I Fixed Our 2002 Toyota RAV4 EV!

After diagnosing what went wrong with Kyle's 2002 Toyota RAV4 EV with Panasonic NiMH cells, Declan gets to work fixing its problematic battery pack and gets it in drivable condition again!
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#tesla #rav4 #toyota

[@iMaxPatten]

Apologies for the confusion with the original title, which mistakenly said this RAV4 was Tesla powered and from the 90s. This is the 2002 first gen RAV4 EV with Panasonic cells and the error has been updated. Don’t title your videos before coffee!

[@whyme5024]

Regardless, interesting subject with a rare find, almost a relic. Surprising you found circuit manual for a 22 year old model of which only 1500 was produced.

[@zachkane7378]

Devin is definitely perfect for this channel getting us to nerd level 11000.

[@MikeInTheWoods]

25 miles. Wild to think that it's still working on its original 20-year old NiMH battery!

[@jerquee]

As you can see in the latest video, it went 80 miles. Did you know that Chevron bought the patent in 2003 and destroyed the factory?

[@jerquee]

As you see in his next video, it went 80 miles. Did you know that in 2003 Chevron bought the patent for NIMH batteries and immediately stopped all production and destroyed the factory?

[@rhiantaylor3446]

Just an observation - don't expect regen braking on a car with a full battery - there is no space left for the braking-generated power to fit into.

[@ElectrekGarage]

I realized this later on lol!

[@tkmedia3866]

Drove one daily for 8 years. One of the best EV for the time. What happened Toyota!?

[@ScottishEVOwner]

All about compliance. Chris Paine’s documentaries of “Who Killed the electric car?“ and “Revenge of the electric car” goes into it in detail. Think you can find them on KZbin.

[@jerquee]

@@tkmedia3866 Chevron bought the patent for NIMH batteries in 2003 and destroyed the factory

[@lesliefranklin1870]

Hydrogen! 😂

[@Thunderbuck]

Can I just say that it’s so much fun to watch you present? You’re funny and your explanations of the tech are clear and entertaining. Rock on!

[@ElectrekGarage]

Thank you!!! That means a lot!

[@GregHassler]

That's not how a precharge circuit works at all, it doesn't run the system at half voltage. It manages inrush current to charge the capacitors in the inverter and DC-DC.

[@peterduxbury927]

Thanks for that simple explanation. It has given me a better understanding, and of course there is a pre-charge resistor, like a 'soft start' to this circuit.

[@rossr6616]

agreed, that portion should be edited out; Dev, suggest you tighten up your "Voltage/Current/Power" usage. The "Classic" Rav4-EV are Great EV's! Thanks for digging in.

[@2phonesbabyken]

Very happy the "I am Kenough" on the movie merch was embroidered. Got the tee and I was shocked by how high-quality it is. I would also take one of these over a bZ4X any day of the week...

[@ElectrekGarage]

One of my favorite sweatshirts! And absolutely, I hate the BZ4X and solterra

[@bigdougscommentary5719]

As a person who has taken unorthodox paths to fixing things, with sporadic success, I can enjoy your repair story.

[@Nerd_Bird]

48 miles range predicted yes Also, I did not know Out of Spec made Yet Another Channel, and that Declan would be here >:O! Nice to see you over here too!!

[@ElectrekGarage]

I hijacked their channel

[@WillSmidlein]

NICE!! I have a spare one sitting in CA if you're looking for another project :D Quick note about the description, the gen 2 Rav4 EV is actually the Tesla-powered one

[@ElectrekGarage]

I do have a second RAV4 that needs work lol! There was a miscommunication between myself and the person who writes the descriptions and it should be fixed later today 👌

[@rossr6616]

there's a magnet in the Suitcase lid which constitutes the safety interlock via Reed or Hall Switch in the Suitcase. you can place a separate magnet there to work in the Suitcase. Make sure you keep it covered in case you are a cat lady or man to keep cats from jumping into the suitcase and dying.

[@etdweasel]

I’m glad you didn’t die! And…as I was watching this I realized I’m wearing the same sea turtle shirt you were wearing when first working under the hood…good content AND good test in clothing! 👍

[@ElectrekGarage]

Great minds think alike!

[@newscoulomb3705]

Thanks for sharing! Maybe I've misunderstood the concept, but my understanding is that the pre-charge contactor is used for current, rather than voltage spikes. Essentially, EV controllers have massive capacitors that must be charged, and flipping the contactors without "pre charging" those capacitors causes a current dump that can fuse the contactors together and damage other components. The voltage might be lower, but that would only be a result of the resistance created by the pre-charge contactor.

[@chrisw443]

90's EV's! The EV's of my DREAMS!

[@fury1968]

I have 161k miles on my ‘02 and, yesterday, I got 77 miles by the time it hit the red zone on the battery gauge, so I’m hoping yours will be similar.

[@AlexEVRepair]

Excited to see this old RAV4 back on the road again! I spend a lot of time repairing the 2nd gen (2012-2014) RAV4 EVs, but I have worked on one first gen RAV4 EV in the past (dropped the pack to replace the "Battery Sensor ECU"). That one was the guy's daily driver, and supposedly it still went close to 80mi on a charge (though his pack had been refurbished at some point). The NiMH batteries are pretty good longevity wise if taken care of, so I suppose it could go either way in terms of range, and depending on whether or not it was ever refurbished at some point. NiMH also has a "memory", which can cause limited capacity if not fully charged and discharged fairly regularly, however with some full charge and discharge cycles to re-condition the cells, it may actually improve somewhat over time! My guess that as is, it goes 35mi on a charge.

[@rossr6616]

NiMh has substantial self-discharge, but does not experience the memory effect like NiCads did.

[@dustinbird2090]

Presumed 95mi range battery, probably had a real world 75mi range. I'm guessing 58.3 miles.

[@ElectrekGarage]

Very specific guess lol

[@ouch1011]

This would only be possible with the old NiMH batteries, which don't care (as much) about under or over charging. Lithium battery would be junk under the same circumstances. The downside is that the NiMH batteries have way, way, way less power potential for the size and would be completely impractical for a modern EV.

[@rossr6616]

FYI If ANY one of the 24ea 12V modules is below 10V, the system will not keep the contactors energized and you won't be able to charge with the paddle OR via the Suitcase Pack Terminals and a HV Power Supply, UNLESS you activate the contactors first as in the video.

[@dauerwerbesendung7045]

21km or 13miles but I hope for more

[@rossr6616]

how did you manage to hit ALL your fingers with a hammer 😂

[@milohobo9186]

58.5 miles on range test

[@acehart2]

i think the best you may get is about 70 Km with the older battery

[@bobnine]

I think it'll do 40km range

[@blairjayson]

Never use the vehicle's 12V battery to supply the coils for a power relay. Use an external DCPS (with current limiting, of course).

[@GregHassler]

37 miles of range is my guess.

[@KieraHafermalz-Wheeler]

I'll go for 30 miles (ca. 48km)

[@vhol93]

Super cool

[@chris1436]

58 miles

[@fusiongaming8281]

69 miles

[@milohobo9186]

Nice

[@Bob_Sacamano]

Ethel Mertz

[@WolfgreenFang]

30mi or bust 🎉

[@Defenestrator42]

Tesla has nothing to do with this vehicle. Tesla was founded the year that Toyota ended the RAV4 EV program. Tesla was involved in the second RAV4 EV, which launched 15 years after this one did.

[@ElectrekGarage]

There was a miscommunication between myself and the person who writes the descriptions. It should be fixed later today

[@PeaceChanel]

. Peace.. Shalom.. Salam.. Namaste 🙏🏻 😊 ✌ ☮ ❤ 🕊

[@ptonpc]

60 miles

[@saulgoldfarb]

I’m guessing 55 miles ☺️

[@Firefoxsimp]

Bestie slay 😍😍

[@ElectrekGarage]

SLAY!!!!

[@zoki2442]

What you are, she or he?

[@ElectrekGarage]

I am pure evil

[@AndyTN64]

Does it matters?

[@ScottishEVOwner]

Go for 42 miles. Great work Declan.

[@aminorjourney]

You know the team at TE used to have two - Just reach out if you need some extra help (as we told Kyle)

[@georgepelton5645]

For a 22 year old battery pack that was down to only 28 V pack voltage, it is quite remarkable that it could be recharged and driven. My range guess is 22 miles. I can't wait to find out what the result will be.

[@InkSpot101]

Good old nickel batteries. In europe there are still some old peugeot and citroen ev's with original NiCd batteries. My guess for the range is 30mi

[@rossr6616]

note that it is the Cadmium that gives NiCads the "memory effect" so NiMh does not experience memory effect

[@cglan_9748]

I'd hope for at least 30 miles of EV range on the old battery. Then at least you can do some decent daily commutes in it.

[@quartzofcourse]

Love that nail polish color

[@ElectrekGarage]

Thank you!

[@mikelbrown703]

awesome. Is that a cheese slice? do you have videos on that.

[@ssupertutorial]

I guess 45/55miles nimh is a super chemistry

[@blackterminal]

Thanks for the video.

[@nevco8774]

Yes, your magic shouldn't be attempted at home. I did jump start a 80 V removable battery from GreenWorks usable for lawnmower, snowblower, leaf blower, edge trimmer. However I did it safely with another identical battery and 2 wires connected plus to plus and minus to minus just for several minutes to increase the voltage in "nonchargeable" battery in order to be accepted by charger to get charging. It just did the trick. Awesome content video!

[@dauerwerbesendung7045]

Why would that be any more save than using a lab power supply? At least with the lab supply you have control over voltage/amps. While with the 2. battery you rely on internal resistance of the battery and the wires you are using to limit the current and voltage will be at whatever the second battery as it discharges.

[@alexgirniak8606]

I'll say 50km range

[@anthonyku2126]

35 miles

[@sketchsketchsketchsketch]

44 miles

[@porkymouth]

The nice thing about nickel based batteries is that they can be revived after being completely discharged. After 5 full charge - discharge cycles, you should be able to restore most of the remaining capacity. I predict you will get about 15 miles on a charge if the batteries have not been cycled. After several full cycles, I predict the range will increase to 55 miles.

[@rossr6616]

but if fully discharged, they can also charge in reverse polarity, so research first

[@iharr01563]

Fantastic video!

[@Super_Charged4life]

28 miles

[@jl80kreykes]

I am hoping for 31 miles range.

[@dougowt]

32 miles

[@figjoy]

Noice! Great fix.

[@crabdonkey6381]

37 miles

[@bill_heywood]

Good work, that was a neat fix. I'm going for 33.33333 miles range

[@89five3five]

Can the battery be upgraded to modern composition?

[@ElectrekGarage]

Absolutely it can, there is a guy in California who converted his to lithium ion!

[@mattsimon931]

I want to know the charging speed of that paddle charger.

[@ElectrekGarage]

6.6 kw about the same as any slow charger lol