Feasable Poor Man's Temperature Management System....

[ialonso]

First post, I got a used 2011 Leaf SL in Houston just 2 weeks ago. it was brought from Atlanta, and battery range seems in great shape. I bought a Level 2 15amp charger of eBay, and it's awesome. I went to a gas station to get donuts a few days ago..otherwise, no GAS!

Regarding Houston's high temperature....

I'm wondering if we could not repurpose the foot well vents in the summer to redirect them to the inside of the battery pack, followed by a scheduled A/C timer to cool the pack during the hot time of the day to mitigate possible battery damage due to hot weather in the South....

I understand the largest impediment is the fact that the battery pack is totally sealed... having said that, How crazy is this idea?

Thanks!!!

 

[TonyWilliams]

This is pretty much what the Mitsubishi iMiev does.

Not crazy at all.

 

[ialonso]

This got me thinking about possibly installing the components of a 12v fridge around the outside bottom of the car, using some kind of very airy foam, or strips of foam to create pockets of traveling air, to create an area of air circulation, followed by some type of insulation, such that the "fridge" cools the air around the battery, and is insulated from the heat reflection of the ground.

I do park my car in a parking lot during the hot days on a third floor and it is rarely over 100 degrees in Houston, Average high for Houston is 90 or over in the 4 hot months.

The goal is to keep them under 80 or so, which seems to be a good temp for longevity....


Any thoughts on the feasibility and complexity of doing such a thing? How' access down there under the car?

Thanks!

 

[JeremyW]

Any thoughts on the feasibility and complexity of doing such a thing? How' access down there under the car?

If you are considering running your TMS off the 12V battery you better be upgrading it. Keep in mind the dc/dc isn't powered unless the car is on in ready mode, charging, preheating, or its been 5 days since the last time any of the previous occurred. It's a pretty weak sauce battery that some of us suspect may not be properly taken care of by the dc/dc. Keep in mind the phantom draw of an idle leaf (coolant pumps and the like) if you chose keep the car on if you wanted to power this using the dc/dc. Maybe a Lithium Iron Phosphate auxiliary battery would fit the bill?

I would suggest that you don't use anything that uses a peltier cooler as they are highly inefficient.

Good luck! I for one hope the aftermarket steps in to help with dealing with leafs and hot climates. It seems pretty obvious Nissan has no solution for them at this time (besides short term leasing and buy-backs).