DC-DC charging

My Nissan Leaf Forum

Help Support My Nissan Leaf Forum:

This site may earn a commission from merchant affiliate links, including eBay, Amazon, and others.

wjquigs

Member
Joined
Mar 30, 2016
Messages
5
Can anybody tell me how much current or power the DC-DC converter puts out? I'm guessing it's been discussed here before but it's difficult to search for that topic.
I'm a lazy car camper. I like to have my Engel fridge. Previously I used my VW Touareg (and solar panels) to keep a LiFePo battery topped up; the fridge ran from the battery and I could turn the car on and recharge if I needed (via an inverter and AC charger). The fridge is very efficient and only uses a few amps (it peaks at around 4 amps when the compressor starts but on average uses less than a half). I'm wondering if I can connect the fridge to the Leaf 12-volt battery/converter instead. Seems like leaving the Leaf in "ready mode" overnight shouldn't drain it too much, and it's not like I'm camping 100 miles from a charger anyway.
(Unrelated: parked my Leaf at 8 miles range last night. Range anxiety is finally a thing of the past!)
Bill
 
As noted in this thread: http://www.mynissanleaf.com/viewtopic.php?t=13097 the DC to DC converter can supply up to about 1.7kW or 135a.
 
I wouldn't try to use the full output of the converter for long periods. An inverter connected to the accessory battery and ground, with a 12 volt 1500 watt breaker, to limit current draw, would be a good setup. Remember that the car must be in Ready Mode when it's used or you'll kill the little battery.
 
Having the car in 'ready mode' means all the accessories and computers etc are powered up. From memory this is something like 250 Watts. Enough to use a substantial amount of your battery over a couple of days camping.

You could put the LiFePo battery in the leaf as your 'starter battery' (see http://www.mynissanleaf.com/viewtopic.php?f=37&t=4819). Then you'd only need to put the car in ready mode for long enough per day to keep it charged. As an added benefit, you'd get rid of the lead-acid battery and associated unnecessary weight.
 
Back
Top