Going away for a while

[TheSmiths22]

Hello All

I shall be going abroad later this year for three months and wondered if I kept my outlander plugged in (via the 13a plug) would this preserve and protect the 12v battery whilst the car isnt being used. I dont want to give the car to someone to drive whilst i'm away if I can help it.

Thanks in advance for your response

 

[kpetrov]

It's not very good for the main traction battery to stay fully charged for 3 months...

 

[maby]

Connect it to the mains through a smart socket and program it to come on for a couple of hours once a week.

Martin

 

[twosout]

I'm not sure that, once "Charge Complete" has been accomplished, the charger would not spring into action again until re-connected.
Doesn't the main battery check and charge the 12V battery itself? I would leave the car at least 3/4 fully charged.
I've left my car unused for over a couple of months and not thought about the little 12V battery - and it still seems to do what's necessary.
An interesting question, but I think you may be overly concerned.
(Have a good trip!)

 

[RossWilliams]

I believe I have set the automatic air conditioning to turn on once a week and the automatic charge to turn on the next day. That seems to have worked. I assume the air conditioning draws the battery down and it is then recharged and the charger also keeps the 12 volt charged.

 

[twosout]

I'm unsure what the benefit of that is?
You could see what charges have been achieved by looking at the (short term) charging history.

 

[nrayanov]

When not in use for long time it's better to have the battery between 50% and 80%, not at full.

 

[TheSmiths22]

some interesting responses, many thanks to all. I think Im going to charge the main bettery to around 12 to 15 miles which normally shows as about half full and leave it unplugged. I believe if once I turn off the car (press start) and then hold the windscreen stick in the up position for three seconds until the beep happens it will disable the alarm which should be less drain on the battery as well.

Thanks guys.

 

[rwh86]

Somewhere in the manual it tells you what happens with the 12V battery when the car is parked for an extended period. If I remember correctly, the car will use the traction battery to charge the 12V battery once per week.

 

[vs2]

Then Gen4 will do a daily maintenance charge on the 12v for about 5 minutes assuming you have capacity in your traction battery.

 

[DaveL59]

I noted today after not using the car for around 10 days that the 12v aux battery was reading only 11.9v. That's a brand new Optima 38Ah fitted in the last couple weeks. So it seems even with the daily top-up from the drive battery it may not (isn't in my case) keeping up with the parasitic drain when left unused.

Turning off the alarm isn't an option for me but fine if the car is secured away and would make some difference. Might be worth disconnecting the infotainment system as that may be the bigger drain on the 12v battery.

For sure check that the emergency key will get you in so you can jump the 12v if you need to.

 

[cirdan]

We're going O/S for a couple of months next year so I was wondering how best to leave the PHEV while we're away. Out of curiosity I asked an AI and this was the response I got from Claude 3.5 Sonnet:

The main high-voltage battery in your Mitsubishi PHEV Outlander can indeed be affected by two months of non-use, but proper preparation can minimize any negative effects. Here's more detailed information:

1. Battery degradation: Lithium-ion batteries, like the one in your PHEV, can slowly lose charge over time even when not in use. This is called self-discharge.
2. Optimal charge level: For long-term storage, it's recommended to leave the battery at about 50-60% charge. This is a compromise between minimizing degradation (which happens faster at high charge levels) and ensuring there's enough charge for vehicle systems.
3. Temperature considerations: Extreme temperatures can affect battery health. If possible, store the vehicle in a temperature-controlled environment.
4. Battery management system: Your Outlander PHEV has a battery management system that should prevent complete discharge, but it's still best to follow proper storage procedures.
5. Potential effects: After two months, you might notice a slight decrease in the battery's state of charge and potentially a minor reduction in overall capacity, but this should be minimal if proper precautions are taken.
   1. Reactivation: When you return, you may need to charge the battery fully before using the vehicle. The first few charge cycles might show slightly reduced range, but this should normalize quickly with regular use.
   2. 12V battery: While the main battery is a concern, don't forget about the 12V battery. This can discharge more quickly and might need attention after two months.
6. To mitigate any issues, consider having someone start the vehicle and run it for a short period every few weeks if possible. If not, the steps mentioned earlier should help keep your battery in good condition during your absence.

 

[Woon Chung]

This is very important concept. When PHEV designed by Mitsubishi should consider this case also. But they couldn't imagine this at the beginning of designing. They leave 12v system as ICE only car and replaced alternator's role to DC-DC converter. This simple thought leave us facing such a serious issue in modern technology age. As you may know, Outlander PHEV battery is only 45ah. This is rather small to SUV. Other regular SUV has 80 to 120ah considering the wattage of their 12v system. But Mitsubishi believes that their PHEV does not need big 12v aux battery because it has 13.8kwh huge battery for 12v system. It creates such an issue that when we do not using car for 3 months cause drain of 12v Aux Battery. I do not know whether it drains fully after 3 months. But everybody worries about it.

Compare it with this. Ioniq is most recent hybrid car. When they designed the car, they put this situation in consideration. They install 12v charge circuit inside, and if the 12v aux battery drained fully, just press the button in dash board and it will be charged by using Big battery. This is modern car. We are using 2013 tech until now without changing in 2024. That is sad.

Instead they designed port to charge from outside by using other battery. The illustration guides you how to jump start with other battery. Under hood, there is a fuse box. When you open the top cover, you can find A port, which is covered by red rubber. That is for +. Ground - to chassis in location 4.



Hope not totally drained after your travel.

PS. I just found this article in the 2022 user manual as follows.
" The 12 V starter battery is automatically and periodically charged using electrical power stored in the main drive lithium-ion battery. A buzzer in cabin sounds while the 12 V starter battery is being charged." on page 62, 3-41
However, it is in the Chapter of Wireless Remote Control, I am doubt about limitation of this clause. I don't think it is automatically charged by drive battery at any condition.

 

[littlescrote]

The Outlander PHEV charges the 12V battery from the Drive battery via the DC-DC converter on a 24hr cycle automatically (on those vehicles deemed necessary to have a large enough current drain, iei WiFi enabled).

It is entirely possible to have such a small 12V battery in a PHEV compared to ICE as you don't have to take account of the variable output from an alternator that will be very low at idle speed but much higher at higher speeds. The DC-DC converter has a 1500W (or whatever it is) capacity at all times. It doesn't need a battery to smooth its output.

 

[Woon Chung]

The Outlander PHEV charges the 12V battery from the Drive battery via the DC-DC converter on a 24hr cycle automatically (on those vehicles deemed necessary to have a large enough current drain, iei WiFi enabled).

It is entirely possible to have such a small 12V battery in a PHEV compared to ICE as you don't have to take account of the variable output from an alternator that will be very low at idle speed but much higher at higher speeds. The DC-DC converter has a 1500W (or whatever it is) capacity at all times. It doesn't need a battery to smooth its output.

Does this means that we don't have to worry about 12v Aux battery being drained if we don't use the car several months? It seems that original post TheSmiths22 worries about 12v Aux battery drain during his travel to abroad for several months.

 

[mellobob]

I seem to recall that Mitsu ship PHEVs with about a 50% battery charge from Japan. I have no idea what the time between shipping and arrival at a dealer is.

 

[littlescrote]

Does this means that we don't have to worry about 12v Aux battery being drained if we don't use the car several months? It seems that original post TheSmiths22 worries about 12v Aux battery drain during his travel to abroad for several months.

You can only not worry if you have one with a WiFi module that has been registered with a connection so that the 2pm daily charge happens automatically.

 

[Woon Chung]

You can only not worry if you have one with a WiFi module that has been registered with a connection so that the 2pm daily charge happens automatically.

I see!!

 

[Woon Chung]

I seem to recall that Mitsu ship PHEVs with about a 50% battery charge from Japan. I have no idea what the time between shipping and arrival at a dealer is.

Google says 6-8 weeks by sea. The car should be drivable to unload from the ship to port yard and from port yard to Trailer to dealership. As an amateur, I believe the workers already prepared equipment for the dead cars at the port, in the ship, at the dealership.

 

[Dirtyshirt72]

The 13A socket gets extremely hot during the charging process. This is one of the reasons it's not recommended to use it with an extension lead.
I'd be slow to leave it unattended in this situation. I'd be more inclined to get yourself a smart charger, and connect it to that, if possible.