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-   -   2008 Gen 2 Prius Plug-in Conversion (https://ecomodder.com/forum/showthread.php/2008-gen-2-prius-plug-conversion-33219.html)

evric 12-14-2015 06:02 PM

2008 Gen 2 Prius Plug-in Conversion
 
My project to convert my 2008 Prius to make it Plug-in is now complete.
I used the 10KW kit from Plug-in Supply without the charger, batteries and BMS. The latter I purchased from within in Australia to save freight costs.
I used 76 Winston 40Ah prismatic cells in a custom steel frame.
The way I did this conversion left most of the trunk space available for strollers and car seats etc for my wife to cart the grand kids around.
At the moment we are getting around 2.4 Litres per 100Km (98MPG(US) or 118MPG IMP)) and very happy with this long term average over 1000's of km.
By charging each night we are now getting around 2000km to a tank of petrol.
In fact the other day I filled up when the petrol gauge was down to 3 bars... after filling I found that it only took 35 Litres so there was 10 Litres left which would have allowed us to go at least another 400km !

Please see the Blog on my website: www.evplus.com.au

I'll put some photos up here soon...

Eric
Downunder

Vman455 12-14-2015 10:57 PM

Wow! Very nicely done; I like that battery layout.

evric 12-18-2015 07:20 AM

This photo shows the layout of the 76 cells in the back of the Prius...

http://www.evplus.com.au/images/Battery15.jpg

evric 12-18-2015 07:24 AM

This is a closup of how the cells are held down.

The threaded rod are welded to the base of the battery frame and the top nut/washer (silver soldered) combination (eventually covered with felt) supports the clear poly-carbonate cover.
In the final production, instead of the nut and split washer combination, I used Nyloc nuts (a special nut with a nylon insert crimped in), these offer great resistance against vibrating loose
Checkout the blog for more photos: www.evplus.com.au/evplus_blog.htm

http://www.evplus.com.au/images/Frame_17.jpg

oldtamiyaphile 12-19-2015 09:37 AM

I bought my Prius with the intent of doing a plug in conversion, but it only costs five cents/ km in petrol (best case EV's quote 3c/km), so based on your 50/50 petrol/electric usage, the monetary saving is in the order of one cent/ km.

If the conversion cost was a modest $3,000, the pay back would take 300,000km.

Sad but true :(

evric 12-19-2015 04:39 PM

Hi Oldtami...
Thank you for your comments. Where did you get the 50/50 petrol/electric usage figure from? (hopefully not from my website)
That figure would be correct for the standard Prius. My conversion now would be more like 25/75 petrol/electric.
I worked out that even with a total conversion cost of around $7,000 (including 76 LiFePO4 cells) the payback would be around 270,000Km.
In the meantime I am enjoying a very quiet driving experience for most of the time... and less trips to the smelly old petrol station.
Eric

oldtamiyaphile 12-19-2015 08:03 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by evric (Post 502715)
Thank you for your comments. Where did you get the 50/50 petrol/electric usage figure from? (hopefully not from my website)
That figure would be correct for the standard Prius. My conversion now would be more like 25/75 petrol/electric.

The stock Prius might use it's electric motors 50% of the time, but 100% of that energy came from petrol. Compared to my car (and most other G2 models), you've halved your petrol consumption, so it's safe to assume that half of your car's energy now comes from the grid.

If electricity is free, then your fuel costs have come down to 2.5c/ km. In which case the payback would be around 270,000km. But electricity has a cost too (even if you have solar panels - you probably do- and produce excess power you'll get money back from the electricity supplier).

I've calculated around 4c/km (as have others) is the cost to fuel a Nissan Leaf. So if you run 50% on EV at 4c/km and 50% on petrol at 5c/km. You're only saving 0.5c/km.

That's a 1.4million km payback :eek:

3c/km for EV power is the best case scenario if you live where electricity is cheap or have a super efficient EV.

The only way I can see myself doing the plug in conversion now is if I did something like a 2kWh conversion, enough for ~10km of range, that would be enough for 100% EV usage on 95% of my Prius trips. So I probably use around one tank of petrol a year, but still, I'd only be saving 1c/km.

I realize that money saving isn't really the point of a project like this, but it still has to be considered. Just as a comparison I'm contemplating swapping the 4.0l I6 in my Jeep for a 6.2l LS3. People who've done this swap have reported a 2l/100km improvement in economy (going from my current 12 down to 9.5l/100km). That's a 2.7c/km saving but still 370,000km until payback...

evric 12-19-2015 08:28 PM

I don't really want to keep this fruitless discussion continuing, but I would just like to say that the long term average of 2.5 Litres / 100km consists of driving which consists of much hill work and high speed driving(by my wife, most of the time). Both of these types of driving are not suited to using the Prius in 100% electric mode. I can drive it 100% electric (and I do) around the metro area (on the flat and only up to 60km/hr) for distance of around 75km... and loving it.
Over and out.
Eric

Baltothewolf 12-20-2015 04:24 AM

Very well done. I wish something like this was available for the insight, I can imagine 200+mpg averages would be doable. Depending on the commute distance of course.

Daox 12-20-2015 08:20 AM

Great looking conversion! Thanks for sharing. I like how the pack doesn't intrude into the normal usable space.

evric 12-21-2015 02:14 AM

This photo shows how the 2KW TC Charger charger is fitted - right out of the way.
See my blog for more detail on how the charger was fitted:
www.evplus.com.au/evplus_blog.htm
Note: Because of the orientation of the charger ie. the heatsink fins being horizontal, I have placed 3 off 240V fans on the charger mounting bracket (not visible in this photo).
The mat was purchased from the US, as this Toyota part (made for the Gen2 Prius) is not available in Australia.
The mat sits on top of the clear polycarbonate sheet, which is screwed to the battery frame.

http://www.evplus.com.au/images/Battery18.jpg

evric 10-08-2017 05:07 PM

EV Mode for Australian Gen2 Prius.
 
After installing and using the PIS system, I was upset to hear lots of beeping at times and thought that the PIS Front Controller had problems. Associated with the beeping was the notice flashing up on the screen "EV Mode not available at this time..." or similar. (PIS = Plug In Supply, California)

Before we go too much further, firstly let me tell you a bit about part of the wiring from the PIS Front Controller to the Prius.
There are two wires which connect from the Front Controller to the wiring of the Prius EV switch (see "EV Switch Wiring" menu item on the left.) The EV switch comes preinstalled in the Australian Gen 2 Prius.

After much listening to beeping and a lot of thinking and watching to see when the beeping occurred, the problem is, I think, a design / setup problem with Front Controllers sent to Australia (which are the same ones used in the US).

In the US Prius, the top EV mode speed is around 34mph (55kph) (or more I have read - someone please verify this for me, thanks).
The Australian Prius is set to turn off / not allow "EV Mode" above 45kph (around 28mph).

This causes a problem between 28mph and 34mph when the front controller tries to turn on the EV Mode. Of course in the Australian Prius that is not allowed and it keeps trying and beeping, trying and beeping, about every 6 seconds, complete with a warning notice on the centre screen.

The reason this is very annoying is that a popular maximum suburban road speed (off the main roads) is 50kph (31mph), right in the middle of this disallowed range. (The main roads are 60kph (37mph))

I asked Robb from PIS if he could supply a special Front Controller for us Aussies and possibly New Zealanders and possibly Europeans. I am willing to pay for it.

Robb is a great guy and easy to correspond with, but this time I didn't like his response...

"I can't change the software. No demand except from yourself to justify the expense."

...

"No. The software is based on Toyota software and I cant change it."

"The beeping is normal. It does not beep all the time. I don't know why."

I have worked out why and told him.
It is not the Toyota software that needs changing, it is the programming in the PIS Front Controller.

So, after you non-US residents install the PIS Front Controller and have the same result as I have above, please ask Robb to send you a special Front Controller... or better still ask him to supply you one specially programmed for your country, when ordering it. Specify maximum EV Mode speed = 45kph (28mph).

Please let me know how you go.

************************************************** *******

Update - 07/10/17
I have now completed a GPS project (using an Arduino) which has fixed this problem for me.

Full details will be added soon.

This part of my continuing blog on www.evplus.com.au

evric 03-06-2018 05:53 PM

Update on Fuel Consumption - Plug-in Prius Conversion
 
My Gen 2 (2008) Prius, on the last fill up (which is not very often) after travelling 1000km, I put in 27.8 Litres, which easily calculates to 2.78 L/100km or just over 100mpg (imperial). Prior to filling the tank, the fuel gauge showed half full.

My wife drives the car most of the time, but when I drive locally, I always use the "ICE Kill Switch" and travel fully electric! ... and loving it.

Please see my recent post with news about Plug-in Supply Inc (Robb Protheroe).
http://ecomodder.com/forum/showthrea...tml#post562902

Eric

broski499 03-06-2018 11:28 PM

Fantastic job. Amazing how stock it all looks. How long does it take to charge it 100%. Are you able to gauge the percentage of the pack's charge state? I have a 2008 prius and have wanted to do this but the cost is a tough sell. has anyone tried rigging up a system that allows for grid charging of the stock battery so you always start at 100% charge state. I'm in California, wonder if a solar roof could trickle charge the stock battery while at work... I know small solar panels can't do much, just curious. Anyway, bravo for doing what I have always wanted to do and doing such a nice job.

evric 03-06-2018 11:42 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by broski499 (Post 562932)
Fantastic job. Amazing how stock it all looks....

Thanks for your comments.
The additional battery pack is 40Ah and the system uses around 26 - 28Ah then switches the Plug-in Supply kit off. Perfect for the LiFePO4 cells.
I use a JLD404 meter to monitor each day's usage (Ahs) and then reset it each morning ready for the new day. This lets me know how long I have to leave it on charge.
The charger pushes in just over 6 Amps and so the pack takes around 5 hrs to bring it back up to 100% (after using around 26Ah). Of course, this will vary each day. Charging every night on off-peak power. This charging arrangement only tops up the additional battery pack. I don't know of anyone trying to externally charge the original Prius battery pack. Probably not worth the trouble.
All the best
Eric

S Keith 03-07-2018 08:16 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by broski499 (Post 562932)
Fantastic job. Amazing how stock it all looks. How long does it take to charge it 100%. Are you able to gauge the percentage of the pack's charge state? I have a 2008 prius and have wanted to do this but the cost is a tough sell. has anyone tried rigging up a system that allows for grid charging of the stock battery so you always start at 100% charge state. I'm in California, wonder if a solar roof could trickle charge the stock battery while at work... I know small solar panels can't do much, just curious. Anyway, bravo for doing what I have always wanted to do and doing such a nice job.

Great way to cause cycle wear with no benefit. Usable capacity of the Prius NiMH pack is almost identical to the total capacity of the 12V, so conceptually, you're trying to gain some benefit by adding additional energy equivalent to the capacity of your 12V battery.

The good thing is that your battery will probably be very balanced most of the time.

The bad thing is that your battery will sustain accelerated cycle wear due to you forcing the battery to 100% SoC. This increases the depth of discharge and adds battery cycles where there otherwise wouldn't be any. This generally equates to reduced battery life.

Additionally, the repeated forced over-charge would likely cause accelerated capacity loss due to inducing voltage depression and would require you to periodically discharge the battery via an external means to recover lost capacity.

The mpg benefit would likely be very hard to measure given that you're adding very little stored energy.

Grid charging is very beneficial as a preventative maintenance tool, but this is typically done on a once per 90 days time frame.

Calcs:

HV battery:
6.5Ah * 201.6V = 1.31kWh
40% usable = 0.52kWh

12V battery:
45Ah * 12V = 0.54kWh

evric 03-07-2018 03:41 PM

[QUOTE=S Keith;562959]Great way to cause cycle wear with no benefit. Usable capacity of the Prius NiMH pack is almost identical to the total capacity of the 12V, so conceptually, you're trying to gain some benefit by adding additional energy equivalent to the capacity of your 12V battery.

The good thing is that your battery will probably be very balanced most of the time.

The bad thing is that your battery will sustain accelerated cycle wear due to you forcing the battery to 100% SoC. This increases the depth of discharge and adds battery cycles where there otherwise wouldn't be any. This generally equates to reduced battery life.
............

Hi S Keith,
You are replying to someone elses passing comment/reply on this thread.

What happens with the Plug-in Supply(PIS) system is that it actually reduces the number of cycles on the main pack. The PIS system keeps the main pack at around 62% SoC, which is the optimum for cell life (set by Toyota). This is just one of the many smarts of the PIS system (unfortunately - no longer available - see notice below).
Eric

evric 03-24-2018 09:46 AM

The economy figures for my last two petrol fillups in the PIS Plug-in Prius:
2.8L/100km 84MPG(US) 101MPG (IMP)
2.6L/100km 91MPG US) 109MPG (IMP)

Each one was after driving at total of around 1400Km over many days with charging each night

Keep in mind this is with my wife driving the car most of the time and doing lots of hill work and highway driving.

evric 03-24-2018 09:51 AM

Notice: Plug-In Supply in California are no longer supplying kits for making your Prius a plug-in!
Their website now has no mention of the kits, not even a notice to say what happened to them.
I contacted Robb and asked about it and he simply said:

"Hi Eric,

Yes I have shut down that business.

Regards
Robb"


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