Any Project Lithium users in below freezing temperatures?

Ask the maker of the battery you are considering what the freezing point IS for their battery.

Anything above that temp is actually NOT harmful to the battery. Any battery.

Except that there may be a temporary loss of total capacity while it is cold.

 

Wrecit lives in Pittsburgh I think. Maybe he will chime in on his winters with his LiPo.

 

I did cold winter testing on a Nexcell prototype in the Winter of 2020-21 and 2021-22. I don't live in a very cold climate, but everything worked fine down into the low 20's even though I got high centered in the snow multiple times and put the car though hell when it was cold getting unstuck and backing up long distances to get enough speed to get up a nearby hill.

Also we've confirmed with a person on PriusChat who lives in Gunnison, CO where it can get as low as -40' F that Prius designed their battery management system to use almost no battery power and just engine power to protect the the standard OEM NiMH battery pack until it's warms up. This same protection will help protect a Nexcell pack as well.

Lastly @Plaman and I are currently doing research on how to adapt a heating system that RVs & Campers use to protect Lithium batteries so when you install your NexCell pack you will add this heating system (bag or blanket) so in super cold weather you'd use it to ensure the pack is above freezing when it's time to start driving. Our goal is to design something that is incredibly inexpensive and easy to use, so stay tuned!

And as always, if you buy a Nexcell pack and use my affiliate link I can offer you unlimited tech support and if you're ever near the PNW a discount on the installation: https://projectlithium.com/?ref=9qLPw

 

the lithium in my pip works fine down in the single digits, although i do overnight it in an unheated garage.
and toyota is selling lithium n gen 4 all over n/a. shouldn't be a problem

 

Yeah... the main reason this concern comes up is that NiMH batteries has several decades of commercial and domestic use in cold temps and regular Lithium has a couple decades, but LiFePo4 has been in large scale use for less than a decade so it still has to prove itself. Most important is that this battery chemistry by every measure is an advancement and there's no evidence it will perform in an inferior way, but we can't prove that for certain until a couple decades from now.

 

Hmm. I'd love to help But KC is a bit of a hike. Unless your coming for a football game? But depending on where in Michigan you are it's only 600 miles. Hmmmm. I might be able to work something out. I'll PM you.

 

So I have a hypothesis on NiMH Technology and humidity. When we lived in Colorado Springs both our Prii were starting to show signs of HYbrid Traction battery loss of life. Roughly 65 percent on the Dr Prius Life Expectancy test. Since moving to Kansas where there is more humidity. Both our Prii stopped going into the purple bars on the SOC and quite often they are in the green. No more only 1 or 2 red bars.....ever even when it was -8 degrees. Now obviously it is much lower, flater, and more humid where I now live. But I'm pleasantly surprised at the newer life that appears to have happened. I haven't run the Dr. Prius App Self tests since we have moved but I think the humidity has helped the chemistry in our NiMH original battery packs. Clearly NiMH does well in the cold we know this. But as far as I can see LiPo should have a great history as well. What I know about battery chemistry I can fit into a thimble..but what I do know is the R and D thus far on the LiPO made it a great choice for lots of batteries....and cars are the least of our worries. Every human older then 10 seems to have a cell phone...everybody demands more battery life....enter Lipo. I've watched the tech from the RC Helicopter appear into cellphone technology. Rapid energy loss during use......must be lightweight to fight gravity and give the longest flight time.....recharge them on a cookie sheet...... away from your house......so when they catch on fire they only burn down your barn.....the Real world. torture test in the RC World is brutal. EV Cars are slower to exchange the energy...less risk.. I think a hotter environment and temps would be worse. Anybody from Tucson who parks there Gen 2 outside care to chime in on AZ Heat? How long does the Traction battery last on a AZ Prius?

 

Is that correct? I distinctly remember reading that Toyota still supplied the NiMH modules in Gen 4s for some locations in the northern midwest, although maybe that was 2021 and they stopped in 2022, or something like that.

 

that was for the awd. they claimed they did it because awd would sell in colder areas, but that makes no sense.
more likely just trying to move out the nimh supply

 

NiMH is more profitable for Toyota than anyone else for multiple reasons... Even their Hydrogen fuel cell cars have had a NiMH in them. It's yet another shameful example of how Toyota always chooses maximizing profits with existing outdated technology rather than reading the writing on the wall regarding the industry's most viable technological advancements.

 

I also have the lithium battery for a couple years.

All is good in the high desert with temps dipping below 32F and reaching high triple digits.

This is the best HV battery out there!!

 

I'm sure this is at least a bit out of place for this thread, only hoping it's not any further off than the subject I was searching for to post about which is the new LFP blade packs with hex shaped cell structure, that I'd like to learn more about too.c
This link was in my search results of hex shaped LFP batteries
and is about a small battery manufacturer / recycler from CHE
To Make an Eco-Friendly EV Battery, Think From the Inside Out | WIRED

The only commonality is LFP, so I hope no one is too offended that it could be considered to far off topic.

 

Awesome. Take your time and go slow. Be sure to tighten bolts to the required INCH pounds….. not Foot lbs. FYI others have over torque and broken bolts. Not a good choice.

 

@westveld How did your install go? All good? Happy with the results?