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Imhotep
Active Member
There was a 12V in the frunk of the beta Slate I saw at the Space Needle yesterday. Right next to the light on the passenger side. I was joking with the Slate rep about smoking and drinking out of the frunk. Having said that, this particular Slate did not have a drain hole for the frunk cooler feature. Prototype disclaimer.
cvollers
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12v outlet or 12v battery? I ask because more than one person on this forum has claimed that Slate is including a 12v battery. I’ll believe it when I see it. Until then I’m going with a voltage step down converter.
Imhotep
Active Member
Both. There is a 12V battery under the frunk cover on the passenger side and a few inches from that is a 12V cigarette lighter style outlet. The Slate rep would not let me look inside the fuse box which was also near by. There is also a 12V cigarette lighter in the dash between the center and RH flip up doors and two USB-A jacks on the LH side of the center compartment of the dash. Disclaimer: I was looking at a prototype.
cvollers
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I see it. Is that a LiFePO4 12v battery?
Trace26
Well-Known Member
Lead acid more than likely, much cheaper and I believe I see the fill ports on top.
They use the 12v battery as a buffer for the DC-DC converter.
Dorbiman
Well-Known Member
It’s also pretty much a requirement. The low voltage system is what does all the safety checks before closing the contactors and enabling high voltage. It’s what does the handshake for charging, and in the event that a crash occurs, is what closes the contactors, disabling the HV system and then runs the hazard lights, etc.
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Trace26
Well-Known Member
If the battery is a standard flooded lead acid I'll probably swap it out for a AGM unit. Seems to help solve most problems. Hopefully it will just ship with one.
AKrietzer
Active Member
I'm not sure why there isn't just a converter, cost I assume. Lucid still has a separate 12 v battery. I asked Slate Auto, and there is a 12 v battery in the frunk. You can see it in the Munro video in the center of the firewall, but I think it is now located on the passenger side.
Trace26
Well-Known Member
DC to DC converters produce an AC ripple that can be dampened by a battery.
Also, the DC converter would have to be on all the time which means it would increase the standby loss. Meaning your battery would drain faster just sitting there.
Having a buffer battery let's you store power so you can turn off everything so standby loses are much lower.
On the side of safety, if the converter died while on the road you would instantly loose all the 12v systems where with a battery you would have some warning.
Could you make a converter system work? Probably, but like you said, it would be more expensive and complex.
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