[FRC]

Thanks for putting the time to run the experiment and reporting back. Let us know if you see any changes over the next few weeks on the vehicle you just balanced as the car goes through a few normal charge cycles. I've seen it take time for new found range to show up as the computer recalibrates to the balanced pack.

As I understood your video...If no further energy is used after achieving 100% SOC then no balancing has occurred and thus, no range increase should be expected. Do I have that wrong?

 

[IceMan8247]

As I understood your video...If no further energy is used after achieving 100% SOC then no balancing has occurred and thus, no range increase should be expected. Do I have that wrong?

That is correct. If the car said "Charging Complete" when it hit 100%, and the current dropped to 0A right away, then it likely didn't need too much balancing. Your pack is pretty well aligned.
We have seen some cars begin to balance at 98-99%. If it seemed like the car hung up for a while at 98% or 99% as it was charging, it likely balanced a little bitas it approached 100%.

 

[Nom]

I’m mid process. What I’m experiencing is that the car has been at 99% for a while. That is different from video which suggests will show 100% but keep charging.

Has stated ‘30 minutes remaining’ for over an hour. Amps now down to 5.

Before started calculated 100% was 283 miles. Now showing 285.

2018 Model 3 LR …67K miles. I think original max was about 310. If stays at 285 will be 8% loss.

…..

Well, before posting just checked. From 30 minutes to go … to done. 285 is the number. Have never fully charged like this. Will let it sit for 15 minutes or so and then go for a drive

 

[francoisp]

Well, before posting just checked. From 30 minutes to go … to done. 285 is the number. Have never fully charged like this. Will let it sit for 15 minutes or so and then go for a drive

Exact same thing for me.

 

[IceMan8247]

I’m mid process. What I’m experiencing is that the car has been at 99% for a while. That is different from video which suggests will show 100% but keep charging.

Has stated ‘30 minutes remaining’ for over an hour. Amps now down to 5.

Before started calculated 100% was 283 miles. Now showing 285.

2018 Model 3 LR …67K miles. I think original max was about 310. If stays at 285 will be 8% loss.

…..

Well, before posting just checked. From 30 minutes to go … to done. 285 is the number. Have never fully charged like this. Will let it sit for 15 minutes or so and then go for a drive

I've seen this happen - your car definitely just balanced - that is why it ticked up 2 miles.

This was a nuanced detail that I left out of the video because it seemed like too much information:
These cars can start balancing at 97-98-99% before 100% is even reached. That is why your car was hanging up at 99%....it was balancing the pack. It seems different cars do this final step differently depending on the state of your pack, the vehicle year and hardware, etc etc.

You can tell its balancing because the charge percentages start by ticking up at a constant rate...but as it approaches 100% and is still drawing heavy current, each percentage takes longer to tick over (the rate of change of the percentages slows way down). That energy is going into balancing the pack.
I allude to this in the video when showing the "voltage vs. SOC curve" and discuss how balancing will only take place on the upper "knee" of the curve.

I can assure you that balancing these nickel-cobalt packs occasionally is super healthy. I know it seems a little weird the first time (especially after constantly hearing "never charge above 90%!!!" on the forums). But there is a reason why you just gained back +2 miles of range....You are not doing harm by charging this way a few times per year...you are doing your pack a favor.

Thanks for running the experiment for us.

EDIT: +3 miles of range is how much my car gained in the video. From 349 to 352.

 

[Rub"Y"]

This has been the most intelligent and informative video I've watched about battery balancing. Very informative without being too complicated. Thank You! Mine is due soon, will come back and let you know. Stored mine for 4 months last winter. Went from 425 to 409 range, didn't worry too much about since I knew balancing and algorithmes probably had lots to do with it. I worked with batteries all my life mainly nickel metal hydride, they were a pain. I used to deep freeze them to restore life. I'd get an extra year out of them of daily use.

 

[FRC]

Just finished my 2020 M3P. As I alluded to earlier, I'm pretty good about exercising the limits of the battery (through both charging and driving habits). So, I was unsurprised that this procedure yielded no change in my car. Charging droppped to 0a immediately upon reached 100% SOC. Range remained 279 pre- and post-procedure.

Now, I've long suspected that my wife's 2021 MY is unbalanced. So, I'm now charging her to 100%...we'll see.

Just finished with the 2021 MY. Same procedure, same results. And my wife (her car) is a devote 80-30% behavior pattern. I was expecting to see some increase, but no joy. BTW, the reported 2-3 mile increases can easily be attributed to rounding.

I tried, but I'm not a convert.

 

[Rub"Y"]

This just means that you were already health managing your batteries health wisely. Not the case for most of us, I'm going to try this soon too and report back.

 

[Nom]

I’m mid process. What I’m experiencing is that the car has been at 99% for a while. That is different from video which suggests will show 100% but keep charging.

Has stated ‘30 minutes remaining’ for over an hour. Amps now down to 5.

Before started calculated 100% was 283 miles. Now showing 285.

2018 Model 3 LR …67K miles. I think original max was about 310. If stays at 285 will be 8% loss.

…..

Well, before posting just checked. From 30 minutes to go … to done. 285 is the number. Have never fully charged like this. Will let it sit for 15 minutes or so and then go for a drive

Ok - an update. Went for drive. Left overnight. This morning am seeing on app 93% with 264 miles. Works out to 284 miles at 100% - recognizing this might be a bit off due to rounding.

So, full 100% charge didn’t make much of a difference. I have periodically gotten the battery up to 98 / 99% in past but not often. And have drained to less than 10%. I have seen this improve my top displayed mileage in past. So, perhaps the true 100% full charge isn’t needed to accomplish the vast majority of the benefit.

 

[Feathermerchant]

The idea that you have to charge to 100% to get the pack balanced I think is wrong. There is no reason that the BMS cannot balance at levels other than 100%. It balances by cell (group of cells) voltage, not state of charge. The range estimate may change by charging to 100% though.

 

[IceMan8247]

The idea that you have to charge to 100% to get the pack balanced I think is wrong. There is no reason that the BMS cannot balance at levels other than 100%. It balances by cell (group of cells) voltage, not state of charge. The range estimate may change by charging to 100% though.

Yes, balancing can begin in as the SOC approaches 100%. I discuss this point earlier in this thread, and touch on this fact in the video when showing the Voltage vs. SOC curve and say “balancing will only take place on the knee of the curve as the State of Charge approaches 100%”

Most of the other balancing instructions I found typically say something along the lines of “charge to 100% and wait for current to stop” so I decided to shoot the video following that process, as it seemed to be the easiest/clearest set of instructions.

Thanks for the feedback!


EDIT: this article was one of our sources used while creating the video.

Tesla battery management system (BMS) calibration

Tesla battery management system (BMS) calibration instructions

tesla-info.com

CELL BALANCING:

• Plug the car in to charge, preferably on a AC charging point although you can also do this on a rapid chargerbut it may block it for others for some time.
• Set the charge limit to 100% and leave the car to charge.
• When the car reaches what appears to be 100% it may well say it has finished charging but it is drawing current. Leave the car charging until it indicates no energy is being added to the battery. This can take some time (an hour or so) after the car appears to have reached 100%. The charge rate may drop to under 10A which is fine. Let the car do what it needs to do.
• Eventually the battery will stop stop taking on current. Be mindful if you have the heating on, the car will still be taking current, but not for the purposes of charging the battery

 

[Rub"Y"]

I'm one of those daily 50-80% owners. Charging to 100% as I write this. I have never charged it to the limit yet in 10 months of ownership. When I first got my Y it would show 427kms @ 80% SOC, it is now 408kms. I know the battery hasn't degraded that much in 10 months so hopefully this recal of the system via BMS will help restore my range numbers a bit. I don't expect 427 but 420 would be encouraging. Will post later with my findings.

It dropped from 32 amp to 31 at 98% and showing 500 kms of range.

99% and 505kms of range. Current flow has dropped to 27 amps. So far everything in the video is smack on the button.

Down to 12 amps

Eventhough the APP shows 1 amp steps for current it is actually a slow decrease as my meter shows.

Also took this opportunity to measure temperatures. The 10-40 connector was the warmest with the breaker a close second everything else was at room temperature. All was expected and normal.

 

[Rub"Y"]

Topped out at 512KMs estimated @ 100%, I understand that this may vary as it re-calibrates after a few charges. If I still have 408Kms @ 80% I will come back and tell you guys this changed nothing for me. Till then it was a fun experiment.

 

[Power Surge]

I liked the video. I gave it a try. Unfortunately, I relied on the app's remaining charging time to gauge when to return to the car to watch the ending charge, and the car had finished about 20 minutes sooner than predicted.

I did however notice a DROP in full charge miles. My car has shown 295 miles on a full charge sinice I bought it used last year, and now shows 293.

With that said.... I really don't put much stock in the charging numbers that I see on the screen. I 1000% believe that charge numbers and energy usage can be, and are, altered by Tesla during updates. Not saying that it's intentional (also not ruling it out either), but I have seen it several times on my car on various updates.

 

[IceMan8247]

I liked the video. I gave it a try. Unfortunately, I relied on the app's remaining charging time to gauge when to return to the car to watch the ending charge, and the car had finished about 20 minutes sooner than predicted.

I did however notice a DROP in full charge miles. My car has shown 295 miles on a full charge sinice I bought it used last year, and now shows 293.

With that said.... I really don't put much stock in the charging numbers that I see on the screen. I 1000% believe that charge numbers and energy usage can be, and are, altered by Tesla during updates. Not saying that it's intentional (also not ruling it out either), but I have seen it several times on my car on various updates.

Thanks for sharing your results. This is helpful information.

UPDATE: A technical error was just brought to my attention in the video regarding my description of the balancing process. I want the content to be accurate, so I'm removing the video so I can make can few tweaks. I will reupload the video after its been fixed. Thank you everyone

 

[Rub"Y"]

Doing this changed nothing for me as far as estimated range. I understand that this algorithm is completely separate from the battery pack and that it may take several charge sessions to catch up. Still at 408kms @ 80%. So at least no harm done.

 

[Bippie]

Does any of this apply to other Tesla models (S? X?)

 

[Jrogern]

Hey guys,
We just released a new video that details the battery balancing process on my 2022 Model 3 Long Range (not to be confused with "recalibration").

EDIT: after uploading the video yesterday, a technical error was brought to my attention regarding my description of the balancing process. I truly want the content to be accurate, so I'm going to make some tweaks to the video and re-upload.

Hi Iceman8247, not sure why, but I don't see the video in your post. Can you direct me to where to see it. Thanks

 

[Avid]

I think he is still editing it, not uploaded version 2 yet.

 

[NR4P]

I have a 2018 M3 LR. It was spec'd at 310 miles with 19" wheels. Best ever was 308 shortly after delivery.
About 2 years ago, it was down to 280 miles at 100%. I left it at the service center for some warranty work and right before a holiday weekend, they finished the car and left it plugged into a L2 charger, and set it to 100%. I watched this for 36 hours on the app, all pxxxxxd off at the car charging to 100% and sitting there like that all that time.

But when I picked up the car, at first very very angry at them, the miles at 100% were up to 290 miles.

Back then I suspected something like balancing happened, but my anger at the car sitting there that long at 100% changed to happiness. Perhaps its time to try the 100% thing again.