Go Back   EcoModder Forum > EcoModding > General Efficiency Discussion
Register Now
 Register Now
 

Reply  Post New Thread
 
Submit Tools LinkBack Thread Tools
Old 03-14-2016, 12:49 PM   #1 (permalink)
EcoModding Lurker
 
He-man's Avatar
 
Join Date: Mar 2016
Location: Washington
Posts: 55

Rocket - '99 Chevrolet Corvette
90 day: 31.51 mpg (US)

Pooter - '01 Honda Insight
90 day: 66.9 mpg (US)
Thanks: 13
Thanked 14 Times in 11 Posts
2001 Honda Insight IMA Battery Questions

Hello!!!!

I just picked up a Honda insight after reading the forums here for a good two years. I was previously driving a C5 Corvette as my daily and averaging around 25-30 mpg actually which is not that bad for a super car. Going from a vette to an insight is like riding a turtle....

The battery on this insight was apparently replaced at 140k miles and it now is completely dead at 177k miles, i only spent 1000 dollars on the vehicle because of this

Im going to be buying a Bumblebee battery replacement for the vehicle and i sure hope that will last a bit longer since it is advertised at 30% longer life than OEM.

My question is why do these batteries die so fast and how can i make them last longer?

Thanks!

  Reply With Quote
Alt Today
Popular topics

Other popular topics in this forum...

   
Old 03-14-2016, 12:54 PM   #2 (permalink)
Administrator
 
Daox's Avatar
 
Join Date: Dec 2007
Location: Germantown, WI
Posts: 11,203

CM400E - '81 Honda CM400E
90 day: 51.49 mpg (US)

Daox's Grey Prius - '04 Toyota Prius
Team Toyota
90 day: 49.53 mpg (US)

Daox's Insight - '00 Honda Insight
90 day: 64.33 mpg (US)

Swarthy - '14 Mitsubishi Mirage DE
Mitsubishi
90 day: 56.69 mpg (US)

Daox's Volt - '13 Chevrolet Volt
Thanks: 2,501
Thanked 2,585 Times in 1,553 Posts
Welcome to the site He-man.

I admit I did chuckle when I heard the previous vs current car.

I'll let people better versed in the Honda hybrid packs answer your question.
__________________
Current project: A better alternator delete
  Reply With Quote
The Following User Says Thank You to Daox For This Useful Post:
He-man (03-14-2016)
Old 03-14-2016, 12:57 PM   #3 (permalink)
Master EcoModder
 
Ecky's Avatar
 
Join Date: Dec 2011
Location: New Zealand
Posts: 5,005

ND Miata - '15 Mazda MX-5 Special Package
90 day: 42.54 mpg (US)
Thanks: 2,866
Thanked 2,501 Times in 1,547 Posts
That battery died prematurely. In the south, you can probably expect 10 years, and in the north, perhaps 15+ years out of an IMA battery. Heat exposure, and to a lesser degree, age, are what kill these batteries, not miles.

There are different degrees of dead, too. Do you get any assist at all? Does it start using the noisy backup starter, or do you not hear a starter when you turn the key (indicating it's using the IMA)?

If it's not too far gone, you can possibly resurrect it and get a few months to a few years out of it by buying/building a grid charger. I assembled one for myself for ~$30.

When you do get a new battery, I'd suggest grid charging it 2-4x per year to keep the cells in balance (don't do it more frequently as you can lower its life expectancy by frequently overcharging), and avoiding baking it.
  Reply With Quote
Old 03-14-2016, 12:59 PM   #4 (permalink)
EcoModding Lurker
 
He-man's Avatar
 
Join Date: Mar 2016
Location: Washington
Posts: 55

Rocket - '99 Chevrolet Corvette
90 day: 31.51 mpg (US)

Pooter - '01 Honda Insight
90 day: 66.9 mpg (US)
Thanks: 13
Thanked 14 Times in 11 Posts
Quote:
Originally Posted by Daox View Post
Welcome to the site He-man.

I admit I did chuckle when I heard the previous vs current car.

I'll let people better versed in the Honda hybrid packs answer your question.
I still have the Vette but, being environmentally conscious, i wanted something better on fuel. When i was test driving the car it was such a strange experience and i couldn't stop laughing it was so slow and dinky. But i love the car and even with just the gas engine i still got around 80 on the drive home on the freeway going 50-55.
  Reply With Quote
Old 03-14-2016, 01:01 PM   #5 (permalink)
EcoModding Lurker
 
He-man's Avatar
 
Join Date: Mar 2016
Location: Washington
Posts: 55

Rocket - '99 Chevrolet Corvette
90 day: 31.51 mpg (US)

Pooter - '01 Honda Insight
90 day: 66.9 mpg (US)
Thanks: 13
Thanked 14 Times in 11 Posts
Quote:
Originally Posted by Ecky View Post
That battery died prematurely. In the south, you can probably expect 10 years, and in the north, perhaps 15+ years out of an IMA battery. Heat exposure, and to a lesser degree, age, are what kill these batteries, not miles.

There are different degrees of dead, too. Do you get any assist at all? Does it start using the noisy backup starter, or do you not hear a starter when you turn the key (indicating it's using the IMA)?

If it's not too far gone, you can possibly resurrect it and get a few months to a few years out of it by buying/building a grid charger. I assembled one for myself for ~$30.

When you do get a new battery, I'd suggest grid charging it 2-4x per year to keep the cells in balance (don't do it more frequently as you can lower its life expectancy by frequently overcharging), and avoiding baking it.
I have a couple trickle chargers, will those work? Or do i need to buy one from eBay or something?
  Reply With Quote
Old 03-14-2016, 01:04 PM   #6 (permalink)
EcoModding Lurker
 
He-man's Avatar
 
Join Date: Mar 2016
Location: Washington
Posts: 55

Rocket - '99 Chevrolet Corvette
90 day: 31.51 mpg (US)

Pooter - '01 Honda Insight
90 day: 66.9 mpg (US)
Thanks: 13
Thanked 14 Times in 11 Posts
Quote:
Originally Posted by Ecky View Post
That battery died prematurely. In the south, you can probably expect 10 years, and in the north, perhaps 15+ years out of an IMA battery. Heat exposure, and to a lesser degree, age, are what kill these batteries, not miles.

There are different degrees of dead, too. Do you get any assist at all? Does it start using the noisy backup starter, or do you not hear a starter when you turn the key (indicating it's using the IMA)?

If it's not too far gone, you can possibly resurrect it and get a few months to a few years out of it by buying/building a grid charger. I assembled one for myself for ~$30.

When you do get a new battery, I'd suggest grid charging it 2-4x per year to keep the cells in balance (don't do it more frequently as you can lower its life expectancy by frequently overcharging), and avoiding baking it.
Can you give me a parts list for the 30 dollar grid charger?
  Reply With Quote
Old 03-14-2016, 01:04 PM   #7 (permalink)
Master EcoModder
 
cowmeat's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jan 2014
Location: South Carolina
Posts: 1,658

Princess Carriage - '20 Ford Explorer Limited

Silver - '22 Ford Maverick Hybrid XLT w/tow pkg
Maverick Hybrids
90 day: 41.3 mpg (US)
Thanks: 128
Thanked 763 Times in 460 Posts
Quote:
I still have the Vette but, being environmentally conscious, i wanted something better on fuel.
That's kinda funny, too!
__________________

  Reply With Quote
Old 03-14-2016, 01:09 PM   #8 (permalink)
EcoModding Lurker
 
He-man's Avatar
 
Join Date: Mar 2016
Location: Washington
Posts: 55

Rocket - '99 Chevrolet Corvette
90 day: 31.51 mpg (US)

Pooter - '01 Honda Insight
90 day: 66.9 mpg (US)
Thanks: 13
Thanked 14 Times in 11 Posts
Quote:
Originally Posted by cowmeat View Post
That's kinda funny, too!
Hey, I'm a funny guy
  Reply With Quote
Old 03-14-2016, 01:18 PM   #9 (permalink)
Master EcoModder
 
Ecky's Avatar
 
Join Date: Dec 2011
Location: New Zealand
Posts: 5,005

ND Miata - '15 Mazda MX-5 Special Package
90 day: 42.54 mpg (US)
Thanks: 2,866
Thanked 2,501 Times in 1,547 Posts
You can find the details in the build thread linked in my signature. Start on page 8:

http://ecomodder.com/forum/showthrea...d-29288-8.html

You'll be building a trickle charger, but it needs to be able to provide at least 180v DC @ 350ma or less, and you'll also want to power the 12v cooling fan for the battery while you're doing this.

The units available on eBay sometimes have the ability to discharge your battery and then charge it to full, which gives a slightly more thorough balance, but you can do that yourself with an incandescent lightbulb, and I don't think it's helpful or even good for a battery that isn't on its last legs.
  Reply With Quote
Old 03-14-2016, 03:41 PM   #10 (permalink)
EcoModding Lurker
 
He-man's Avatar
 
Join Date: Mar 2016
Location: Washington
Posts: 55

Rocket - '99 Chevrolet Corvette
90 day: 31.51 mpg (US)

Pooter - '01 Honda Insight
90 day: 66.9 mpg (US)
Thanks: 13
Thanked 14 Times in 11 Posts
Quote:
Originally Posted by Ecky View Post
You can find the details in the build thread linked in my signature. Start on page 8:

http://ecomodder.com/forum/showthrea...d-29288-8.html

You'll be building a trickle charger, but it needs to be able to provide at least 180v DC @ 350ma or less, and you'll also want to power the 12v cooling fan for the battery while you're doing this.

The units available on eBay sometimes have the ability to discharge your battery and then charge it to full, which gives a slightly more thorough balance, but you can do that yourself with an incandescent lightbulb, and I don't think it's helpful or even good for a battery that isn't on its last legs.
Is there anywhere that i can buy the cells for the battery separate from buying a whole battery? If i test all the cells and find a few that are bad where can i buy new cells? Thanks!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

  Reply With Quote
Reply  Post New Thread


Thread Tools




Powered by vBulletin® Version 3.8.11
Copyright ©2000 - 2024, vBulletin Solutions Inc.
Content Relevant URLs by vBSEO 3.5.2
All content copyright EcoModder.com