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Winter Riding in Freezing Temperatures and Warning From Wheel


techyiam

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I was riding at around -4 C (24.8 F) this morning at around 40 km/h (25 mph).

My battery SOC was 79% indicated.

I was accelerating lightly up a slight incline.

When I looked at the display to see how fast I was going, the speed display was orange, normal is black. I cautiously eased off. There was a car behind me, but it was more than a block behind. I heard no beeps.

After a bit, the display returned back to normal.

I was riding my V12 (HS).

Normally, I would just accelerate and not worry, but being at -4 C, I thought I should check to see how fast I was going first. I am glad checked, and the wheel warned me. It would really suck to have a cutout.

Yesterday morning I was riding at -13 C (8.6 F). But I was more cautious, and rode slower, and only on residential streets and bike lane.

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I don't think you need to worry that much. The fact that your display has turned orange is probably because the crystals in the LCD display have become sluggish in the cold, or simply "turn" incorrectly when they are too cold. Alternatively, use an app on a phone to monitor the wheel instead. - I have never quite understood what I was supposed to do with a display on the wheel, where you have to take your attention away from the road to look almost vertically downwards (on my RS, the display is placed completely awkwardly on the side) 

Furthermore, I think that it really takes a lot of cold and standing still in the cold for the batteries to be affected in a negative direction.  If you start your trip at home from the heat in the house / garage, and maintain a speed, the batteries themselves will emit a lot of heat when they supply the power. And these battery packs are packed as close together as possible, so it's probably not because they themselves have the great cooling potential.

Last year I did a trip in -8 C degrees, approx. 40 km at 30 - 45 kmph.  When I got home I myself was more or less frozen,  but temp. gauge on the motor and controller in the wheel still showed +30 C degrees, so no problem at all.  (Kingsong 16X)

Extra info: LCD displays can be damaged, even permanently, at temperatures below 0 degrees C.   Result: Ghost images, wrong colors, discolored areas, lack of contrast.

Edited by Robse
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I forgot to mention that the V12 uses the LG M50LT cells.

At below 10 C (50 F), the maximum discharge current is 2.4 A. Since it is a 4P batter configuration, that's 9.6 A.

I read a post on Facebook where a rider who was riding in the cold experienced a cutout on his V12.

 

The change to Orange colour is a feature, not a bug.

 

In the case of me today with my V12, it was stored at 5 C. So, yeah, the maximum discharge for each cell was limit to 2.4 A. 

Edited by techyiam
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3 minutes ago, techyiam said:

The change to Orange colour is a feature, not a bug.

Ohh, i did not now that  - but what is the actual temperatures in the cells / packs,  is this information available in the display / app ?

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2 minutes ago, Robse said:

Ohh, i did not now that  - but what is the actual temperatures in the cells / packs,  is this information available in the display / app ?

No.

But I started riding the V12 at 5 C, since it was stored at 5 C.

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Just now, techyiam said:

No.

But I started riding the V12 at 5 C, since it was stored at 5 C.

Ok that's pretty cold (!)  and therefore it is actually quite likely that it was a "good" warning that you got and acted on, better safe than sorry :cheers:

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If I did not see that warning, I would have accelerated.

So I was quite appreciative that it warned me. At the time, I forgot all about the LG M50LT cells 2.4 A discharge current limitations.

Edited by techyiam
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  • 2 weeks later...
On 1/15/2024 at 7:22 PM, techyiam said:

I forgot to mention that the V12 uses the LG M50LT cells.

At below 10 C (50 F), the maximum discharge current is 2.4 A. Since it is a 4P batter configuration, that's 9.6 A.

I read a post on Facebook where a rider who was riding in the cold experienced a cutout on his V12.

 

The change to Orange colour is a feature, not a bug.

 

In the case of me today with my V12, it was stored at 5 C. So, yeah, the maximum discharge for each cell was limit to 2.4 A. 

I didn't know that. Good to know!

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