Death disappeared. It took about 5 days, then it showed up again. Then my gas mileage dropped from 47 to 37 mpg. It would also rev up and won't pull normal. I found out that when I shut it down, then it would go back to normal. Had it diagnosed and was told Module 10 was weak. I was also quoted $4k to get it fixed with a new Gen II battery. Did a lot of research on how to get it fixed fast and I opted to an Electrical Engr from Orange County who quoted me $750 with 1 year warranty unlimited mileage. I chose him because he's the one that best explained to me how the reman was done. He also had 12 Priuses in the family one of which has 410k miles on it already. He speaks it and lives it too.

I'll post later a summary of what I have learned so far with the hope that others may benefit from it as we have benefited from others that experienced the problem before us. Love this website.

Aloha! I love your yellow fin tuna.

Danny

 

10-4 although I'm still in denial.

 

Joking aside, does this mean that it's "The Good and The Bad" only during the test/balancing stage? And the WEAK, I can only tell through nh70's recommendation?

 

Here u go! First draft of the Balancing Procedure I have summarized from previous posts here. Thanks a million to the PC gurus that have made my preparation/study a lot easier.

Legend:
VaB: voltage after balancing
VaP: voltage after Parallel all modules

I need to insert Module Series Resistance (per nh70 and bisco's inputs) and Static Voltage (first measurement) along with other incoming inputs readers will suggest.

 

Thanks bisco & nh70.
For now, I'm enjoying the learning process but I don't want repeated process of module replacement. I may go through 2-3 times while learning but won't be enjoying it after that as it is not fixing the problem. Looking forward to the Grid Charger based balancing method when it matures.

Have yet to learn the use of the mini VCI when my order comes in.

Thanks again guys.