Fused 12 VDC access in the dash would be nice.

[KevinRS]

Power for the heated seat covers was mentioned, but there hasn't been mention of those covers since. I would expect wiring for the power windows to also be factory, since that's kind of a core accessory that will see significant installs.
Radio and speaker wiring hasn't really been mentioned as a fully supported accessory, so there is probably a greater chance that those wires won't be present.

I would expect we will start back to getting updates "soon" including real accessory updates, rather than the mock-up concepts shown in the maker for most.

 

[metroshot]

I am hoping Slate will be first to put in higher capacity 12V AGM batteries to avoid all other brands which have failed, causing many issues.

Here's a recent article on a Tesla losing 12V charge, locking in the driver and passenger:

https://tech.yahoo.com/transportation/articles/woman-plugs-tesla-110-miles-231500464.html

 

[KevinRS]

I'm unclear on how the high voltage-12 volt stepdown happens, and why these vehicles are apparently so critically dependent on a 12 volt battery in a way that it becomes a failure point.
I'm guessing the charging of that 12v battery is dependent on at least a relay that runs off of that 12 volt system?
12v runs lights, cooling, heating, accessories, etc I'm guessing, but I would think that a more robust design would allow most of that to run on a direct stepdown from the HV system with some capacitors, and limit what can actually drain the small 12 battery.

 

[ElectricShitbox]

I'm unclear on how the high voltage-12 volt stepdown happens, and why these vehicles are apparently so critically dependent on a 12 volt battery in a way that it becomes a failure point.
I'm guessing the charging of that 12v battery is dependent on at least a relay that runs off of that 12 volt system?
12v runs lights, cooling, heating, accessories, etc I'm guessing, but I would think that a more robust design would allow most of that to run on a direct stepdown from the HV system with some capacitors, and limit what can actually drain the small 12 battery.

There's been electric vehicles that try to operate without a 12v battery by directly powering accessories from the DC-DC converter, but typically you want a separate power source to turn on the computers and such without having the high voltage on. Using a regular 12v car battery gives a certain amount of reserve capacity for hazard lights, and also to charge a dead battery there still needs to be communication on the vehicle end. This is an extremely robust system that doesn't cause any problems unless you 1: try to get away with a tiny 12v that dies immediately after the HV battery dies or 2: you design your car to never really turn off so it can be in constant communication without telling the HV battery to kick on and recharge the 12v.

 

[ValkorTheOptimistic]

I'm all for a battery for emergency purposes (fob, I'm looking at you), but give me terminals to tap into the 48V for dashcams and such. I'll wire up something like this, and not worry about the emergency battery or radio memory.
https://www.mouser.com/ProductDetai...=sGAEpiMZZMsc0tfZmXiUndCHTK42Bau1C6YrNlHBFto=

 

[KevinRS]

The battery doesn't need to be a regular car battery at all, because you don't have a starter. Those high cold cranking amps are useless. Something more in line with an RV or boat deep cycle battery makes more sense, but of course it shouldn't have to cycle all that deep either, that would be why they end up with such small batteries. Is still think part of the problem is too much running off the battery that should be isolated and have no voltage unless the DC-DC converter is running. Possibly a different battery chemistry than they chose in those problem vehicles would help too.
If there is standby load on the battery that can drain it, and it isn't cut off before it is critical, then the DC-DC converter needs to turn on periodically to keep things charged. I'd expect that during charging the HV system, that inverter would be on to top off the 12v and run the monitoring that needs to happen.

 

[ElectricShitbox]

The battery doesn't need to be a regular car battery at all, because you don't have a starter. Those high cold cranking amps are useless. Something more in line with an RV or boat deep cycle battery makes more sense, but of course it shouldn't have to cycle all that deep either, that would be why they end up with such small batteries. Is still think part of the problem is too much running off the battery that should be isolated and have no voltage unless the DC-DC converter is running. Possibly a different battery chemistry than they chose in those problem vehicles would help too.
If there is standby load on the battery that can drain it, and it isn't cut off before it is critical, then the DC-DC converter needs to turn on periodically to keep things charged. I'd expect that during charging the HV system, that inverter would be on to top off the 12v and run the monitoring that needs to happen.

Every time a manufacturer tries to minimize the 12v battery size, it becomes an issue.



The high voltage contactors take more amperage than you think. Not as much as a starter motor, but enough that it's worthwhile keeping a larger battery. I learned long ago that you can't have too big of a 12v battery, but you can definitely go too small.

 

[RedJoker]

I've converted my golf cart, lawnmower, and two shed solar systems to LiFePo4. I would be a shame if I couldn't do the same with this. Heck, give it room for a 100ah LiFePo and there will be tons of available swaps with "high" current capabilities.