Warning light

[Fog 25]

Had a warning light come on today The read out said Max Horsepower Limited. Still two bars on the battery. I don’t know if it was caused by heat, was riding it pretty hard. Any suggestions ?

 

[Fod]

Hey fog, was the battery covered in mud? You went to lacr right? If so that's more sand and I wonder if the gearing and sand with your speed was too much load? Did you check the water pump yet and coolant level?

 

[snydes]

https://www.facebook.com/LyndonPoskittRacing/posts/1271861229614587

Wonder if this is the same problem you had @Fog 25 ?

 

[Fod]

https://www.facebook.com/LyndonPoskittRacing/posts/1271861229614587

Wonder if this is the same problem you had @Fog 25 ?

Would be interesting to hear what he is doing but pretty sure we are not in the same ball park in riding terrain and power delivery.

 

[Fog 25]

I believe mine (Hopefully) was the battery getting down to 20% of power in map 4. Went into conserve mode. I don’t think it was a overheating problem. Will try to duplicate it next time out.

 

[rayivers]

Hopefully Alta uses higher-temp rotor magnets than Zero. Both my Zeros were never the same after single first-level (no power limiting, only blinking temp light) hi-temp events, with reduced max torque at WOT from that point on. This was later corroborated by several other Zero owners after first-track-day overheating situations, and also by a Zero tech I spoke to at AIMExpo. I've had a number of ICE rotors remagnetized so if it happens it can likely be resolved, but I'm surely in no hurry to overheat my Alta.

 

[snydes]

Haven’t the warning light issues been related to battery temperature on our Altas? I guess they probably monitor both though.

 

[rayivers]

Haven’t the warning light issues been related to battery temperature on our Altas? I guess they probably monitor both though.

I think so too, but I just searched 'heat' in the Alta manual and couldn't find anything specific about temperature monitoring. The Zeros use separate thermistors for each battery / motor stator / ambient, some of which can be accessed separately using the Zero app. Sometimes these can be off quite a bit; right now my garage is 68F, while the Zero dash unit reads 82F.

 

[TCMB371]

Sorry to dig up an old thread but figured I'd search and continue the discussion.

Took my MXR out today on its maiden voyage. It was 90* today at Pala Raceway. Riding primarily in map 4, I went through 3 charge cycles (~40% to Full) today using my 240v 3200watt generator. Everything was fine after the first 2 charge cycles, but the ride after the 3rd charge cycle I experienced the Power Limiting warning about half way through my moto. It didn't feel like it limited the power really that much, and i was still able to clear everything, so that gave me confidence. I had read about thermal limiting before, and was worried that it would severly drop the power of the bike.

I did notice that the battery was getting warm to the touch on that 3rd charge cycle. I was thinking about spraying water on the external casing of the battery pack to perhaps reduce the temperature a little. Has anyone else tried that with any success?

 

[Philip]

I did notice that the battery was getting warm to the touch on that 3rd charge cycle. I was thinking about spraying water on the external casing of the battery pack to perhaps reduce the temperature a little. Has anyone else tried that with any success?

Alta recommends swamp coolers.

The OP found this works: Arctic misting fan

 

[Fog 25]

TCMB371 I started using the Arctic fan on charges and have not encountered any more power limiting codes. By my measurements the fan drops battery temperature 25+ degrees.
A few times before using the fan I would get Max limited power at half a battery. According to Alta the bike slows down not as much as low battery (flashing bars) and will not do any damage if continued riding. Try using a lower map to help with cool down.

 

[Josh402]

I encountered this issue yesterday by the time I was pretty much done for the day on my MX. It was 87, humid with heat index probably in the mid 90’s, ride primarily in map 3. I thought it was more likely the sand and mud that got caked onto the battery, trapping the heat. I let the bike sit for 10 minutes, then rinsed off the mud, the warning went away immediately. Surprised me to see it because I’m one of the slower riders, but getting faster.

 

[Josh402]

Also, I noticed during the mid day recharge that the battery wasn’t charging as fast as usual. I started the recharge at a couple bars below 50%, and after right at 1 hour on the 240v generator, it was at 75%. Can high heat slow down the charge rate?

 

[Philip]

Also, I noticed during the mid day recharge that the battery wasn’t charging as fast as usual. I started the recharge at a couple bars below 50%, and after right at 1 hour on the 240v generator, it was at 75%. Can high heat slow down the charge rate?

Yes, if the battery is hot, it won't start charging until it cools off a little. I have experienced that.

Perhaps there is also an intermediate setting, where it would charge slower, if it is too warm. Can anyone confirm this?

 

[Fog 25]

Also, I noticed during the mid day recharge that the battery wasn’t charging as fast as usual. I started the recharge at a couple bars below 50%, and after right at 1 hour on the 240v generator, it was at 75%. Can high heat slow down the charge rate?

Yes and yes need to cool the bike down for a fast charge. Make sure the bike is in the shade doing charging.

 

[Josh402]

Will a decent non misting fan work alright? I’ll need to get a canopy shade like everyone else has as well. I only have my trailer for shade

 

[Philip]

Does anyone know of an inexpensive Kill-A-Watt or similar power and amp meter rated at 240V and 20A? It would be nice to tell if the charger is pulling the full expected current from the generator, in case your generator does not have a built-in amp meter, which mine doesn't.

My van though will have an amp meter for the Lithium batteries, so I will know if the charger is not pulling the full current.

 

[TCMB371]

Does anyone know of an inexpensive Kill-A-Watt or similar power and amp meter rated at 240V and 20A? It would be nice to tell if the charger is pulling the full expected current from the generator, in case your generator does not have a built-in amp meter, which mine doesn't.

My van though will have an amp meter for the Lithium batteries, so I will know if the charger is not pulling the full current.

Maybe a clamp on style like this would work? Reading reviews says it works on 240v

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B003XOXU02

 

[schwankl]

@TCMB371 - that model only does 240v single-phase, r-charger uses 240v split-phase. I guess you could use 2 of them - some details on the topic here: Efergy E2 Energy Monitor | Mapawatt
@Philip another route is to use a proper battery monitor w/ a shunt. BMV-712 Smart - Victron Energy - or TBS Expert Pro Battery Monitor - For Lithium Packs up to 350V, EV West - Electric Vehicle Parts, Components, EVSE Charging Stations, Electric Car Conversion Kits ... the victron (~$200) has a nice mobile app to visualize and report.

 

[Philip]

@Philip another route is to use a proper battery monitor w/ a shunt. BMV-712 Smart - Victron Energy

That's the exact model with Bluetooth that I will use with in my van with Lithium batteries. However, I won't be able to use it with the generator. It is rated only up to 70V.

I guess, one can always split the two charger's wires apart and use a clamp style multimeter like this:
Meterk Digital Clamp Meter 6000 Counts TRUE RMS NCV AC/DC Voltage Auto Range AC Current Clamp Multimeter