Berlingo Electrique Electric van vehicle lithium battery 200 mile range

1998 Citroen Berlingo Electrique converted to 200 mile lithium power
or
102 200Ah HiPower LiFePO4 lithium cells, complete with handy carrying container (Citroen Berlingo).
This van has been re-configured to give a 200 mile theoretical range, or about 160 miles in real life.
1998 Citroen Berlingo Electrique converted from 50 mile NiCad to 200 mile lithium power.
Standard 15/24kW Leroy-Somer sepex DC motor with carbon brushes.
Standard SAGEM controller. SAGEM charger not used at present due to NiCad charging profile.
10Amp HiPower BC3 charger with cut off control from BMS (normally setto 3.55V on highest cell for long pack life. Could go up to 3.85V asrecommended by HiPower for slightly more range) and internal cutoff at188V pack voltage.
IM axles Peugeot Partner 800 rear subframe with forestry XTR+ setup to cope with heavy load.
Guantuo BMS with dashboard touch screen. Shows SOC, Vmax, Vmin, Temp max, Amps, as well as 6 temps and all series cell voltages on another page. I use Vmin as my primary instrument when charging. 3.33V is normal full charge, 3.20V is start to think about charging up, 2.8V is stop driving very soon, 2.5V is stop driving NOW. HiPower recommend never taking cells below 2.1V, but the discharge curve is very steep at anything below 2.8V so these limits are sensible. BMS provides audible alarm for dropping below Vmin (alarm set at 2.8V) and exceeding max Amps (set at an arbitrary 180A. SAGEM controller will limit power to 200A). BMS also provides relay output to command car into limp home mode at Vmin setting, but I have not yet wired this up, so driver must pay attention. This could be fixed with more work.
Cells arranged 2 parallel, 51 series to give 400Ah, 163.2V nominal.
Used as everyday transport. Perfectly at home around town at normal speeds up to 60mph. Insured by Adrian Flux. New range not fully tested in the real world, but indications are for at least 160 miles per charge.
Four ways to charge (all at 10A 240V single phase):
13A 3-pin
16A caravan
32A commando
7-pin type 2
All these options come back to a 16A caravan plug on the car. Existing Avcon socket could also be wired up, but I do not have an Avcon lead.
Electric ceramic heater.
Room and wiring for standard radio (none fitted)
Build detailed at
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Good points:
66 kWh battery pack, 400Ah 2p51s Hipower LiFePO4 cells (102 200Ah cells). No evidence of degradation.
200 mile theoretical range at 30 mph. 160 mile real world range at 55 mph.
Guantuo BMS , 6 slave cell monitors, 1 current monitor, dashboard touch screen (system monitor battery but does not balance)
Citroen Sagem OEM controller untouched, limits power to 200A
Leroy-Somer OEM motor untouched
IM axles Peugeot Partner 800 rear torsion bars with XTR+ forestry setup
HiPower BC3 10A 2Kw charger fitted with 16 caravan plug. Will not scorch your granny's socket. (balance board removed)
Ceramic heater mounted inside original matrix box under dashboard
Four charge socket options, all included:
IEC62196 type 2 charge lead > 16A caravan socket
32A commando charger lead > 16A caravan socket
16A caravan charger lead > 16A caravan socket
13A 3-pin charge lead > 16A caravan socket
Bad points:
Interior and wing mirrors, exterior etc. are a bit scruffy. This van was used as a project for long-range EV journeys, and style was never a consideration. Can be fixed with normal Berlingo spares.
After driving 160 miles, existing charger will take 26 hours to be full. Faster charger would be nice to make use of new 32A charge points.
Costs new:
Cells £20,000
BMS £1,500
type 2 lead £70
van,motor,controller £800
IM axle £400
front battery box £70
sundries £400???
time £????
Asking for £16,000 all in, ONO
email Tim - [email protected]
Phone or text Mary 07751 696 055

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