Info on BMW hybrid battery packs?

[andybpowell]

There are enough people out there using these modules and lots of speculation on what they are capable of but little real world data so what sort of peak and continuous current are people drawing on them reliably and what cell voltage limits are you using and what temps are you seeing ?
I have 2kwh 8s bmw x5 modules 68ah
I'm running at
3.2v min
4.1 max
200A continuous
275 peak
with no reliability or temperature issues the highest temp I've seen was 32 deg c today and it's it's 30 deg outside anyway
mine are all fixed to 8mm ally plate

[andybpowell]

Anyone ?

[Gregski]

Anyone ?

not sure if you follow my [DRIVING]1971 GMCe Lexus GS450H BMW 530e Tesla Model S powered Electruck [FINISHED] build thread but I started doing real road tests and have been reporting the results, I plan on just following the OEM specs

4.1v max is 393 volts some call this 90% charge
3.1v min is practical use that equates to 300 volts, after that the truck becomes a slug
2.8v min I think this is in theory only

RANGE: 34.9 miles

TOP SPEED: 88.9 MPH

[andybpowell]

not sure if you follow my [DRIVING]1971 GMCe Lexus GS450H BMW 530e Tesla Model S powered Electruck [FINISHED] build thread but I started doing real road tests and have been reporting the results, I plan on just following the OEM specs

4.1v max is 393 volts some call this 90% charge
3.1v min is practical use that equates to 300 volts, after that the truck becomes a slug
2.8v min I think this is in theory only

I can't get Damien's S-box code to display the current draw properly while I drive, still working on it

G30 Battery Specs.jpg

RANGE: 34.9 miles

IMG_E7736.JPG


TOP SPEED: 82.7 MPH

IMG_E7822.JPG

Yes I do follow, look forward to you getting some data on current draw especially as I'm considering ditching my leaf and going over to 450h or 300h
so I can have more room for batteries
Also thanks for the reply thought I'd Pis**D in someones beer for a while there with the underwealming response

[Gregski]

Yes I do follow, look forward to you getting some data on current draw especially as I'm considering ditching my leaf and going over to 450h or 300h
so I can have more room for batteries
Also thanks for the reply thought I'd Pis**D in someones beer for a while there with the underwealming response

word on the street is the 300h don't need no external oil pump so I would vote for that, I can't see where you hail from and I think the 300h is only available in Europe so not a choice for us United Statesians

[andybpowell]

word on the street is the 300h don't need no external oil pump so I would vote for that, I can't see where you hail from and I think the 300h is only available in Europe so not a choice for us United Statesians

yes the thing that makes me want to go 300h as opposed to the 450h is the weight and the oil pump but no one seems to have any info on the driveability of the 300h and I can't keep throwing money around
also updated my location

[bobby_come_lately]

yes the thing that makes me want to go 300h as opposed to the 450h is the weight and the oil pump but no one seems to have any info on the driveability of the 300h and I can't keep throwing money around
also updated my location

You might be waiting a while (until I have a garage again), but I have the 300h and inverter ready to go, along with all the other parts for another conversion. Like you though, be very happy for someone else to get there first and talk about their experience!

[andybpowell]

You might be waiting a while (until I have a garage again), but I have the 300h and inverter ready to go, along with all the other parts for another conversion. Like you though, be very happy for someone else to get there first and talk about their experience!

too late already bought everything

[bobby_come_lately]

Ha! You will be well ahead of me.

Having major BMS issues with these packs at the moment. Can get my old Teensy to talk to them but not the ESP32 Jamie and co have been working on. Will get there but frustrating.

[andybpowell]

Ha! You will be well ahead of me.

Having major BMS issues with these packs at the moment. Can get my old Teensy to talk to them but not the ESP32 Jamie and co have been working on. Will get there but frustrating.

I have to say on paper I like the esp32 but I've had nothing but grief with them but that's probably just me being used to teensy and arduino though

[bobby_come_lately]

Realise this is off topic but aargh, Teensy. So flippin' fragile!

[andybpowell]

Realise this is off topic but aargh, Teensy. So flippin' fragile!

100% agree I've killed 2 teensy 4's and a 3.2

[andybpowell]

Realise this is off topic but aargh, Teensy. So flippin' fragile!

A 3.2 for BMS I assume ? also known as hens teeth
if you're desperate I can help you out

[Gregski]

Realise this is off topic but aargh, Teensy. So flippin' fragile!

I take it this must be true for our EV Ambassador to use this type of harsh language !!!

[bobby_come_lately]

Ha! I'm all about the ESP32s now. Cheap and (so far) reasonably robust. Even when you put 12V on the 3v3 line...

Back on batteries, I have probably killed one of my modules in my second pack. Not sure how, but some cells down at 1.49v. Can't remember if this is the pack I did an accidental range test on, or if these were the ones I bought after that. Will try a manual charge with a PSU like I did before and see if they recover.

[andybpowell]

Ha! I'm all about the ESP32s now. Cheap and (so far) reasonably robust. Even when you put 12V on the 3v3 line...

Back on batteries, I have probably killed one of my modules in my second pack. Not sure how, but some cells down at 1.49v. Can't remember if this is the pack I did an accidental range test on, or if these were the ones I bought after that. Will try a manual charge with a PSU like I did before and see if they recover.

Yea but maybe don't charge it near the house if it's any consolation the race to get a Z3 back on the road is on again as mines a big pile of parts again (admittedly self inflicted)

[FFMan]

Not cooling them at all for driving. Might do if I add fast charging. But I've seen very little temperature change under load (Prius Gen 3 inverter into Outlander rear motor). Unless you're going to be sucking big current, I don't think it's something you need to worry about. Save the weight!

just looking over previous posts.

Same setup as above for me and same conclusion, no cooling or heating but then i only use the phev charger on them, and the discharge rate seems to be capped by the prius inverter at present.

I did install the first pack retaining the bmw coolant plates, but when installing the second pack i skipped that as i can't see i time i'd use them.

[LeeB]

I have just got round to sorting a BMS for my PHEV pack and now find that you cant buy SImpBMS or the Teensy it runs on! I have a Teensy 4.0 and ESP32s and all sorts of hardware, but not a Teensy 3.2. What are my options for BMS on this battery pack?

[tom91]

As per post in the Simp BMS thread viewtopic.php?p=61882#p61882

Another opensource project has been started using the SimpBMS code as a base https://github.com/bookofthefuture/BMWP ... P32-master

Ofcourse there is always the option of purchasing an EVS-BMS, my latest product. https://citini.com/product/evs-battery- ... nt-system/

[Jacobsmess]

Open inverter BMS is also available now, seems very good price but not sure how it works

[bobby_come_lately]

As per post in the Simp BMS thread viewtopic.php?p=61882#p61882

Another opensource project has been started using the SimpBMS code as a base https://github.com/bookofthefuture/BMWP ... P32-master

Ofcourse there is always the option of purchasing an EVS-BMS, my latest product. https://citini.com/product/evs-battery- ... nt-system/

Very generous to call this an open source project! More like an idiot hacking around with occasional help from those more talented.

If you are not a glutton for frustration and pain, highly recommend Tom's product.

[bobby_come_lately]

See above for context (idiot hacking around), and below for evidence.

I had an issue where on start-up the BMS was only recognising one module. When I went through the debug process it would then recognise all five.

I wondered if the issue was resistance on the canbus, since there only appeared to be the 120ohm resistor in my BMS on the loop. So tried disconnecting one end of the loop and adding a 120ohm resistor across CAN H/L.

I got nothing so I put it all back the way it was. Now I get nothing out of the modules.

If I stick Savvycan just on the output of the BMS without the modules connected, I can see it doing its thing (0x80 etc). But as soon as I plug a module in, no more messages.

So questions for anyone feeling so inclined:
- Has anyone else had the issue of modules not communicating at first?
- Could I have killed my modules like this?
- If so, does anyone have any cheap for sale - just the CSCs not the whole batteries

This pack is rather knackered anyway, so might be tempted to sell it off cheap and buy another one.

[bobby_come_lately]

See above for context (idiot hacking around), and below for evidence.

I had an issue on my test/second pack where on start-up the BMS was only recognising one module. When I went through the debug process it would then recognise all five.

I wondered if the issue was resistance on the canbus, since there only appeared to be the 120ohm resistor in my BMS on the loop. So tried disconnecting one end of the loop and adding a 120ohm resistor across CAN H/L.

I got nothing so I put it all back the way it was. Now I get nothing out of the modules.

If I stick Savvycan just on the output of the BMS without the modules connected, I can see it doing its thing (0x80 etc). But as soon as I plug a module in, no more messages.

So questions for anyone feeling so inclined:
- Has anyone else had the issue of modules not communicating at first?
- Could I have killed my modules like this?
- If so, does anyone have any cheap for sale - just the CSCs not the whole batteries

This pack is rather knackered anyway, so might be tempted to sell it off cheap and buy another one.

[tom91]

If I stick Savvycan just on the output of the BMS without the modules connected, I can see it doing its thing (0x80 etc). But as soon as I plug a module in, no more messages.

If savvy can is on the bus with the modules and the BMS which ids are present? all modules broadcast a "status" regardless if they are being requested by the BMS.

There is a possibility you messed up you CAN wiring. lacking termination resistor could be an issue it does not have to be.

[bobby_come_lately]

If savvy can is on the bus with the modules and the BMS which ids are present? all modules broadcast a "status" regardless if they are being requested by the BMS.

There is a possibility you messed up you CAN wiring. lacking termination resistor could be an issue it does not have to be.

The modules are completely silent, so that's worrying.

Possible I messed up the canbus wiring but it's the original BMW loom that was working before the experiment, so I'm not sure how. I've been through it all and tested for continuity and shorts.

Failure of the 5V supply or ground would be the obvious answer but fairly confident I've ruled that out. I'm going to check again though because that's the only thing that really makes sense to me.