First Test Drive w/ Soliton Jr Cooling System

It's 85 degrees out and I'm ready for the first drive with the new cooling system I installed.  I drove approx 4 miles to the high school up one hill then checked everything out.  The motor was warm to the touch and the controller was cool to the touch.  OK, don't expect scientific data just good old fashioned "tactile sensory data."  (That means I used my hands.)  Everything looked good, no leaks no burning smells.

I then drove over to where I start my daily commute which has a 5% grade hill and, BTW, this is where the Open Revolt and Soliton Jr (without water cooling) both started to fail.  Speed limit is 35, I'm in 3rd gear pulling 150 - 200 amps.  Oops! I'm speeding.  (EV grin begins to widen)  OK, that was easy, let's move onto the gradual grade which follows.  This is probably a 3% grade for about two miles.  And once again, I'm having to watch my speed because it's very easy to go too fast.  Wow!! This stuff works.  I continued on for another mile and then turned around and came home. Total mileage was approx 12 miles.

Once I drove in the garage, I engaged the tactile sensory device again.  The controller was barely warm.  The motor was hot, but I noticed the fan wasn't blowing as hard.  Then a heard a click noise and saw a red trouble light on my controller.  I quickly connected the computer and saw the error was the 12V was too low.  My 60 AH Lithium battery was down to 9% charge and I had started with a 100% charge.  Granted, I've been running this battery for a couple years now so the capacity should be lower.  I never did bother to balance the cells since it was set up as a 12V battery. As much as I love this cooling system, it does suck some amps.  Looks like it's time for a DC to DC converter.  The only problem is when I asked the question, "which DC to DC do you prefer?" to the EVnetics guys; the answer wasn't encouraging.  They don't like any, they hope to build one that will outperform all others but haven't gotten around to it yet.

As it stands, I either need to get a larger 12V power source or try my luck with a DC to DC converter. Of course I could always attach my battery to the DC to DC so I get the best of both worlds. Right now, with my current 12V and the cooling system on for my entire commute home (when it's 90+ degrees), it won't make it.

Motor Cooling Fan Installation

I had tried this before but because my motor was installed at the 3 o'clock position, a bottom position fan wasn't going to work.  I sent the collar and rubber mat parts back to EV Source and asked for the top mount instead.
Here's what the entire kit looks like.

They replied that the manufacturer doesn't make those anymore and with little effort you can adapt what you have to work.  The more I thought about this, the more it made sense.  When the two piece collar came back to me, I noticed that if I flip flopped the one piece and cut the mat in the middle I should be able to line everything up.  Sure enough, it worked. (the pict above shows this) I did use some Gorilla duct tape to mate the rubber mat together again after I had cut it.

To install the collar you need to remove all the motor cables.  It's a good idea to disconnect your battery pack at the Big Anderson Connector so you have 0 voltage flowing anywhere nearby, just as a precaution. Now you position the rubber mat, I then used some more of the Gorilla duct tape to tape the two ends together so it would not get in the way of installing the metal collar pieces.  The one piece with the holes gave me a little bit of problems at first but with some manipulation it finally went on. Now you have to insert the blow hole piece into the matching collar piece.  The directions included will make this pretty clear. When you bolt the two pieces together make sure you make the first two bolts (on one end) very loose, otherwise it will be hard to get the other end on.  I then used a vice grip to squeeze the ends together so I could tighten up the bolts much easier.  This will be an air tight fit when done.

Next, I needed to install the fan motor.  I chose to place the motor behind the driver side back wheel up in the area behind the turn signal.  The aerodynamics of the wheel well catches the air and shoots it up into that area but any water or dirt from the tire is blocked by the existing wall.

The K & N filter that's attached will help block out any dirt, dust, etc that might fly up there.  It's easy to remove this motor to replace the filter.  I went ahead and tested the system by hooking it directly up to a 12V battery I had sitting around.  Wow!  Does this thing blow...I can feel air coming out the other end of the motor and even the bolt holes in the back plate.  This should do the trick.

Overall this system was ideally made for a front hood area installation as most cars are front wheel drive. The fact I have a rear area motor just makes for a good challenge. : )

Finally, I'll need to install the fully pre-wired relay assembly.  That should be a snap, but I'm going to wait until tomorrow.  With luck I should be back on the road this weekend.  With my luck the weather will get cool and I won't get a good test with 100+ degree heat.

New Water Cooling Adaptors for Soliton Jr Controller

As you may recall, I installed the EV Source water cooling kit for my new Soliton Jr Controller but the adaptors they sent didn't work, they were too fat to sit next to each other. I took the advice from DIYelectric car forum and ordered some 1/8 NPT X 3/8 barb, and a couple reducers - 1/2 barb X 3/8 barb.   I did notice a small leak from the radiator.  I had neglected to use some teflon tape when screwing the hose adaptors in, (these are the weak link in the system - a cheap plastic) once I fixed that I ran the system for about 10 minutes and everything seems to be good to go! Now I just need to secure the lines in place.  My biggest concern is the system might leak and spill onto/into the motor, which could possibly kill it.  That would be very, very bad!!!

Installing the Water Cooling Kit

Even though I can't hook into the controller yet, (adaptors didn't fit, new ones on the way see more below), I decided to go ahead and start installing the kit.  Here's a few picts.

I decided to place the reservoir against the backseat area.  The pump is underneath, and the side port doesn't create a sharp bend in the tube.  I use a short garden hose and funnel to fill it up because it's tucked in underneath the body.

Here you can see the pump and the lower corner of the radiator.  The instructions say to put the pump underneath the reservoir so the pump gets primed.  Also if you need to purge the system it will make it easier.  Notice the funky white clamps?  They are easy to put on.  If you use a extended pair of pliers you can sqeeze the clamps tight.  The radiator has two fans and in and out ports. I put the radiator under the shelf so it would get cool air from underneath the car.

Next I had to rig up a relay to turn everything on.  Since I had a switch up front for the pre-charger, (which I won't need because this is built into the Soliton) I decided to use that and mount the relay in my magic box.

Finally, I gave it a go.  It works!!!!  The fans came on and the pump was pumping the fluid into a can I had sitting on the floor.  Very quiet - I like that.  I had to touch the pump to feel it vibrate to know it was working.  When it's all hooked up to the controller, the cycle will be: reservoir - pump - radiator - in controller - out controller - reservoir.

Getting back to the adaptor problem.  The DIYelectriccarforum site had some great advice - they used a 1/8 NPT male X 3/8 inch barb.  As I continued to search for a 1/8 NPT male X 1/2 barb I came to the conclusion there aren't any.  That's why it takes two pieces and they are too fat. The best solution is to buy the 3/8 barb, like they did and then use some reducers - 1/2 barb X 3/8 barb to adjust. I ordered all the parts from a company in CA and they shipped today.

Next the motor cooling kit.

Cooling Kit for Soliton Jr Controller and Motor

I broke down and purchased the EV Source cooling kit for the Soliton Controller and the kit for the Impulse 9 motor.  The items arrived last night.  I was excited to tear into them and see what I got.  Although pricey, I will say that the kits look like they are excellent quality.  Unfortunately, since my car seems to be cursed, when I went to install the water cooling kit for the controller the first thing I noticed was the adaptors, that screw into the threaded ports aren't going to work.  Not because they don't screw in, but they are too wide to sit next to each other.  I need skinny adaptors or an extender of some sort?  I'm still trying to problem solve this. I'm hoping the good folks at DIYelectriccarforum will help.

Since that wasn't going anywhere, I thought at least I can start with installing the motor fan.  I had ordered the bottom motor mount because I have the shelf sitting right above my motor with very little space.  Once again I was smitten with a hex, the collar puts the spout for the fan at the top of my motor, which doesn't have room for the spout.  Either my motor is upside down, or they gave me the wrong kit.  After checking my motor it's at a 3:00 position from where it should be.  Remember I used a motorcycle jack top install vs an engine lift.  ARGHH!!

Needless to say, lots more to come.

Good-Bye Open Revolt, Hello Soliton Jr!!

Let me start by saying I think the Open Revolt is made of good intentions but in the long run this controller is under-powered and kept overheating for my application.  The lack of adequate customer support, (I sent an email to Paul on his website and never did get a reply), comprehensive instruction manual, and not clearly stating that this controller will only deliver a constant 178 amps vs the much advertised 144 volts 500 amp controller (Yep, that's only surge).  Yes, there are folks out having success with this controller, but clearly it's not for me!

So..after much debate and contemplation about spending a lot of dough, I made the decision to purchase a Lincoln, not a Cadillac but a Lincoln.  The Soliton Jr has a bigger brother, the Soliton 1 and it costs much more than the Jr I bought.  There are many reasons to buy this controller vs others, I found a comparison somewhere and was convinced this baby would get me across the finish line.
Here's what I like: built in contactor, pre-charger, cooling fans and option water cooling. (That right there is huge!) 

I didn't care for having to buy their throttle ($160), but it does work very well.

About the installation - easy.  three wires from the throttle, a 12V and ground.  Voila! You're done.  There are other wires you can connect but this is the basic.

Let's talk about connecting to the controller.  Use an ethernet cable, follow the step by step instructions in the manual they gave you.  I connected the very first time with no problems.  (Unlike last time where I had to search for the program, find a driver that actually worked, order a cable from online, then order another cable. ARGHH!!) From there I was able to calibrate the throttle and then give it a whirl.  


I started the install at 8 pm and was done by 10 pm and ready for a test drive.


The first test drive went very well, I easily pulled 150 amps going up one of the many hills that I climb, but I'll need to further adjust the acceleration on the software.  I'm confident that tomorrow's drive will allow me to suck the amps I need to get up those hills easily and not risk being stranded.  The worst case scenario is I may have to add the water cooling option, I don't anticipate this since I plan to keep my amp draw at 250.

Overheating Open Revolt Controller

So I finally got the RTD Explorer to work while driving.  The first time I had put the 25 foot RS232 cable next to the battery cables, this lead to the connection to the laptop cutting out.  I couldn't get a constant reading on what was happening while I was driving.  My wife was watching the computer while I drove and she said it kept "stopping", meaning the graphs weren't displaying.  I would stop, restart the connection and sometimes the controller.

Once I moved the cord as far away from the battery cables and pack, the RTD Explorer worked like a charm.  But what I did notice was the heatsink temp was at 600 after about 5 minutes of driving.  FYI - outside temp was 75 degrees.  I don't know what the 600 translates to in actual temperature but then when I tried to climb a hill it rose to 700 and then the yellow Overtemp fault light came on.  This lead to my amps being cut to 60 and below.  By the way, I have the Revolt controller sitting on a heatsink fin and there's a fan underneath to help disperse the heat.

Hmmmmm.....what this controller needs is a way to really cool off.  I saw on the EV West EV site where they created a "chill plate" for a new Curtis controller.  It attaches to the bottom and then you add the pump, radiator, reservoir and hose.  What a great idea.  Maybe someone should come up that idea for all controllers that don't have a built in water cooling system.