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Hymotion : no LED blinking, just dead?

Discussion in 'Prius PHEV Plug-In Modifications' started by Dan17, Feb 10, 2017.

  1. Dan17

    Dan17 New Member

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    I have a Hymotion L5 which acts like it is discharged: No blinking on dash LED unless I pull the service plug, then it blinks code 8.

    When I plug 120v in, brake light flashes and fan runs. Fully charged I think.

    When I start the car, the LED never comes on (like a discharged pack) And no green (full battery) flashes on the info screen.

    I pull the top off. The whole pack is about 197VDC. There are hand written dates 2009 on all 14 battery modules.

    Help please. Thanks, Dan.
     
    #1 Dan17, Feb 10, 2017
    Last edited: Feb 15, 2017
  2. Dan17

    Dan17 New Member

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    I poked around some more and have additional data:

    1. Harness seems to be working. I measured voltage for all 16 wires while the car is on and off/charging. While off/charging, only pin 5 has 12.4v. When on, pins 5, 6, 7, 14,15, and 16 are around 14v. Pins 9-12 are around 2.5v. The CAN bus are active? All normal?

    2. The system battery is the weird part. Car off and L5 off, it reads 197.6v or 28.2v across two modules. When changing, it drops to 189v to 191.7v or 27.5vdc. Why do voltage drop when charging? Bad batteries? When the car is on, my digital multi meter can not read the voltage even when set at 1000vdc. Infinite value? It doesn't make sense. Individuals drop down to 27.6v.

    I noticed something weird across the module with the service connector, the infinite reading is across this module. The rest of the modules read 27.6v. But changing the orange fuse plug makes no difference. Can the orange wires between the connector and battery modules goes bad? Physically, I do not see any corrosion or melt insulation to suspect bad wires.

    This is puzzling.... Help!
     
  3. ericbecky

    ericbecky Hybrid Battery Hero

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    8-Blink error code that indicates a Service Plug Interlock error.

    Check the Crash Sensor to be sure it is correctly situated (not activated)
    Check that the Service Plug is properly seated.
     
  4. Dan17

    Dan17 New Member

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    I already did that: Pushing down on the crash sensor, pull out the service plug and check the 150 amp fuse and plug back in ( rotate up and push down), check each of the 14 modules is 14.1 VDC (no bench charge needed). There is no error code.

    I purposely pull the service plug out while the system is on to be sure the system is still working and to test, making sure the LED still works. After I replaced the plug the error code goes away after a cycle of power off and on.

    After a full charge over night, I power the car on and the LED is not on. No error code flashing either. What can be wrong?
     
  5. ericbecky

    ericbecky Hybrid Battery Hero

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    Dismantle the Service Plug and check its fuse and mounts.
    Swap in a different fuse if you have one handy.

    And you are sure it is 8 blinks, right?
     
  6. Dan17

    Dan17 New Member

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    Already did that too. Checked the fuse. Clean terminals. Disassembled the service plug, cleaned and reassembled. I even swapped service plug, same behavior.

    May be I am not being very clear. I get no error code at all. I only get 8 blinks when I remove the service plug when the car is on or charging. If I put service plug back in, no LED flashing.

    When I drive the car, no LED and no battery flashing green on the MFD. And mpg shows 45mpg. Is it dead? I measured the whole pack and I get 188 to 197 volts.

    What voltage is a fully charged pack? And when under load?

    How do I know if my DC-DC converter is an H5?
    I do not get 3 blinks or any blinking at all. But it is also not on; not helping mpg.
     
  7. ericbecky

    ericbecky Hybrid Battery Hero

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    ha, ha. I didn't realize you only get it when it is removed.
    Of course you get 8 blinks when it is removed..... because 8 blinks is saying it is removed/not functioning.

    No blinking... that makes it much more challenging.
    Could be anything.

    How long have you owned this system?
    When was it last operating properly?
    What were the symptoms the first time you noticed it was not working?
     
  8. Dan17

    Dan17 New Member

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    I just bought the car. I think the sale man was lying when he said that it works. So I do not know the history of the system.

    The label on the passenger side says mominal voltage is 188v. I opened it up and measured 197v. Plugged in the charging cable and it dropped down to 187v is that normal?

    I hooked up two 60W incandescent bulbs in series and load the battery down. It starts at 196v 0.45A. After an hour, it is 189v 0.44A. Should I load it down to 179.2v to see how long and how many KwHr is in the batteries?
     
  9. ericbecky

    ericbecky Hybrid Battery Hero

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    It's rare to find a Hymotion system that is still operable.

    If you drain it down, do you have a way to charge it up? Do you know for sure the charger is working.

    Is there any other indications it is working when you turn it on?
    Are you certain that the system is not bypassed?
     
  10. Dan17

    Dan17 New Member

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    I know of two systems still working.

    Last night, I drained about 420 W-Hr from the batteries in 5 hours. Then I plug it in and everything charged back up to full in 30 min.

    I think it is "on" because the BMS light up like a string of red x-mas lights as soon as I opened the driver door. And if I pull the service plug, I do get 8 blinks error code.

    I do not think that the system is bypassed because it is plugged into the car harness and the bypass plug is hanging by zip tie next to the DB-9 serial port in the trunk.

    I wish it blinks some error code. Do I have fused contactors? Are they in the bottom of the battery box?
     
  11. Sunnys

    Sunnys New Member

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    I have 2007 Prius with Hymotion plugin and has 8 blinks (7 blinks and 8th blink stays for a while)

    Also, I couldn’t figure out where the crash sensor is located and what does it look like.

    Your input is highly appreciated.
    Thanks
     
  12. ericbecky

    ericbecky Hybrid Battery Hero

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    Sunnys likes this.
  13. Greg_R

    Greg_R New Member

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    Hi:
    I've got an L5 Hymotion Prius kit that has been in the car almost since new. It was sent back for exchange/refurbishment by the previous owner (a friend) around 2010 with the DC/DC inverter problem, and has essentially been running fine since repaired, other than hick-ups associated with a low 12V battery. The car now has ~240,000 KM. I get about 2.6/L 100 KM when the system is operational, other than the initial warm-up period. It does drop out of EV mode a little more often theses days (the 3 beeps), but then goes right back in. Typical travel is 50 KM of EV assisted mode. Often do stealth-glide mode at around 80-90 kph. Quite satisfying to see O L/100 KM reported on the screen. So you need to change your count to three L5 Hymotion systems still alive. Would not mind having the software to talk to the L5 though to monitor its operations fully. Eric are you still out there?
     
    #13 Greg_R, Sep 21, 2019
    Last edited by a moderator: Sep 21, 2019
  14. ericbecky

    ericbecky Hybrid Battery Hero

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    I'm here.
    Unlikely you will get the software.
    Would be nice if it could be shared.
    How much is the software worth to you?
    $2,000 maybe?
     
  15. tjs4689

    tjs4689 Junior Member

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    I will check tomorrow with the GreenChip dealer that installed mine. They may still have the software / Computer and see fit to let me buy it lock stock and old laptop. More to come!