Hi Everyone!
I spend a fair amount of time on Endless-Sphere, but I have been lurking around here for the past few weeks, learning all I could about Vectrix. Lots of great information here thanks to guys like Mik, but special thanks to X Vectrix and and Winged whose posting trail I followed to extract some of the best insight into the ideosyncracies of the scooter, like squeezing the left brake to test for the 10/2008 software update.
After seeing deals that other folks were getting, I scored mine for $3250+tax/tags, brand new, and it is now charging in my garage. The vin is a 12xx number, so fourth month of production, a pretty old VIN that will allegedly be titled as a 2008. If Vectrix survives and honors the warrantee, maybe I can get them to fix any problems that might come up, maybe replace the 125a fuse. If not, I have built dozens of ebikes and converted a VW Bus, so I'd feel pretty comfortable replacing the pack with the 16ah-20ah a123 prisimatics I am playing with on ebikes right now.
I use CycleAnalysts on everything, so I am chomping at the bit to put the high-current model on this, if nothing else as a digital fuel gauge. Mr Mik, your concerns about current concerns on a shunt are unfounded. A 100a shunt carrying 400a would cause the problem you are worrying about, but 400a on a 400a shunt is pretty standard. I have a 400a shunt left over from my VW Bus conversion (I ended up using a bigger one) that is 1" x 1.25" x 3.5" - is there space for that in the battery compartment? Sadly though, until I see if I have a warrantee, I'm not gonna touch or modify a thing, so I'll work with the Analouge gauge.
X Vectrix and winged, I have a question for you about regeneration current. I see the GP's spec for the batteries recommends a 3a-9a charging current - .1 c to .3c. However, it seems like I read that regen was the culprit in several 125a fuse pops, so I am expecting at least a 4c charge being fed to the pack during regen, probably more now that the fuse is not the constraint. That is zapping the pack with at least 14 times the factory rating, albeit for short bursts.
Did GP approve/expect that kind of load? Did they offer any constraints around what would be acceptable usage? I have been mostly doing LiFePO4 for the past few years, but I seem to remember that Tidalforce owners who did a lot of regen to their NiMh cells lost capacity much faster than other folks. Of course, those were dry cells with a 500 cycle life and not wet cells with a 1500 cycle life like these. I have not gotten back significant regen current on my other EVs (the CA counts battery current and regen current), I find brake pads easier to replace than cells, and I expect I have the 125a fuse, so I'll steer clear of regen for right now.
Anyhow, nice to meet you all, thanks for all the info! I have to go check on my charge!
-JD
Hi Oatnet,
Congratulations on your purchase! I am sure that the bike will be perfect for your daily commute.
I also recently bought a 2007 Vectrix for a daily commute of 32km one way. I have not been able to get the range up to that which other people are reporting here but as long as it has enough range to get to work (where I can charge) it is fine for me.
The long storage really isn't good for the tyres (deformation) so I recently had them replaced under warrenty for round ones. You might want check them on your bike too.
I hope you will enjoy many trouble free unmodyfied miles!
Once you go EV, Gas is history!
Welcome to the forum!
As you probably know, I have ventured over to ES a few times, too. Much more in-depth technical know-how there, but nothing much specifically about the Vectrix.
I understand electrical stuff much better now, I have written literally thousands of posts here and they are of wildly varying quality! That is the beauty of the net, you need to switch on your brain all the time, never know what BS you get served!
But I don't think I ever said that I was certain about the shunt approach causing a problem, just that I was worried about it because I lack understanding about it. Must have been when I hacked into the motor controller hall sensors to get the current reading from there instead.
Now, if I really wanted to know, I'd simply use the CANbus signals. The CANBUS reports all sorts of things (like current draw, voltage, temperatures, speed etc etc etc a few times a second or so. I spent days figuring out what means what in the canbus signals, you can find the details in the Collaborative Handbook under Canbus or something like it.
Someone with a bit of programming know-how could certainly whip up a device to turn the signals I decrypted into something more user friendly, like an LCD display on the dash showing the interesting data parts as volts and amps and degree Celsius.
Space is at an absolute premium in the battery compartment. There is only one way to be sure if your shunt will fit: Open her up and have a fiddle! I think you can fit it in somehow, but make sure you spend some time understanding the air flow patterns through the battery before plonking anything into places where it will cause trouble.
This information may be used entirely at your own risk.
There is always a way if there is no other way!
Burgendy, Burgandy, Burgundy, NICE SCOOT AT A BARGAIN PRICE NO MATTER HOW YOU MISSPELL IT!