Electric Vehicle Project
First drives and swapping the batteries
September, 2002
When last I wrote, the Prizm was basically moving, but the condition was unknown. Well, I charged it, drove it around gently, got it registered (that was fun :-) and put it into service. The most I could drive it was 25 or so miles, and at rest the batteries would only read 297 volts or less after such a drive. When charging, they would go to 390, but then drop to 317 as soon as the charge was ended.
They should have been at 325; something was amiss in the pack.
So I made a mental note to watch the pack and take it easy. The car actually ran very well; drove fast, fair amount of power, and was great for the little 10 mile runs I tend to make around here. I found myself using the Porsches less and less and the electric more and more.
So I drove it for a few months till one dark night I was driving home at the end of a long (20 mile) run. Merged onto the highway, floored it....
And the power went down *WAY* low. Where before I was cruising at 270-280 volts I suddenly found the car at 250 volts and slowing down fast.
Ut oh...
So I limped the last few miles home. The car barely made it, and was very upset. Which was odd; this wasn't the longest run. So I put it on charge, and the next day found that even a 5 mile drive would end with a battery pack voltage below 200 and a max current draw of about 60 amps.
The pack was shot. Time to drop it and start reviewing the damage.