Enginer phev kit questions...

Hello Minnisota_plugin,
I know this is a late reply, but we are all learning as we go.

Be very carefull. The charger and converter are both set for packs of 16 balanced LiFePo4 bateries. If the batteries do not match this, they are at risk for being over charged or over drained. Either can cause damage to the batteries.

I generally do not think that there is a problem with the Mottcell as much as damage happening to them because operators may not fully understand how to balance them and to be sure they stay in balance.

Again we are all learning. In another month I expect to be better able to answer this question.

Thanks,
Dan

 

Howdy,

A123 battery cells are extremely powerful cells in comparison to the Mottcell batteries. For this application it's fair to say that they would be....overkill. The entire idea of the Enginer kit is that you can--or should be able to--get away with cheaper cells due to the lower current requirements (though you do get what you pay for with Lithium Ion batteries...).

A123 cells would significantly increase the cost of the kit (though they unquestionably would last longer than the Mottcell batteries). They are somewhat of the rolls-royce of the Lithium Ion chemistry and they have a higher safety rating than most other LiIon batteries due to their patented nano-phosphate technology.

If you're looking to use A123 you're probably better off just getting a Hymotion system since the Hymotion system has a higher battery output and higher performance than the Enginer system would be able to provide (please don't be offended Enginer people, this isn't my opinion i'm referring to the bigger DC/DC converter that they have and the integration with the OEM BMS). The cells are not cheap in single quantities (in fact, I don't believe they even will sell them to you in small quantities).

Andrew