Pedalease 1500w kit NOT running at 1500w please help p

Marko222

Finding my (electric) wheels
Jun 16, 2019
8
0
Hi, I have recently bought a pedalease 1500w kit, this is the model with a built in 35a controller within the motor, it has the sw900 display and a 48v 17.5ah.

I can only get it to display maximum 800w but it is normally displaying around 650w on full throttle or with pedal assist on full assistant settings. I notice that the sw900 only shows three digits in the watts display on the screen and I have been told buy the seller of the kit that it will show a maximum 999w but it will be running at 1500w which I can understand as it only has three digits but my problem is I can't get it to show 999w only 650w, my friend has a similar kit but the slightly older version with the separate controller and his runs at 1500w on his display (it has 4 digits on his screen) and his is much faster and more powerful as you would expect for 1500w vs my 650w. I have been through the settings and it says on the screen that it is set to 35a. Any help would be much appreciated
 

Benjahmin

Esteemed Pedelecer
Nov 10, 2014
2,460
1,675
69
West Wales
It may well be the battery, to expect any battery to deliver 35A is a big ask. Do you know what cells are in the battery? What rating is the battery BMS?
 

Marko222

Finding my (electric) wheels
Jun 16, 2019
8
0
Hi thanks for the reply the battery is a 48v 17.5 ah 3.5e Samsung cell battery with built in BMS board, in the add it was the one to buy with the 1500w motor.
Below is a link to the kit and battery



Thanks
 

danielrlee

Esteemed Pedelecer
May 27, 2012
1,348
688
Westbury, Wiltshire
torquetech.co.uk
An obvious point, but have you tested this with a fully charged battery?

Can you check what custom parameter 'P14' (current limiting) is set to on the LCD display?

Finally, does your LCD display allow you to access custom parameter 'P17'?
 
Last edited:

danielrlee

Esteemed Pedelecer
May 27, 2012
1,348
688
Westbury, Wiltshire
torquetech.co.uk
The battery is a 35E 5P pack - not ideal, but should be able to manage the odd bit of 35A drain. The BMS isn't cutting off power and the fact that the LCD display never shows more than 800W makes me believe that something else is amiss.
 

Marko222

Finding my (electric) wheels
Jun 16, 2019
8
0
Yeah I have charged the battery and chacked it on a multi meter and fully charged it was showing over 50v I can't remember exact reading but definitely kicking out full power.
Perameter p14 is set to 35a and I can't access p17

My friend has the same battery on his kit (the slightly older version of the kit) and his dose run at 1500w and is faster and more powerful which leads me to believe the battery is capable of out putting at the advertised 1500w and that it isn't just one of our displays showing an inaccurate wattage reading as his is more powerful when running the bikes side by side. We tested the bikes mine flat out with fully open throttle and he road at the side of me and used part throttle to match my speed and his display was also showing around 700w same as mine but when he used full throttle he pulled away from me (displaying 1500w)
 
Last edited:

Marko222

Finding my (electric) wheels
Jun 16, 2019
8
0
It feels like I have a setting that is wrong or feels like it is been restricted some how but I have been through the display settings and everything seems to be as it should be. It is incredibly frustrating, it isn't that I want to ride it at full speed every where I go but I live in a very hilly area and it would be nice to have a little more to boost up the steep hills and I feel with my friends been a little more powerful it makes for a more enjoyable ride. I would love it if someone can come up with a solution, it would be massively appreciated as it was an expensive kit for it not to be working as it should
 

Nealh

Esteemed Pedelecer
Aug 7, 2014
19,991
8,173
60
West Sx RH
The 35E is not a high drain cell and for best cycle life is best kept to 1c or 3.5a draw per cell in parallel. It is a high capacity low drain cell and is a poor choice for 1500w motor.For now the battery may supply the power required but down the line it will/should suffer.
NASA did some extensive capacity & life cycle testing and chose the 35E for it's high life cycle as low draw (0.3c) , it appears it was the ideal battery for their space exploration needs in powering and trickle charging at low C rate by solar panels.
 
Last edited:

Nealh

Esteemed Pedelecer
Aug 7, 2014
19,991
8,173
60
West Sx RH
Your mates battery may well have a different BMS and a higher discharge rating.

For charging the lower the charge rate the better, 5a charging again is well over 1c rate and will lead to the batteries demise quicker. At high amp loading the cells suffer from high internal resistance and sag like hell.

The cells are rated for 3.5a continuous discharge and can do 8a for a short time, even at 5a it will not be happy. Drawing 35a from a 5p string will be stressing the cells some.

Look at the 5a discharge line and see how it sags terribly, down to 3.3v the battery gives less then half of it's capacity and at 3.2v a little more.


Compare it to the GA cell and you will see the difference.
 
Last edited:

Nealh

Esteemed Pedelecer
Aug 7, 2014
19,991
8,173
60
West Sx RH
Yeah I have charged the battery and chacked it on a multi meter and fully charged it was showing over 50v I can't remember exact reading but definitely kicking out full power.
Perameter p14 is set to 35a and I can't access p17

Over 50v isn't enough info, you should be seeing at least 54v and ideally nearer 54.6v. Anyhting less then 54v is not great for a new battery.
 

vfr400

Esteemed Pedelecer
Jun 12, 2011
9,822
3,985
Basildon
Batteries that look the same aren't necessarily the same. Look at the listing for your one. It clearly states the rated current as 15 amps, which is 720W. Also, you can't go by what cells they say are in it. when you open the battery, you often see something entirely different.

I'm not convinced that the battery is the cause of your problem, but it is a concern that it doesn't have a high enough rating because if you run it at a current too high for its rating, you can destroy it very quickly.

Anyway, your battery swap will determine whether the battery makes a difference to your problem. If it's not that, it can only be that the controller is limiting the current. If you can't increase it by the settings, you should add some solder to the shunt. A wattmeter or ammeter would be handy for determining the actual current and whether your settings actually change anything. I've seen many times settings in LCD that have no affect on the controller, presumably because the controller doesn't have that feature in its software. Don't forget, the LCD doesn't control anything. It only sends instructions down a wire, like you can send me an instruction to send all my money to you, but it doesn't follow that you're going to get it.
 

Nealh

Esteemed Pedelecer
Aug 7, 2014
19,991
8,173
60
West Sx RH
What people don't understand is that high capacity cells can't give both capacity and high current, you have to except one or the other or accept a middle ground esp with batteries having only 4 or 5 cells in parallel. High capacity is possible at low current, for 1500w and 35a a higher spec battery cell is needed or a lot more cells in parallel somthing a kin to 10- 15 cells in P.
 

Marko222

Finding my (electric) wheels
Jun 16, 2019
8
0
This is all great advice and incredibly helpful, I really appreciate all your comments, I checked with the father in law who tested the battery with me and it was around 55v when fully charged.

From the information you guys are telling me I gather I would be far better running the kit at the power that it is currently at rather than trying to push it to get its 1500w that I was hoping for. I will still test my friends battery just to see what happens but definitely think I will be best not looking to push the battery any more that it is currently at.
 

Nealh

Esteemed Pedelecer
Aug 7, 2014
19,991
8,173
60
West Sx RH
This is all great advice and incredibly helpful, I really appreciate all your comments, I checked with the father in law who tested the battery with me and it was around 55v when fully charged.

From the information you guys are telling me I gather I would be far better running the kit at the power that it is currently at rather than trying to push it to get its 1500w that I was hoping for. I will still test my friends battery just to see what happens but definitely think I will be best not looking to push the battery any more that it is currently at.
Tbh you are better getting rid of the DD and fitting a good lighter geared hub and a 17/20a controller for the 35E, you will loose the speed of the DD hub but will gain better climbing ability. A geared hub will put out approx. up to 800w with a 20a controller.
 

vfr400

Esteemed Pedelecer
Jun 12, 2011
9,822
3,985
Basildon
It would be best to run around 600 to 700 watts. If it's the controller, you can fix it to get more power for emergency use, like occasional steep hills, but you shouldn't run at continuous high power. It wouldn't surprise me if the battery has a 25 amp (1200w) BMS, so you might find that it cuts out if you go higher.