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What is a T-Rex? Catch up on what I’ve been doing.
Рет қаралды 8,823
5 жыл бұрынThis is my Tesla range extending camper build. I call it the T-Rex Camper. It uses a Tesla 85kwh battery pack with an aluminum trailer built around it and a foamie fiberglass camper built on top of it all. It will extend the range of my 2014 Toyota (Tesla) Rav4 EV AND provide energy storage for my off grid home. Pretty cool stuff! In late 2019 I bought a Tesla Model X and using the T-Rex enabled me to drive 550 miles. (at the time the Model X could only do around 300 miles by itself so it was a huge improvement)
Many of the products I used can be found in my Amazon store by going here.
www.amazon.com/shop/jamesklafehn
Northern Tool Aluminum Trailer. Its shipped in 2 boxes and easy to put together.
amzn.to/2Eqn2OM
Here is the link to the entire T-Rex V1 playlist.
• T-Rex V1 EV Range Exte...
Follow my journey as I build my first foamie camper.
• Foamie Camper Build
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My Amazon Store -
www.amazon.com/shop/jamesklafehn
My Ebay Store - CONTACT ME DIRECTLY FOR THE BEST DEALS! www.ebay.com/sch/jimbo69ny/m....
Tesla referral code.
ts.la/james37302
Thank you so much for subscribing, sharing and liking my videos! It really means a lot to me! If you have any questions or comments please feel free to leave them below.
#TRexCamper #epoxyresin #foamiecamper #evrangeextender
@greenmoose_ 5 жыл бұрын
thanks for the updates! loving seeing this all come together!
@JamesKlafehn 5 жыл бұрын
No problem! Thanks for warching!
@BenjaminNelsonX 5 жыл бұрын
Nice work, James! I've been playing around with a Ford Ranger EV lately. It has non-standard batteries, so they are in the bed. That means they are accessible and I could easily connect to them with an additional battery pack in parallel. I think on my setup, it would be really EASY to add a battery trailer. I have a classic travel trailer. It sure would be interesting to add batteries to that so that the trailer "pulls it's own weight"!
@JamesKlafehn 5 жыл бұрын
Yeah I am sure its doable. What is the voltage range of your batteries?
@BenjaminNelsonX 5 жыл бұрын
@@JamesKlafehn The truck is running on 26 x 12V nominal batteries. About 350V to 312V. I think I could get another 26 of the same batteries. That way, it would just be two identical packs in parallel. I would just need long/heavy cables on the trailer to reach up to the truck with a disconnect. What did you do about your packs being at NOT the same voltage while connecting them?
@JamesKlafehn 5 жыл бұрын
@@BenjaminNelsonX That is a doable range for the Tesla pack. You wouldnt be using the full capacity of the pack though. However for camping, we can fully charge the pack, have plenty of power for lights, coffee maker, microwave, radio, etc. My new battery controller will have multiple modes for different situations. Tesla S/X mode, Rav4 EV mode, Bolt mode, Camping mode, Home storage mode, etc. Each mode will change voltage limits and thermal controls based on the use. I have tested them at 60 volt difference. People always ask me and insist that I am going to burn my house down. lol Its just voltage and current. Plan for it and all is fine. I have seen 80 amps peak upon initial connection. Thats nothing. After the initial spike it tapers down rather quickly as they balance. Jack Rickard did a video about it last year. He found that he could balance 2 Tesla 85 kwh packs at a pretty large difference. Something like 70% difference. As long as your cables are large enough its fine.
@JamesKlafehn 5 жыл бұрын
@@BenjaminNelsonX I just watched your latest video. I heard you say that "some people are using trailers". To be clear, no one else is doing this. The only other person who has done anything close was Jehu but he only slapped it together using borrowed modules from EV West for a single road trip. I am definitely not a cocky or egotistical person but I am the only person in the world who has done this. Jehu's, while very cool, didn't use a BMS, thermal management, and was all very temporary. My T-Rex V1 has been in use for over a year and a half. I have taken many road trips with it. Last summer I drove to Chicago from Ithaca NY (check out my youtube channel). Mine utilizes a BMS, battery heater, battery cooler and a custom built controller. No one else in the world is doing this. I heard of one company who was talking about making a prototype that used a Tesla drive unit but if they ever do it they are years behind me. I would be happy to help you or maybe even sell you a trailer. I have put a ton of work, time and money into this and I thought the topic needed to be a little more clear. I subscribed! I look forward to following along on your build!
@tomkonrad2552 5 жыл бұрын
Nice to see the summary of it all in one place. Thx
@JamesKlafehn 4 жыл бұрын
Thank you. I'm glad you liked it :)
@iansilver-ramp595 4 жыл бұрын
Really psyched to see you doing this, was just dreaming about this as an idea...
@JamesKlafehn 4 жыл бұрын
Thanks! It’s been a really fun project. I still have both of them and they both work great. This camper has been powering my house for months.
@iansilver-ramp595 4 жыл бұрын
@@JamesKlafehn you can do two way charging with it?
@JamesKlafehn 4 жыл бұрын
Ian Silver-Ramp what do you mean 2 way charging?
@iansilver-ramp595 4 жыл бұрын
For a grid tied system could you do something to cut peak demand? Also I was reading some of your other comments, are you thinking about selling parts of the system you've built?
@JamesKlafehn 4 жыл бұрын
@@iansilver-ramp595 That would depend on the inverter, not my battery. My battery is connected to my Princeton Power DRI10. It handles charging the battery. It can be on or off grid. I have a playlist that shows my home solar and storage system
@re-thinkthis4880 5 жыл бұрын
Very cool work. Keep it up.
@JamesKlafehn 5 жыл бұрын
Re-Think This thank you very much!
@J-A2013 5 жыл бұрын
Always doing amazing work 👌
@JamesKlafehn 5 жыл бұрын
Thanks Jay!
@J-A2013 5 жыл бұрын
No pro. glad to see more subs coming in 👌🏽
@JamesKlafehn 5 жыл бұрын
@@J-A2013 me too! Its pretty awesome. Makes me a little nervous though. Last year I was just a guy videotaping myself working in my garage and drinking beer. Im slowly becoming a youtuber haha
@J-A2013 5 жыл бұрын
You don’t need to worry about anything just keep doing your thing and everything else will fall in to please slowly but sorely
@MrMoises27 5 жыл бұрын
Amazing work by the way.
@JamesKlafehn 5 жыл бұрын
Thanks!
@oldsloane 3 жыл бұрын
Why not block it out with foam and then shape it and cover it with fiberglass?
@dcraigslist5243 4 жыл бұрын
Why not use any bondo fillers? Just curious. I am guessing the thickened epoxy is stronger?
@JamesKlafehn 4 жыл бұрын
Bondo wont adhere to resin. I never tried it but thats what a few experts told me. It might stay for a bit but it will eventually flex and crack then fall off.
@Lucas-og1xq 4 жыл бұрын
This is awesome. How much does it weigh? Did I miss that part?
@JamesKlafehn 4 жыл бұрын
I have a video up about it but it is 2600. Might weigh a little more now with pillows, sheets and the new nose cone.
@evopwrmods 5 жыл бұрын
What about Solar Panels to help refurbish the energy in the batteries ?
@JamesKlafehn 5 жыл бұрын
Quinton P. Young III watch this. kzfaq.info/get/bejne/kOCblMphu8u2dKs.html
@MrMoises27 5 жыл бұрын
I love the Rav4, l wish mine was electric. How do you service your car? I know that only California could service the ev.
@JamesKlafehn 5 жыл бұрын
Yeah its a great car! That's one reason why I like mine so much. So much room. Its the largest EV aside from a $100k model x, which I also love but thats like 7 Rav4 EVs lol. I havent need much of anything but Toyota has regional techs that service Ravs if needed
@wesleypipelayer7627 4 жыл бұрын
Slap solar panels on the trailer. Most driving is daytime anyways
@jesscneal 5 жыл бұрын
Your axle placement looks too far forward. What's your tongue weight?
@JamesKlafehn 5 жыл бұрын
The battery pack is huge and heavy. 1330 lbs just for the pack. The pack stops 2’ before the end of the trailer. So it looks like that but most of the weight is forward. It’s not done yet but it was around 250 lbs tongue weight at the moment.
@jesscneal 5 жыл бұрын
James Klafehn Sounds good. Good luck with the rest of the build. Great progress 👍
@JamesKlafehn 5 жыл бұрын
Jess Neal thanks so much!
James Klafehn
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