Amazing, so happy to hear that the upgrade went so smoothly! Hats off to Havrla!

What was the rough price of the upgrade with the battery at Havrla? I am finding 2015 REX models now in price range of 15 000 EUR in Europe. I am just wondering if buying one and changing to the 120Ah battery is worth it. It would be a neat long range package.

@@rollojoel1686 Always better to buy the correct battery size from the start.

@@rollojoel1686 That’s exactly the thing to do. If willing to wait, 7900 + 1000 installation. I paid 12 to get on top of waiting list, have it picked up and dropped back in front of my door. It’s well worth the price..

@@rollojoel1686 I bought a 94Ah Navi/leather/sunroof 16500km in May for 22.000, got 2000subsidy and some part ex. Prices have probably gone up due to the chip shortage.

That will never happend because they stop manufacture them 2022.

Thanks Sal!

@@DalasEVRepair As with all modifications ` research research research ` before embarking down the rabbit hole of modifying :):)

Yeah it seems to only be the 60Ah that doesn't restrict regen at high SOC. Both 94 and 120Ah charge to higher voltages, so that explains it!

Absolutely agree! Thanks 😁

Like a "Right to Repair" law

Exactly !!!! its fuking rediculas,, you buying this EV and than you having too many problems and cost too much

I think of myself more as an engineer, but thanks 😅

Thanks Sean!

Not possible, the BMS will limit the cells to max 21kWh.

@@DalasEVRepair Why? The BMS usually only care about Voltage and Delta-Voltage. As the pack ages, the capacity decreases, so it won't keep trying to reach "21kWh" (18.8kWh usable)... no, it will just limit charge until the peak Voltage is reached... then the Charge Current decreases to the appropriate level. Substituting the 94Ah modules in place of the 60Ah modules should work... but I would also keep the all of the original 60Ah BMS modules that were in the 60A pack... so that everybody already knows everybody... and they should be able to play together nicely... just longer-per-charge. I have to believe someone out there has tried this... but I just found a locked 90Ah pack for cheap... and it might be worth the try.

If you are buying a car then go right for the battery size you need. This is more for dedicated owners!

See my latest input above..

Yes, Havrla is awesome!

The oil is soluble in coolant. If the coolant is drained from the system, some of the oil will leave with the coolant. The oil must therefore be topped up. And this is the reason why these things should not be done by people who do not know what they are doing.

can you explain why that matters either way your having to drain a refrigerant before removing the battery as the a/c should be able to cool either battery he says nothing about the r134a a/c system being unable to cool a 120 amphour battery

@@raven4k998 he made special note about which refrigerant was in the car, and if you are DIYing this project you need to know which tools to have ready to do the work. R134a and R1234yf require different recover and charging machines and hoses.

@@tonyfoley9189 oh ok just wondering thats all

@@tonyfoley9189 how much does the 120 battery cost does anyone know the Canadian cost for one?

@@raven4k998 sorry, don't have that info.

Nvm found it in description and emailed them already thanks ..are you based in Finland in case anypne there needs help ?

Good you found it, and yes, I'm based in Finland!

@@DalasEVRepair yes already in email contact with them ..we have some followers in Finland Sweden Poland and Baltic states so we may send some biz your way ..you never know !

Adding active cooling to the Leaf batteries is a bit too much work. Ofcourse I could make some one-off solution, but to industrialize the solution is too much for a one person job (that usually works at nights :D )

Probably not possible. That is a bruteforce upgrade, and most BMSes limit the input kWh to match what the cells should be.

I doubt it will ever be cost-effective to overcome the software & hardware challenges in a 500e. I would love to have 40% more range, I hope to hang on to it long enough to see if it's going to be a possibility. Hard to say what price would be acceptable.

Something like that may be in the works... 😅

@@DalasEVRepair did anything ever come of finding out how to fix a locked out battery?

@@MiniLifeCrisis have not encountered one yet!

@@DalasEVRepair I have one which will be going in a Classic Mini, if you know of any more info it would be a massive help. Thanks

@@MiniLifeCrisis EoS tester is the official tool. Look into renting one!

first plug play was on the 120?

It does make sense why it was plug and play and just needed coding but you need an understanding of these cars/battery units

Curious to hear how much it cost when you bought it? 😁

@@DalasEVRepair about €10k from memory

@@tomby10 Where about are you in UK?

Do you know anyone who actually does the full upgrade job - including the ac fluids etc.?

@@londonwestman1 most good independent garages should be able to do everything but the eos test and maybe the software update. I can do those bits.

No idea!

Hi, This information is still not clear to me, but will hopefully be soon. It requires significant investment in time,tools and multiple software licenses, so shops usually don't want to disclose everything. Shops will need to provide this service to pay for the investment, and then you can't unfortunately share it. Hope you understand!

See my input above..

@@garyhoward4064 thanks for the info glad your upgrade went well. As for me I am in Quebec so not really an option to work with this company for now.

No experience with those (yet...)

What about the Mercedes B250e? Any plans wih this one? Thanks for your great work 👍

Man those Leafs are so cheap to get into , hard to stay away from them. One just showed up in the Atlanta north pull-a-part last weekend according to their automated text notifications system ... it’s like leafs grow on trees.

Use the Battery-Emulator, it has support for i3 batteries plug'n'play. I have 2x BMW i3 packs that I am going to use! Video coming soon!

That isn't true in Europe as the 120 REx is unavailable

If I had a 94 I wouldn't bother, the 60 could really use the help though, REX or BEV. For me a little more range would go a long way, a lot of range somewhat of a waste.

@@rp9674 I have a 94 REx. I think it's a great compromise. It's effectively a 100% electric commuter car and then you can take longer trips with it using the gas. I've gone 945 miles one way and used electricity maybe 50% of the time.

@@DeputyNordburg are you using European spec, hold state of charge function?

@@rp9674 I am at my desk right now so no. But i do sometimes. :) I live on the East coast of the US, so I don't have many mountains to climb. I usually just let it kick on by itself.

propably its same system: www.tesla.com/videos/battery-swap-event

The man in the pit is Havrla, he is testing out the battery rail system that he constructed! It looks quite fun :D Official BMW dealership will not help you do the 120Ah upgrade, only the 94Ah one! Need to take it to some specialist :)

Why do you say that. I did it on mine 3 years ago it was one of the best decisions.

@@garyhoward4064 it all depends where your region is. Are you in the US? I'm sure if its in the EU, it is much easier as upgrades were offered from the dealer, and the fact that he keeps on mentioning "if your lucky" isnt too reassuring.

@@SkippyPB. I am in Switzerland and it took me 2 years to find someone to do it. All BMW dealers refused to do the upgrade. I finally located the specialist in Europe and he's 700 miles from my home. He flew in on a Monday drove to Czech republic and delivered the car back to me on the Friday. Now I have both the electric larger range and the backup engine in case I miscalculate. I owned many cars in my life but this is by far the best one for my needs and will never sell it.

​@@garyhoward4064Helou.. how much do you pay for oppgrade ? And can you tell me name off company how oppgrade yours car?? I'm interested to check options to opgrade our i3..

​@@shhs6127Search i3upgrade Havrla

Yeah the active thermal management system really gets in the way for DIYers. Kinda funny how everyone always hated on the Leafs passively cooled packs, the upside of having no thermal management system makes for oh so easier cars to work on!

An older used electric car is not for you.. Try getting a used Chevy Bolt or Volt, the Bolt gets 250 miles on a charge and a used Bolt cost about $15k. There are plenty used i3's with the 22kwh or the 33kwh batteries that have a range extender. You can program the range extender in which you turn it on once the battery is under 75% and the extender will hold the battery at that 75% as long as you drive moderately and avoid long hill climbing. You have to keep gas in the extender as it's range is only about 70 miles at a time and it's gas tank is only 2 gallons..

@@mamadouaziza2536 I had picked up a pair of 2011 and a 2012 Leaf last year and swapped the batteries to have a nice looking 2012 with a ok in town car for me but the styling doesn’t do it for my wife so the title of this video had me clicking fast. (I am a master tech and have a 95 Volvo 940 that I installed a Ford 5.0 engine in, little back story... oh , I have a case of the corona virus shut in ramplings.....)

@nster Yeah, if you must drive a long trip on the freeway, the older i3s with the REx is doable as long as your route has DC Fast chargers on it and gas stations.. Kyle from Out Of Spec Motoring/Reviews drove his 2015 i3 REx from North Carolina to Colorado. Another reviewer in Colorado drove his early model i3 that does not include the CCS charging in the car, drove his i3 up steep mountains and back and he only charged once or twice and it was cold out.

@@mamadouaziza2536 some guys in EU have driven i3 with and without Rex for 2000km trips (~1242 miles).

There are no flexible HV joints on the market that I know of, so I don't think such a build would be feasible.If the 120Ah (43kWh) battery is not enough, the REX is a nice option. Otherwise switching to another platform might be the best solution!

Your best bet for utilizing a Leaf battery would be to stop and charge from it. :/

You can't tow trailer with i3

@@electricwhirl5175 Incorrect - partially. It depends upon where you are. There is a hitch available for it that will tow a small trailer just fine.

@@ksnax you can tow check out you tube and previous comment is correct.

Should be quite similar, not enough specimens here to experiment with

@@DalasEVRepair Here in Sweden we have plenty of Zoes, but I think getting a used battery is harder due to that most batteries belong to Renault.

Can? Yes. Do? Not really, due to the legislation in Finland I am staying away from bruteforce upgrades.

For BMW i3? Best to contact Havrla, link in description!

Nice! Really cool to see others who did these upgrades!

Fully functional - full usable capacity or did it leave a proper buffer? How complicated... just swap product code, and read SME? I have the 94Ah ready for a swap/retrofit... just need instructions. Mine = USA 2015 BEV w/heat pump and heated seats

Correct, professional (often licensed) equipment is needed. We drove the car 40meter once it was empty, but you really should try to minimize it!

@@DalasEVRepair Is it a job a regular professional air con guy could do? Or is there a particular machine / process required for the i3?

@@nickscarborough1028 Special oil needed, but otherwise the same!

No clue on this yet, time will tell :)

Would be a downgrade due to lower pack voltage and slower DC charging.

I asked my bmw dealer and they said something like 37 000 EUROS !!!! yes 37 K € . What about sustainability BMW ?

I don't understand this question?

@@DalasEVRepair Bmw i3 shares the same modules with bmw c evolution(scootee). Can the modules 60Ah for 120 Ah on a bike?

@@Alberto-xw8vx The modules are the same size, so physically it fits then. No clue how the scooter handles the software side!

7-9k€!

@@DalasEVRepairHow much experience do you have with the i3 now. I am looking at purchasing a 2015 with 80K miles, and Rex. Total distance seems to be down to 105. I am wondering how much life should expect out of the battery? I replay like the car, and the deal is great with the new US 4K rebate.

It is in the description! www.i3upgrade.cz/​ i3upgrade(a)i3upgrade.cz

Exact reason why EV are dead branch of development.

BMW i3 cells are coded to the BMS. Not possible without ISTA+ -D, this will be very tricky!

yes, each of the 8 litium cells has its own monitoring unit. I will of course not exchange them, I will use pure lithium cells to twist them. All intelligent modules stay where they are.

@@nikitaollenberger8007 Then it should work, but no clue how hard those are to take apart

Does the car not notice that the battery has been disconnected (switched off?) and reconnected to the 12 V supply?

@@nikitaollenberger8007 nope

Maybe BMW introduced some other tweaks between the revisions?

@@DalasEVRepair Too much difference for unknowed items. Only the 427 "pizza wheels" are forged, and maybe the Harman Kardon with 8 extra speakers, or heat pump vs electric heaters justify the variance between 1195-1205 kg in other versions too. Well, the I3s use wider wheels and tires, but i not posted i3s weight, its 1265kg for for 94Ah (+20kg) and 1290kg for 120Ah (+20kg). So it still does not fit.

Roughly 8k€

8k euro??? Here in Ireland BMW dealer this cost around 4-5k euro...

@@yannymcgr6500 Price will come down in time. In 1-2 years it will cost only 2.5-3k Euro for 120Ah version.

@@yannymcgr6500 is that going from a 60ah to 90ah? Umm i am up in Scotland

That is enough yes!