Coolant pump control and specs...

I'm attempting to put a 2014 Leaf drivetrain into a classic Mini. I've ditched the Nissan VCU in favor of an aftermarket solution, and I'm working on sorting out the cooling.

If I can, I'd like to use the Leaf coolant pump, but it's controlled by the VCU. I can't get it to spin by applying 12v to various pins.

1) Can this thing be controlled by PWM or would it necessitate CAN bus communication?

2) Does anyone know the raw specs (power draw, flow rate, etc) if I need to source a standard replacement? I couldn't find anything in the shop manual.

3) Does anyone happen to know the operating temperature range of the motor and inverter? I'm trying to figure out what temperature to keep the coolant beneath (ie, when does the radiator fan kick on).

While driving the coolant is only around 10F warmer than the ambient temperature. It only really gets warm when sitting and charging.
The pumps appear to have some level of communication as the vcm can tell when one stop working, I don't know if it's CAN or just good old analog curent sensing.

But there's lots of aftermarket coolant pumps, why not use one of them?

Oilpan4 said:

While driving the coolant is only around 10F warmer than the ambient temperature. It only really gets warm when sitting and charging.

Click to expand...

Whoa, is that right? Since I'm using a different (air-cooled) charger, that implies the cooling needs of the motor for driving are quite modest? I'd love to be able to run up a mountain in 100°F sun with the AC on, but I'm also shooting to have the simplest system I can until my project is on the road...

Oilpan4 said:

But there's lots of aftermarket coolant pumps, why not use one of them?

Click to expand...

The main reason I want to use the Leaf pump is 'cause I already have one...I'd be fine with an aftermarket pump, but I'd want to know the pressure/flowrate so I could get something similarly matched. I guess it doesn't really matter in light of the fact that my needs seem way less demanding than a factory Leaf charging at 6.6kW...

Have you seen how big the leaf radiator is?
It's overkill for driving.
If you're using an air cooled charger you probably don't need a fan as long as you are not building a rock crawer.
The smallest aftermarket coolant pump I have seen moves like 15 to 20 gmp. That's definitely overkill too.
Something like a VW after shutdown coolant pump used on turbo gas motors would be plenty and it only moves a few gallons per minute and it uses 12v.

Tremelune said:

Oilpan4 said:

While driving the coolant is only around 10F warmer than the ambient temperature. It only really gets warm when sitting and charging.

Click to expand...

Whoa, is that right? Since I'm using a different (air-cooled) charger, that implies the cooling needs of the motor for driving are quite modest? I'd love to be able to run up a mountain in 100°F sun with the AC on, but I'm also shooting to have the simplest system I can until my project is on the road..

Click to expand...

I think it may be true for typical driving, but I also think it might get pretty hot if you flog it on a hot day. I notice a few spatters of coolant from the overflow tube that have accumulated over the years.