Hello fellow Insight drivers. I have read some of the older posts on this topic and I cant find the answer I need. There seems to be alot of "I think" or "probably" comments. I am hoping someone with factual knowledge here can further assist.
I am looking to ad the following product:
Solar 12 Volt Battery Trickle Charger
Item#: 50022
UPC#: 834319000648
I know the 12v lighter port does not work when the car is shut down. The initial plan was to use this on the lighter port while the car is operational. I also read just running some internal fans to allow the batteries to breath better.
1) Is it possible to charge the battery pack via 12v lighter? I believe not, I think the pack runs to a DC->DC converter which would resist any charging of the battery pack. Besides, while at Auto Stop, any charging that would occur would throw some kinda error as the car is not expecting a charge... right? If errors would not occur, is it possible at all to charge the battery pack directly?
2) IF the battery pack charges the 12v battery under the hood (as there is no alternator it has to i guess), my assumption is that I can plug the solar panels in via alligator clips on the 12v battery. The theory I have is the battery pack would have to provide less power to the 12v battery -in turn saving said power for the car to accelerate.
When I bought my car, the dealer informed me "If you don't drive it for a week or so it will die and you will need a jump". Now wouldn't option 2 prevent this using the product I mentioned above?
Sounds like some misinformation. How many cars sit on a lot and don't get started for a few weeks, and when someone wants to drive one of them, they start right up???!!! Sure, you could clip a solar charger to the 12V battery butt I don't think you would really accomplish anything.
Sounds like some misinformation. How many cars sit on a lot and don't get started for a few weeks, and when someone wants to drive one of them, they start right up???!!! Sure, you could clip a solar charger to the 12V battery butt I don't think you would really accomplish anything.
I can only speak from my experience, of course. But, no, when I went for my test drive the battery was dead. They brought out the car jumper which was fully charged and that did not work. They had to bring out jumper cables and we eventually got it going. Maybe four hours later after signing paper work and getting approved, it was dead again. We even had them replace the battery before driving off the lot. Once I got it home after an hour drive I have yet to have a problem.
I don't mean to be rude, and I do appreciate your response, however, once again there seems to be much "I think" or "your probably" on this topic. I am looking for factual data.
ShroomMan,
12V battery sounds like it is bad, or you have a idling current drain that is draining it when the car just sits.
A healthy 12V battery should allow the car to sit for several weeks and still have plenty of charge left. A sulphated one will behave just as you describe.
Easiest test is to have the 12V battery load tested, which many autoparts stores will do for you.
While a solar charger would keep the battery charged, it could also overcharge the 12V battery unless you have a charge controller that will turn off the charge if the battery starts gassing. The way to connect it would be directly to the battery through an isolation diode.
Since the car tends to fully charge the 12V whenever it is running, there should be very little MPG gain from external charging of that battery.
The car will run fine with a very bad 12V battery, as it is only used to power the computers, and the DC/DC will keep the 12V in the correct voltage range during operation. I replaced my original 12V after 7 years, when I noticed that several of the cells had dried out to only 1/4 of their proper level. Even with that dried out condition the car had no problems starting and running as long as the HV was available to start the car and maintain the 12V.
With the bad 12V, if I turned off the IMA, the thing could not crank the engine at all, and the dash lights would die when you try.
Start by getting the 12V checked, and go from there.
Good luck
Thanks for the input Mike. I looked into the possibility of over charging. The product I am getting is 5w, I read somewhere you only need worry if it is 10w and higher. Also the product is a trickle charger it is supposed to have some type of power management built in to prevent the over charge.
Right now I think the plan is to hook up to the battery. If all else fails, I did not waste my money, as I read a really good article how to hook up a quad fan system to vent the battery exhaust using solar. This option would probably help me out alot more in the long run.
I'll do some research on the isolation diodes. BTW I forgot to mention this is the 2010 version (gen2 from what I have discovered) -but you already knew that Mike.
A 5 watt or 10 watt solar panel isn't going to do much to a battery that was low enough to start a car. 10 watts wouldn't overcharge a car battery either, that isn't even an amp, especially with power management built in to prevent it. That also implies there is enough sunlight to even produce 10 watts. It would be a better idea to have a charger that is at least a few amps to get the battery charged up. If you don't want to buy a charger, most auto parts places will charge the battery for you for an hour and then test it to tell you if it is in decent shape. Buying a used car off the lot where the car was sitting for awhile and needed a jump could be compromised, or in need of a good extended charge.
To the OP: at www.hondatechinfo.com, you can buy a 3 day subscription for $10 that will give you all the service and operation info, trouble shooting, wiring diagrams etc. for your car and answer the questions you posted. You can also buy the printed manual there too. The printed manual was the first "accessory" I bought for my 2010 EXN. I would have looked up the info for you to try to be more accurate but it's at work and I'm home. I was out of town for a week and when I returned, the car started just fine. Hopefully it was just the battery in your's.
I have been charging my 12v bat with a 1.5 watt solar charger for a few months now. I bought it thru radio shack web. It is also in some pep boys chain stores. It claims that it does not need a controler because of the low wattage. On a sunny day, attaching it, only raises the 12v bat up only 0.01v, so it is only a trickle charger.
Because the supplied 12v lighter port is off when the key is off, I added another 12v plug, that is wired to the fuse harnes, onto an always live thick line. To protect the system, I also included a 1 amp fuse and a blocking diode, so only limited power can go ONLY TO the battery. But as recommend by radio shack, I still unplug the charger before starting the car.
Since the no-load voltage is about 24v on a sunny day, it is still above 13v no-load on cloudy days. So this can charge just about any day.
__________________
2010 Insight, Since 05/11 39-65. MPG OD 2400Mi.
MODS:
2. IMA Bat exhaust temp monitor, from Radio Shack,
3. Foam insulation on cold AC pipes.
4. 12V and 100V bat insulation.
5. Inside radiator airflow improvements.
6. Engine belly smoothing.
7. Leading tire skirts enhancements.
PREVIOUS HONDAS: 72 N600, 85 CRX-SI
I have tried trickle chargers in the past. The type you plug into your cigarette lighter, and it runs a tiny amount of current back to your battery. The problem with those are, the solar panel on it is tiny, so it doesnt really help. So instead i got portable solar panels, with inbuilt charge regulator, you can get them from about 30Watts in power and up to huge. But the 30 Watt is nice n small for your job.
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Adding Solar Panel
