First update - Prototype in the works
Thanks to one of the NZ Nissan Leaf Owners Group members I have some empty battery boxes to play with!
I’m using one of these to build up a prototype battery to put through its paces in my Leaf (if anyone has a towbar for a Leaf let me know).
Putting ZE0 and AZE0 battery boxes side by side (and lifting them around) it’s clear Nissan made some changes in the design to save weight and cost. Generally though, they’re the same.
The battery modules I have chosen to use are 12x 147Ah NMC cells in a block, with 8 modules fitting in the battery box. This gives 52kWh in a simple arrangement.
Why? Everything is easier.
- Busbar quantity is reduced
- Busbars are the same between modules
- Mounting is significantly easier
- Modules are all the same type / size
- It leaves a nice space at the front right for potential CCS2 activities
The only down side is there will need to be a small hard rubber spacer between the battery box and the lid as the section where the rear passenger footwell is doesn’t leave enough room for the batteries.
The battery box will also need to be spaced down by about 20mm. Certainly possible, but this is the point (after having spent a few hours cutting the old mounts out of the box) that I begin thinking it would be easier to just make a new box… There are people putting 62kWh packs into ZE0 and AZE0 Leafs which requires 40mm spacing in the lid and under the battery - too much.
The key that is going to make this project feasible is getting some form of economy of scale happening which is something we struggle with in NZ. The other key thing - cost control, something I learned about in my last visit to China.
Anyway, that’s it for today while some things turn up in the mail.