Jump to content

RoadTripper2084

Members
  • Posts

    218
  • Joined

  • Last visited

  • Days Won

    2

Everything posted by RoadTripper2084

  1. So that's the inner dually valve stem poking out of the outer dually wheel, correct? So easy to access.
  2. Fantastic! I love the sleek modern look that provides, and no sharp corners to slam your shins into. 🙂
  3. I will say that I've found 3/4 KIA dealers I've had the displeasure of dealing with to be simply awful. They will quote you outrageous prices for work on these 1st gen cars, they clearly don't want to do the work. I would never buy another KIA for this reason. Having said that, you can purchase a new battery pack for this car now for $12,348.63 USD - Kia Part Store . You can also purchase a refurbished used battery pack (like the one I have) for far less $1595USD. But then if you pay KIA to install it you'll get soaked for sure. I've taken to using local shops for my stuff if it's off warranty, much easier to deal with (or doing it myself). It's just nuts and bolts and far simpler and easier than working on a DP. 😉 Also, careful what the media chooses to elevate as a story, they are always looking for the outrageous vs the boring and typical situations.
  4. Can you post a picture of what the inside dually stem looks like when mounted as well? I find this entire subject of tire stem extenders, etc. to be very confusing, for some reason. More pictures and less words always helps. 🙂
  5. Nothing. It was covered under warranty. Also it wasn't a brand-new battery pack, but rather a reconditioned one, where they test each cell and then replace the bad ones and balance the pack, etc.
  6. Wouldn't it make more sense to go to a 48v system then? Aren't there far more options in terms of batteries and other components for 48v than 24v?
  7. That is interesting, I remember when you posted about that previously. With my rig, I have not seen that issue, but I am using the older Heart Interface 2000 converter with a Renogy 60A DC-DC charger. One time I checked my BMS app and I was charging the battery at a full 160A using both the converter and DC-DC charger. I would have assumed that the converter might cut out when it detected the higher voltage on the line put out by the DC-DC, and indeed, it probably does eventually. So this issue might be specific to a particular setup. In any case, easy enough to manage by turning off the converter charger when underway if necessary (or the DC-DC if your has a way to do that easily).
  8. AZ Expert just posted a timely video showing how he did his conversion on his 2000? Beaver, while keeping his OEM Magnun inverter. Note that people in the comments have noted issues with the reliability of the Lithium Battery Isolation Manager he uses causes their house and chassis batteries to become fully drained, so I would recommend going the DC-DC charger route instead. https://youtu.be/-3sHpgQK2R4
  9. As an off-topic counter-point, I bought a heavily abused 2016 KIA Soul EV+ from a Copart (wrecker) auction in 2019 for $8900 Cdn. I had no idea what the actual mileage was, but it had been used as a taxi in Montreal and had a missing side window and a dented passenger door. lol. I knew the EV system warranty was good for 10 years or 170,000 KMs, so I took the chance that it would be less mileage than that (and it was, barely). Long story short, I had it shipped on a truck across the country to Alberta and when I went to pick it up from the lot it wouldn't "start". Basically nothing worked. A few minutes searching through the fuse box showed some missing fuses and a very important relay. Got those, and boom, car ran fine! Oh, and the window was just stuck in the down position, was able to pull it up a few inches and it works fine. 😎 After 2 days of intensive cleaning/shampooing/detailing it became my daily driver. Back when I was commuting to the office everyday I calculated it cost me 5X less to pay for the electricity at home to charge it each night vs gas in my previous vehicle (manual transmission RAV4). It has a max range of about 130km (90 miles) in the summer and maybe 90 km (60 miles) in the worst case winter conditions. Which is still enough for all but the longest trips I would take just running around town. I don't use it for roadtrips. Range-anxiety?! I like to call it "range anticipation!" 😉 In 2020 I had the battery replaced under factory warranty due to degradation, these 1st gen KIA EVs had some issues in that dept. The new stuff is far more advanced in terms of not just battery chemistry but also cooling/heating systems, charging logic, etc. Car is so quiet I can hear the brake callipers snapping shut when stopping at lights, and I can pull away from just about anything when the light turns green - love it!
  10. My rig is an older model (97) and is quite different in terms of where and how the two battery circuits are connected. I didn't have a BiRD board, so my house batteries were connected to both: the Big Boy solenoid which only engaged when the "Boost" button was pressed on the dash to provide temporary connection between the two circuits. the oem battery isolator, which as far as I understood it would connect the circuits when the onboard charger was charging, but not certain of its actual implementation (it was basically a couple of large diodes, I believe). I believe with your system the BiRD board decides when to connect the house circuit to the chassis and then uses the Big Boy solenoid to actually make the connection. Though I am certainly not sure about this. In any case, your thinking above sounds logical to me, disabling the BiRD, or perhaps even just the Big Boy solenoid, by disconnecting the control wire(s) should be sufficient (and easily undone). Then installing the DC-DC charger between the two battery circuits directly. If you have any rooftop solar panels you'll also want to confirm how they are connected. On mine if I remember correctly the panel/charger was wired to both circuits originally, I believe, but I moved it to solely charge the chassis batteries. You will want to confirm this configuration by checking the relevant wiring diagrams for you coach, and then once you have disabled the BiRD/Big Boy solenoid via verifying that you see no voltage spike on the chassis batteries when the house batteries are being charged via your converter (when plugged in to shore power or via the generator running). You can do this with your existing house batteries in place, before you swap them out. The voltage of the chassis batteries should not change when charging the house batteries via the converter. Similarly, before installing the DC-DC charger, but with the BiRD/Big Boy disabled, when driving you should see the voltage spike on the chassis batteries due to being charged by the alternator, but no change on the house batteries which should now be completely disconnected from the chassis circuit.
  11. Here's a write-up I did when I converted Blue Thunder to a single 280Ah LiFePO4 battery you might find of interest (on that other forum): Setup Overview Removed the lead-acid 8D house batteries and installed a new self-assembled 280Ah LiFePO4 battery, with 200A Bluetooth-enabled BMS next to the converter/inverter in the service bay (indoors, heated). Disconnected the house circuit completely from the chassis batteries. This involved removing the oem battery isolator, chassis battery maintainer, and the "big boy" boost solenoid (used to boost the chassis battery from the house battery) from the rear engine bay electrical panel. Kept the oem Freedom Model 20 Inverter/Converter (2000w, 100A 3-stage battery charger, no Lithium charge profile), set it to use its lowest voltage gel battery charge profile (14.1v absorption, 13.8v float, no equalization). Installed a 60A Renogy DC-DC charger in the rear electrical panel, between the chassis batteries and the house battery circuits (200A alternator connected to the chassis batteries). Rewired the oem 80w solar panel to charge the chassis batteries, instead of the house batteries (keeps the chassis batteries charged will parked). Pros The battery output is amazingly stable, no flickering or dimming of lights when high loads are turned on or off, unlike with the lead acid batteries. The battery output amperage is amazing. We can run our microwave or convection oven for 30mins to bake pizzas for dinner without issue. The only thing we don't run off the battery are the rooftop A/C units, and the electric hot water heat (use propane instead). The battery charges quickly, easily recharging during a travel day off the 60A DC-DC charger, and even faster (100A) when plugged in or running the generator. One time when travelling we had the generator running to operate the A/Cs and were getting a combined 160A charging from both the DC-DC and converter. In normal to warm weather the battery remains at optimal usage temps. generally between 20c and 30c in the service bay, even when it is cooler outside. The bluetooth BMS is a must-have for this simple configuration. With it I can monitor charge/discharge cycles/values, set warning notifications for certain events (cell over/under-charge cutoff, high/low temp cutoff, etc.). I am also able to manually disable charging using the app. if I want the battery to remain at say 70% charge because the coach will be parked for a week or two until the next use. I can also completely disable the battery input/output for storage. Without the BMS, I'd need to add a smart shunt, at the least. Using the tiny 80A (when it was new, 25 years ago!) solar panel to charge the chassis battery is working really nicely, at least in the peak summer months. I can park the rig, leave the chassis battery disconnect connected, and not worry about the chassis battery dying (of course, I can't leave the headlights on or anything with load). With the house battery installed next to the converter in the service bay I am able to repurpose it's tray in the semi-sheltered battery compartment which I now use for storing extra fluids (oil, anti-freeze, etc.) and filters. Cons / Issues When I first configured the Freedom 20 converter/inverter I used a lightly higher voltage charge profile; 14.4v absorption, 13.8v float. This caused a couple of high-temp shutoff events on the BMS itself, reaching 80.6c. It also had a cell high voltage cutoff event. I think the BMS could use improved airflow over its cooler for sure. Lowering the inverter charge voltage profile to 14.1v absorption, 13.8v float has eliminated both of those issued thus far. The way the Freedom 20 converter works, when plugged in to shore or generator power, it actually doesn't provide 12v DC power other than via the battery charger. So if I manually turn off the charger, all 12v DC power is supplied from the battery alone. If I charge the battery and leave the charger on, it reduces the 12v DC output from the battery to 0 amps while it is charging, but eventually it lowers or stops charging current enough that the battery is once again providing the bulk of the 12v DC power. This isn't a deal-breaker, but it does mean I need to keep at least a half-open eye on my battery charge level while plugged in for multiple days in a row and eventually initiate the charger to recharge it. I suppose the converter would automatically enter a new charge cycle when the battery voltage got low enough, but I haven't witnessed this occurring yet so am not certain that it would do so before the BMS low-voltage cutoff would kick in. Having no boost solenoid means that I have no way to charge the chassis battery from the house battery. The solar panel negates this requirement, at least so far in the summer months. If I ever do flatten the chassis battery by leaving the headlights on or something, I can use jumper cables to provide a boost charge to the chassis to try to recover them before attempting to start as a temporary measure. Or get a boost from another vehicle/toad vehicle. Overall I'm very pleased with my results thus far. The system is probably slightly more labour intensive in terms of my needing to manage the battery via the BMS app regularily than a complete new install with smart shunts, proper modern LiFePO4 charger, etc. would be (or maybe those would be worse, actually?), but I don't mind it at all and I love the attributes of the LiFeP04 battery (100% charge/discharge, zero physical maintenance, fast charge/discharge, stable output even under load, etc. etc.)
  12. I also was able to secure my desired reservations in Banff yesterday morning, after waiting for 1hr 13 mins for my turn. The wait time estimate grew as time went on as I presume the number of available sites decreased and each person took longer on their turn to find sites that worked for them (or not). I was thinking that maybe we'd be out of luck this year, but was pleasantly surprised. At one point they paused the queue, not sure if the system crashed or they were just giving it some breathing room. Considering the large problem they are trying to solve I think it worked out okay and is a relatively fair process.
  13. I had this happen to me after a rest stop last summer. Looked online and was quickly reminded that the transmission will lockout "D" if the idle is too fast (pretty sure it displayed a code to that effect as well). My mistake, was fast idling and forgot about it.
  14. Not sure how your steering wheel works but on my rig I find it's far easier/more comfortable to control in strong crosswinds, for example, if the wheel is close to horizontal and my hands are resting at 10 and 2 o clock, vs nearly vertical as in your video. In decent conditions I usually drive with my left hand only, but I have the TRW steering box and almost no slack in the wheel.
  15. Sorry, I overstated my "isolation" lol. The grounds are of course common to the frame. My Renogy is made for common ground system between the two battery banks.
  16. I use the Renogy 60A DC-DC and it's worked great the last two seasons. I have my house and chassis battery circuits isolated in my coach, so the DC-DC is the only bridge between the two (takes charge from chassis and uses it to charge house while driving).
  17. Absolutely the stuff of nightmares. So glad that you came out of it without apparent serious injuries. Absolutely get legal council on this, you could have debilitating issues months down the line, and in any case, this guy could have killed you. Unbelievable that he didn't come to check on the situation, I hope the cops drug tested him, sounds like he something to hide.
  18. I also bought the kit to convert air if required someday, but honestly I think I would put a lot of effort into fixing the King Control system first. Seems like a relatively straightforward setup. Thanks for sharing this, the more detailed information on this system works and fails that we can share the better.
  19. I've got some very high quality Michellins on my rig that I am hoping to run 9 years. Pressures / temps monitored via TPMS, tires are always covered when stored, and rig rests on the jack stands during prolonged winter storage. Will be keeping a close eye one them for sure for any signs of deviance from previous behaviour, cracking, etc.
  20. Can you post a couple pics of your fuel filters (one in the rear of the engine, driver's side, one along the top/middle passenger side? My '97 has the following:
  21. Nice pictures! We were there at the end of May this year and things were still a bit Spring-like, snow on the ground at the high passes, etc. It's a bit shocking to see that Fall is now in full swing there. Where did the time go? 🙂
  22. I wouldn't recommend that route, could lead to major issues down the road, etc. But then, I think mufflers are good idea too. 😉
  23. But is the DD15 reliable? Or does it share the same poor reliability record that most of the other 1st gen emissions diesels do?
×
×
  • Create New...