Correct me if I'm wrong... (new Gen1 owner)

From what I have gleaned from Priuschat...

• Grid charging a Gen1 is a viable approach to rebalance. Keep the current low (350mA works well for me given the plethora of 350mA LED PSU... and the 400V or so that I have available). Run the fan or do it out of car with some form of cooling. Watch for module swell. Based on 38*6 cells and 1.475V/cell open circuit on charger, I need to supply about 336 volts.
• There is some limited benefit to traditional "refurb" efforts on battery modules such as cylcling and discharging to eliminate voltage depression. YMMV.
• Module replacement is viable but iffy due to Gen1 module tendencies to leak and cause corrosion. Gen2 cells can be used to rebuild a Gen1 pack if all modules are replaced.
• In general, Dorman refurb packs are unreliable.
• If you want new modules, the only option is Toyota.
• Minivci is a special cable with an ASIC processor and a bootleg copy of Techstream. 2.0.4 is needed for Gen1. It can readily assist with diagnosing traction battery issues with block voltage and resistance logging.
• There is a CSV file for Torque Pro that gives similar results to minivci, but it has a slow refresh rate.
• Gen1 owners are the friendlies sort on the board.

Has there been any work done on deep discharging modules or packs? I have more experience with Honda Civic Hybrid packs than I care to admit, and those buggers typically give 20-25% capacity improvement with a single grid charge and deep discharge.

I'll have a "new" '03 in the driveway tomorrow. with P3000 and P3030. Can't wait to get my hands on the pack.

Thanks for reading. Any cautionary tales, constructive comments, alarmist warnings of impending failure/stupidity or "please learn from my mistakes" lessons are greatly appreciated.

Steve

 

Bob/Patrick,

Thank you for the suggestions.

I'm a paper guy too, so I'll probably look for that. I have only seen speak of Gen2 cells for the Gen1. I'll keep my eyes open for information on the Gen3 substitution.

I'm aware of chinese suppliers for the Honda IMA subpacks, but I've never heard of it for the Prius. I'll keep my eyes open for that as well.

High tolerance for quirks? I'm a Honda IMA owner. I have that skill highly refined...

Thanks again,

Steve

 

I have found some other references. While I understand it is likely not optimal at all, can Gen1, 2 and 3 modules be mixed within the same pack?

 

I have a line on a full Gen2 pack for $350. I may be yet another guinea pig. I'm thinking that they might work interspersed within blocks shared with Gen1 modules. That might minimize the differences the car sees. Module geometry would be another matter entirely.

Thanks again,

Steve

 

Thanks again guys. I'll digest that thread and incorporate your suggestions.

 

Interesting read on that thread. I've done a similar process dozens of times in Honda IMA systems. I had to stifle my knee-jerk reaction to reply to the Insight pack discussion.

The Gen1 is now in the driveway awaiting 12V charge and OBD data collection.

Thanks again for the input. I hope I have something to add to the community.

Steve

 

I've started troubleshooting...

Duracell SLI151R 12V is on the charger... very thirsty for juice. Not sure it will recover from being deep discharged.

I'm using a 12V, 30A PSU to supply the car with 12V power. I have the open voltage at 13.8V. I am disturbed by the ignition OFF load on the battery. I have a DVM on 10A setting working as a series ammeter. Ignition OFF current varies binarily between 0.8A and 0.35A. It's like two different settings. The cooling fan on my PSU reacts to those two currents with different speed settings. Is this normal?

Lastly, with the ignition ON, should I read pack voltage at the main terminals? I read 0V.

Thanks,

Steve

 

Dear Mr. Wong,

Thanks for the idiot check. Yeah... doors and trunk closed... NOW!

Draw is now at 40mA.

The interlock switch is in the trunk. Lever from up to horizontal and pull towards rear to remove. Install is reverse, lever horizontal, insert, lever up.

Thanks,

Steve

 

PSU is 30A, so it didn't have any issues with any ignition on activities. Car never showed ready.

Interlock at 2:20:

I estimate this pack has sat for at least two months based on the conversation with the previous owner. I pulled the cover while still in the car and checked several modules (too heavy to get out of the car myself and no one in the house with sufficient upper body strength to assist). Many were extremely low, and bus bar corrosion was rampant. I'll try to get it in the house this evening and start looking in earnest.

Here's my plan:

• Clean up the bus bars.
• Record the as-removed voltage
• Grid charge the pack at 350mA with my charger set to 322V (1.41V/cell) to peak voltage (NTE 24hr).
• 1 hour following grid charge disconnect, record module voltage and IR.
• Discharge each module at 20A to establish the baseline capacity.
• Decide what's next.

Lastly, how are these typically numbered?

Thanks,

Steve

 

Thanks Bob...Module 1 is... 0.33V... whole pack was 63V. This is going to be an uphill battle.

Modules were shaded when the cover was removed in-car, and now they are basking in my 72°F office.

 

Correction... Module 1 was 0.154V... Not sure where I got .33. Was when I was fiddling around with the pack in the car and probably got confused.

Min: .0.04V
Max: 7.26V

AVG: 1.44V

Yeah... ick.

Google Sheet for Data