2007 Gs450h Hybrid Battery Cell Replacement For $50.

[SparkyDave]

On 06/04/2018 at 10:03 PM, hybridbatterysolutions said:

I have done 3 from various parts of Ireland- not being funny but I really would not trust “on the quick” repairers - it takes a good 7 to 10 days to do properly anything less will be at best a very temporary repair (obviously I am biased so please ask around for yourself)

Hi Richard,

Do you have a service centre in Ireland or did the Irish travel to you?

Many thanks,

Dave

[hybridbatterysolutions]

Sorry Ive been very busy, no nothing in Ireland all of them removed them & sent them to me, I have a contact who does the Ireland Uk Europe run every week who is very reasonable would you like his details??

Richard

[SparkyDave]

Hi Richard,

I ended up getting the 3 new modules fitted and balanced by an Irish company who took the pack off to their workshop for 8 days. They just got it installed back in today and all looking good. 

Many thanks for all your advice and sorry for not getting back to you sooner,

Dave

[australianstan]

Hi Richard,
I ended up getting the 3 new modules fitted and balanced by an Irish company who took the pack off to their workshop for 8 days. They just got it installed back in today and all looking good. 
Many thanks for all your advice and sorry for not getting back to you sooner,
Dave

Hi Richard, which company did you use out of interest? I’m in Dublin too and I still have around 9 months on the warranty but after that I’d like to plan ahead. Thanks, Stan


Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

[Junes]

Thanks for this thread and for everyone who participated. I've been lurking here for the past 2 months.

 

I bought a 2007 GS450h for a great deal but it came with hybrid Battery issues.

I started by replacing 2 weak modules then cleaned all the copper bus bars and modules' 10mm nuts because they were extremely corroded. This thread has been a great help with that. 

The car is drivable now but the Hybrid System Check comes back usually 30-60min of driving. I noticed that the failure comes faster on hot days. I once drove the car from Louisville to Chicago on a really cold day without issues (300miles mostly hwy miles).

 

Now I have a conclusion that it's a heat distribution issue. Battery gets hot quick and causes the failure. The blower gets loud when the Battery is hot but it seems to be doing what it supposed to do.

It's worth mentioning that the Battery has been previously worked on and there is a huge chance that some parts are missing. The previous person who tried to fix this lost plenty of nuts, screws, and one of the blower's air ducts which I replaced.

I noticed warm air leaking directly out of the bottom LH side of the battery. See picture.

My question is does it look like it's missing a part there where the red arrow is pointing. I reinstalled the duct multiple times but always ended up with a small gap. Is there another duct piece to fill that gap? 

 

 

[thisgtaguy]

On 4/15/2016 at 6:35 PM, carnut1980 said:

Hi again. I recently got code p3025. Cell block 15 low voltage or something like that, which occured soon after i was racing someone.

The dash is all lit up, the hybrid battery fan stays on when this happens (i can hear it in the back), and worst of all , the car dies every few miles. Just the engine and hybrid power. All the electrics still work fine. (New 12v battery)

when it dies, i have to switch off and on again. Its not limp mode, theres no power at all, when it happens.

when i refurbed the battery cells a few weeks back, i didnt change any, as they were all showing between 7.6 and 7.9v.

I'm guessing i will have to this time but, any ideas why the battery fan stays on (when the dash lights appear) and why does the engine die?

cheers

Hello @carnut1980

I am getting the same error "p3025  cell block 15 low voltage". What did you do to fix it?  

[malcolm Killian]

Hi, I have a 2006 Lexus GS 450h and the hybrid Battery had to have cells replaced three times in the last year. The garage that did the work said I need a new Hybrid Battery as the car is so old.buying a new Battery is very expensive. I love my car and it still looks and drives like new. My question is can one buy NEW cells for the Hybrid Battery and replace them all. Replacing a bad cell with a second hand cell is only a temporary fix for a 06 car.

[Farqui]

Hi Malcolm, I'm sorry to hear that you have issues with your traction Battery.

Replacing bad cells, 3 times in 12 months is unusual and shows that companies which take the time to balance the pack are worth the xtra £'s.

I believe you can purchase new replacement cells but for the cost, I would hand it over to a specialist and take a warranty on their 'new' pack.

Will be interesting to hear other opinions and experiences here.

Have you approached any specialists locally?

Good luck, Lee

[royoftherovers]

What about our Member at Hybrid Battery Solutions ?  http://www.hybridbatterysolutions.co.uk/

[alanann]

Thanks for allowing me into the club forum

An excellent Android app for analysing and testing the hybrid Battery is Dr Prius works with a Elm 327 Bluetooth adapter.

The programme does a full Battery test and gives an indication of the remaining Battery life

 etc.

[steve2006]

Welcome to the LOC Alan, excellent info for members too, thank you.

[malcolm Killian]

On 7/10/2020 at 5:33 PM, Farqui said:

Hi Malcolm, I'm sorry to hear that you have issues with your traction battery.

Replacing bad cells, 3 times in 12 months is unusual and shows that companies which take the time to balance the pack are worth the xtra £'s.

I believe you can purchase new replacement cells but for the cost, I would hand it over to a specialist and take a warranty on their 'new' pack.

Will be interesting to hear other opinions and experiences here.

Have you approached any specialists locally?

Good luck, Lee

 

[malcolm Killian]

Hi luck,

Thanks for the info. The Lexus Garage want €4600.00 to replace my Battery but all I need is the cells. I thought it would be much cheaper to just replace the cells but I can't locate them new.

All the best,

Malcolm.

[malcolm Killian]

On 7/10/2020 at 5:49 PM, royoftherovers said:

What about our Member at Hybrid Battery Solutions ?  http://www.hybridbatterysolutions.co.uk/

Thanks John I will look into that,

[Farqui]

Crumbs @malcolm Killian, 4.6k euro's seems quite high.

I hope you find an alternative solution!

Cheers, Lee

[toffee_pie]

I am an Electronic Engineer and have worked on Battery products and used expensive Maccor Battery equipment before.

So, Malcolm do not pay Lexus this amount of money.

1. share photos of the batteries you need  - the more info you provide the more help you can get

2. cell balancing is crucial, without this any Battery fix is useless. Maccor kit can do this quite easy but there are other ways to do this without spending 40k on test equipment. all you need is some load to discharge cells and a way to charge them. It may take some time but its possible - 

what are these individual cells? manufacturer, type?

http://www.lithiumlifepo4battery.com/sale-11542621-lexus-gs450h-hybrid-car-battery-288v-hybrid-vehicles-type-hev-ima-6500mah-capacity.html

I found this

https://himaxelectronics.com/product-item/nimh14-4v-repalcement-hybrid-car-battery/#

I would try replace the dud cells but it maybe easier to get an entire pack if you have no time, expertise or patience

[malcolm Killian]

I have replaced some of the cells, two on one occasion and one on another. Both times it kept the car going for a few months and then another cell would die. I suppose that if I replace one (or a small number of) cells now, then it will again keep the car going temporarily, until another cell dies. The ideal solution is to replace all.

On balancing, I measured the voltage of all the cells the last time that I had the pack out of the car, and I used a headlight bulb and wire to take energy out of the ones at the highest voltages. The problem I see though is that each "cell" that we are talking about is actually 6 individual NiMh cells in series, and those cells inside can be imbalanced too. And there is nothing I can do about that.

Attached is an image of a replacement cell from eBay.@toffee_pie I couldn't find this cell type on that website (though very similar ones are there)

Any further suggestions are much appreciated. 

 

[Lwerewolf]

You can trickle overcharge the cells to balance them out. Usually this is combined with deep cycling a couple of times, measuring the capacity improvements while doing so. The resting module or individual cell voltage doesn't say much - if it's 1.2v off then you have a shorted cell, that's about it.

My suggestion - if you want to do it yourself, read up and be aware that it'll take time. Again, plenty of threads and ideas over at priuschat - including rehydrating cells.

[toffee_pie]

2 hours ago, malcolm Killian said:

I have replaced some of the cells, two on one occasion and one on another. Both times it kept the car going for a few months and then another cell would die. I suppose that if I replace one (or a small number of) cells now, then it will again keep the car going temporarily, until another cell dies. The ideal solution is to replace all.

On balancing, I measured the voltage of all the cells the last time that I had the pack out of the car, and I used a headlight bulb and wire to take energy out of the ones at the highest voltages. The problem I see though is that each "cell" that we are talking about is actually 6 individual NiMh cells in series, and those cells inside can be imbalanced too. And there is nothing I can do about that.

Attached is an image of a replacement cell from ebay.@toffee_pie I couldn't find this cell type on that website (though very similar ones are there)

Any further suggestions are much appreciated. 

 

You need more advanced ways to balance cells, that wont quite cut it

how many cells are in this pack? this is what i would do

1. strip out EVERY cell, number them all

2. Measure Voltage - any dead ones with low voltage - Chuck them out and replace

3. This is where it gets hard - to cell balance you are just getting them all the same capacity and basically working in harmony with each other, a weak cell will degrade others - eventually they will all peter out because of a single bad one

4. You need to charge them up and discharge them many times - ideally 3 or 4 but twice should do for the moment.

5. Get one of these 

6. Charge up the cells, taking not of how much energy is put into it

7. Discharge, again noting the energy displaced.

rinse and repeat - twice

8. Reassemble 

You need to be creative in how to charge them up - get a nicad charger that tells you the energy perhaps...

likewise with discharging - you need to monitor the energy going in and out.

its not easy but its possible for much less than what Lexus would charge.

 

[toffee_pie]

This load can discharge cells --  this is the sort of way i would approach this

https://www.banggood.com/ET5411-Programmable-Professional-Battery-Tester-DC-Electronic-Load-Battery-Capacity-Tester-400W-500V15A-RS485232-High-Precision-p-1613466.html?gmcCountry=GB&currency=GBP&createTmp=1&utm_source=googleshopping&utm_medium=cpc_bgs&utm_content=lijing&utm_campaign=ssc-gb-100-all-0819&cur_warehouse=CN

 

A charger here - should be able to deal with the charging side

https://www.wish.com/product/5e5923e717e8927fb2923a18?hide_login_modal=true&from_ad=goog_shopping&_display_country_code=GB&_force_currency_code=GBP&pid=googleadwords_int&c={campaignId}&ad_cid=5e5923e717e8927fb2923a18&ad_cc=GB&ad_curr=GBP&ad_price=22.00&campaign_id=6493229882&gclid=CjwKCAjw34n5BRA9EiwA2u9k3xkXDkhTkCS0zaV5N9RZwIuqeY3OObynDSLn4iYovdRvTrE2QClDkxoCuF8QAvD_BwE&share=web

[Lwerewolf]

You cannot strip out individual cells. You also must clamp the cells while charging/discharging - there's a reason why they're compressed together in the car's Battery pack.

As for figuring out if one of the individual cells is worse than the others but not failed... I don't think there's a way, other than monitoring the voltage drop for "untimely drop".

[Mossypossy]

Is the hybrid Battery coded to the vehicle in any way?

What would stop a car with a current hybrid health certificate from swapping in a duff Battery pack and getting Lexus to fix dead Battery under warranty?

[royoftherovers]

18 minutes ago, Mossypossy said:

Is the hybrid battery coded to the vehicle in any way?

What would stop a car with a current hybrid health certificate from swapping in a duff battery pack and getting Lexus to fix dead battery under warranty?

One`s personal integrity for a start and plenty of unpleasant things to follow.

[malcolm Killian]

16 hours ago, toffee_pie said:

You need more advanced ways to balance cells, that wont quite cut it

how many cells are in this pack? this is what i would do

1. strip out EVERY cell, number them all

2. Measure Voltage - any dead ones with low voltage - Chuck them out and replace

3. This is where it gets hard - to cell balance you are just getting them all the same capacity and basically working in harmony with each other, a weak cell will degrade others - eventually they will all peter out because of a single bad one

4. You need to charge them up and discharge them many times - ideally 3 or 4 but twice should do for the moment.

5. Get one of these 

6. Charge up the cells, taking not of how much energy is put into it

7. Discharge, again noting the energy displaced.

rinse and repeat - twice

8. Reassemble 

You need to be creative in how to charge them up - get a nicad charger that tells you the energy perhaps...

likewise with discharging - you need to monitor the energy going in and out.

its not easy but its possible for much less than what Lexus would charge.

 

Thanks, Everybody for all your help I am going to be busy. Does anybody know if the individual cells can be bought new?

MK 

[toffee_pie]

14 hours ago, Lwerewolf said:

You cannot strip out individual cells. You also must clamp the cells while charging/discharging - there's a reason why they're compressed together in the car's battery pack.

As for figuring out if one of the individual cells is worse than the others but not failed... I don't think there's a way, other than monitoring the voltage drop for "untimely drop".

Right, well if thats the case i would just get a knock off pack from China tbh - connecting up the full pack to a load and discharging that etc wont work as you need to isolate the cells within the pack itself.