More Pics Courtesy Andy Marsh

More imagery of the formidable Citroen DSev!

Courtesy
Andy Marsh
evmotorcycle.org

2015 Update

So..... Happy new year to all!

What's been happening since our last 01/08/14 is the rhetorical question! Well, a lot of driving and a lot of tweaking..........

Overall, the Citroen DSev (74DSEV) has been working a charm. We have covered 480kms. It has consumed about $15 worth of fuel (electricity) and is eerily silent. "Today we did a range-anxiety" test and the BMS alarm came-on at 104kms.

So at 104kms, the BMS warned me to get to a charger. What a great effort without regen. My friends claim 20% improvement with regain, so my car has a range of around 120kms once I switch on regen. VERY HAPPY INDEED. 

But there is more, yes the BMS alarm came-on early as the pack voltage was still at around 87v. A long way from my theoretical 80% equivalent to 77v. 

So what went wrong? In fact it all worked a charm; everything worked as it should have. You will notice that indeed 2 cells (30 & 25) went below this theoretical value of 2.56v per cell and (one in particular got down to 2.41 by the time I covered 1 km to get home), so the alert was sounded. Had I exclusively relied on the controller software which indeed is great but gives the aggregate voltage value, I would have destroyed those 2 cells.

Now, all I have to do is test these 2 cells and maybe 15 and 20 as well and replace a couple of individual cells. Once sorted, the range should increase by a minimum of another 15kms. 

Before I do that, I shall charge and fully discharge the pack a few times to see whether this regulates those cells. Doubt it though. 

If indeed I have to replace these cells, I'll also replace the controller which I have been wanting to do. This will give me 30%+ increase in torque and I'll also create a bit more cooling for the motor which got up to 95c on a 30 degree day. 

The EVWest chill-plate and my 50c cut/in switch to circulate coolant kept the controller below 65c. Great outcome. 

I have an EV Grin spanning ear to ear!