new member 2007 Miles ZX40S

[cbaker]

I’m convinced that peering intently at these charger meters and drumming my fingers on the top of the vehicle is helping to speed this process up. The numbers are coming up!

[rmay635703]

Originally Posted by cbaker

I’m convinced that peering intently at these charger meters and drumming my fingers on the top of the vehicle is helping to speed this process up. The numbers are coming up!

Sadly there is no rushing desulphation/separator separation. The only thing that would help is if you focus only on the 2 worst batteries then use the car short distances once the 2 baddies are up to snuff. Or if you have access to more than (1) 12v car battery charger, beg a neighbor to borrow one for about a week.

Take care because those batteries are easy to get inbalanced (as you have seen 1st hand).

This means you probably do not want to fully charge using the onboard charger for at least a month because it will overcharge the snot out of your good batteries in an inbalaced string and AGMs you don't want to do that.

What I have done to get around that (and now that I have good batteries), is I monitor how far I drive and how much charging is needed for a given driving distance, I then either monitor voltage on each battery and kill the charger by unplugging so none go above about 15v (or now 7.2v for gel) or I set a wind up timer that kills it after a specific amount of time.

Generally my car requires 75ahr for every 25 FLAT miles traveled (with few stops) depending on my tire pressure and how far I coast before stopping, you know your charge rate. In your case it should be about 60ahr per 25 miles (an ammeter can tell you how much juice it takes) You take the number of amp hours used and multiply by about 1.5 then divide by the charge rate of your charger to get approx time on your big charger (give or take).

Good Luck
Ryan

[cbaker]

You are a genius, and you've probably saved me a million dollars.
Thanks again

[rmay635703]

Originally Posted by cbaker

You are a genius, and you've probably saved me a million dollars.
Thanks again

Lol, I hope I am right on the 2nd account. If my father would have done what I have instructed you to do we may still have the original batteries on board our 05 miles, just remember you don't know what the previous place did to the batteries and they might just all of a sudden pop and fail on you if they've been damaged too much.

My fathers microwave seems to run well off the remaining (2) "Miles" batteries we have in his antique motorhome. (which I added a little water to when I noticed them having troubles)

Good Luck
Ryan

[cbaker]

has anyone ever replaced this motor with an advanced 203-06-4001 8 inch motor? If so, would the one with the speed sensor wire into the rpm guage?

[rmay635703]

Originally Posted by cbaker

has anyone ever replaced this motor with an advanced 203-06-4001 8 inch motor? If so, would the one with the speed sensor wire into the rpm guage?

If they have they aren't talking, best to talk to the former zenn/miles dealer in Ohio.

I do know D&D makes a motor.

Thing is there really isn't any gain/point to AC on a miles vehicle, not from a cost/gains standpoint anyway.

A xmsn from a Daihatsu charade is a much more satisfying upgrade if you can find one.

Cheers
Ryan

[cbaker]

I checked with D&D and the motor they recommended seemed to be about the same as what I have now. They recommended the advanced for more power and rpm. Funny thing is how little info is available to accurately find specs. I'm not used to a manufacturer not having a support page with links to pdf's on the products they sell. Plus the fact that this vehicle has nothing on it to even verify the model. I did find a vin # stamped to the frame behind the motor comparment. However Miles says the details are not visible from that. I'll get back on some reasearch this week.
Thanks

[rmay635703]

Originally Posted by cbaker

Funny thing is how little info is available to accurately find specs. I'm not used to a manufacturer not having a support page with links to pdf's on the products they sell. Plus the fact that this vehicle has nothing on it to even verify the model. I did find a vin # stamped to the frame behind the motor comparment. However Miles says the details are not visible from that. I'll get back on some reasearch this week.
Thanks

I agree, I have been irritated with D&D and others by their desire to hide motor specs...

And actually motor power curves for EVs are almost as impossible to get as BSFC charts for gasoline engines, its some type of closely guarded secret you need big pockets to see. Never could understand it either though.

Miles is useless, they don't even know who made the motor or charger, I tried when I first got the miles to get the company names who made the components and Miles said they don't have any information.

As a result of their incompetitence I can't fix the onboard voltmeter (in the dash), I can't program the programmable chinese charger for silicate gel battery profile I have and I couldn't order brushes and springs for the motor and had to have them fabricated

Heck I can't even get a title. luckily I live in Wisconsin and can get plates under a provision in the law but now if I ever wanted to sell

Quite irritating I agree, only choice is to work around the problem, in any event.

Antidotally your big motor should be good to about 5000rpm, real world there are folks who have run much more but I have also seen my fair share of reports of my Miles goes 65mph and then a little later they need a motor.

The big motor should not have much issue with 96v, it will have LOTS of issues past 5000rpm, some will do more others won't. The big motor is very durable unlike my little 6.8" bugger which is strong but overheats.

Field reduction will get you to about 35mph and its easy, 96v will also but there is more cost involved and problems with the 72v dash working correctly.

The odd part is my small motor can actually spin faster meaning I can drive up to 46mph max but run the risk of overheating, because I have kept the powerfull 275amp controller I can throw 60v and field reduction for 45mph and the motor does not appear to overheat in the duration I drive, but it takes a mile or two to get up to full speed.

If you plan on making your miles go fast remember your range will suck and stuff won't be as reliable. I would strongly recommend a $200 transmission if you want to move faster or if you talk to the guy in Ohio you can buy an OR70 transmission which has the gears but no external way of shifting then you can go faster but can't shift.

Cheers
Ryan

[cbaker]

35-40 mph is plenty for my driving needs. Slowing down to 15 mph going up a hill is a hindrance to the normal flow of traffic. It would be great if it went 80, but I don't really need that to get to work and back. I can charge here at work if need be, but in the summer it's hot and outside in the sun, so I would rather not risk it. I was hoping to shoot for a 25 mile round trip on one charge during the warm months, and if that drops in half when it gets colder, then charge while I'm at work. It's all new to me, but I would like to embrace this venture with a positive attitude. I'll just have to learn as I go and maybe post my success or failure and hope I save someone else some trouble.
Thanks, and I stand by my "you're a genius" observation the more I google.

[rmay635703]

Originally Posted by cbaker

35-40 mph is plenty for my driving needs. Slowing down to 15 mph going up a hill is a hindrance to the normal flow of traffic.

Sadly its going to slow down going up hills, I just live with it and usually can hit the hills at full speed so I don't slow down as much.

I also have a slow moving vehicle sign and stay to the far right whenever possible.