Not sure about the battery in your Leaf but some do require occasional water being added but not so much on a Leaf where if anything the battery is undercharged. No adding water was more with ICE vehicles that overcharged the battery and even then not all batteries let you add water.Clueless wrote: ↑Wed Dec 04, 2019 10:02 pmWait, why do you have to put water in your 12v battery? Our 2013 Leaf has had the ev system warning light on (car symbol with exclamation point) for the past two days but has been driving fine. I work 25 miles away so I drive the whole range everyday. Drove it to a Nissan dealership today in Carson after work and said it’d take a whole day and $150 for diagnostics. I’ve been reading that this might be caused by a low voltage 12v battery. Any advice? I’m terribly clueless about cars much less EVs. Thanks in advance.
Update:jjeff wrote: ↑Sat Feb 24, 2018 12:36 pmMy early '12(spent it's first 4 years in sunny so Cal, started out with 10 bars but now 9) had to have the battery replaced the first cold snap this past fall) my '13 still has the original 12v that I occasionally(every 4-5 wks since new) hook to a battery tender with desulphication. I now always carry a 12v lithium battery jump starter in the back of my '13 just in case it decides to die but so far haven't had to use it. I did use it once or twice on my '12 before I replaced the 12v battery with a 51R Optima yellow top and the little jump starter was able to let my start the '12 and worked very well for that.
nlspace wrote: ↑Thu Dec 05, 2019 5:31 pmHere's a page from a Yuasa battery guide that explains about when the sulfation occurs. The guide is geared toward smaller batteries such as motorcycles and ATV, but the guide information applies to all lead acid and can be downloaded.
https://www.manualslib.com/manual/48788 ... =15#manual
An interesting paragraph from the guide, emphasis mine:
"There's a simple rule of thumb about batteries, and if you're a dealer or a mechanic, you know that people ignore it all the time: for a battery to operate the way it's supposed to, it has to be fully charged before it's used...and kept fully charged throughout its life[/b]."
That is the secret to getting extended life out of the aux battery.
gncndad wrote: ↑Fri Dec 06, 2019 7:27 amnlspace wrote: ↑Thu Dec 05, 2019 5:31 pmHere's a page from a Yuasa battery guide that explains about when the sulfation occurs. The guide is geared toward smaller batteries such as motorcycles and ATV, but the guide information applies to all lead acid and can be downloaded.
https://www.manualslib.com/manual/48788 ... =15#manual
An interesting paragraph from the guide, emphasis mine:
"There's a simple rule of thumb about batteries, and if you're a dealer or a mechanic, you know that people ignore it all the time: for a battery to operate the way it's supposed to, it has to be fully charged before it's used...and kept fully charged throughout its life[/b]."
That is the secret to getting extended life out of the aux battery.
I think this requires some clarification. I'm going to modify this (bold) statement. "...kept in a properly operating charge/discharge environment..." On ICE engines, the voltage regulator doesn't ever charge the 12V to capacity, usually stopping at 80-90%, to avoid overchargin. . I assume the same for hybrids/electrics. IIRC, 12V, like our HV batteries, function best between 20-80%. Constant charge/discharge outside of this range isn't healthy.
Hopefully someone more expert will chime in and correct me if I'm wrong.
(I'm really NOT shouting, for some reason, I can't un-bold my post!!!)