Tips from a Master Installer

[Deleted member 85644]

Graphene is the tech that is being looked at heavily by Asian car manufacturers and others. There is another methodology called Supercapacitors, which are also called Ultracapacitors. As well, there is a possibility for a Graphene/Supercapacitor combination.

 

[ly-70mai]

That will be true if they provide a decent power connection to the main high voltage battery. At the moment we are normally limited to using a very small secondary battery for access to 12V on electric cars, so electric cars are actually making power banks more necessary. Hopefully that will change and they will give us some decent high power USB-C PD sockets powered directly from the main battery, in which case there will be no point in additional powerbanks. That wasn't the #1 reason I think they will become obsolete though.

So what's the #1 reason why you think it's going to become obsolete?

 

[Nigel]

So what's the #1 reason why you think it's going to become obsolete?

You only need a dashcam powerbank while dashcams use a lot of power during parking mode.
As dashcams become more efficient and use less power, dashcam powerbanks will become less necessary.
A Thinkware U3000 in radar parking mode uses very little power, it can happily run off the car battery for days, maybe weeks with a decent car battery. The Thinkware U3000 is also very expensive, and doesn't appear to be a particularly good dashcam, but over the next few years dashcam power consumption is likely to decrease rather than continue increasing, and it will make more sense to buy a power efficient dashcam than to buy a dashcam powerbank to power an inefficient dashcam.

 

[ly-70mai]

You only need a dashcam powerbank while dashcams use a lot of power during parking mode.
As dashcams become more efficient and use less power, dashcam powerbanks will become less necessary.
A Thinkware U3000 in radar parking mode uses very little power, it can happily run off the car battery for days, maybe weeks with a decent car battery. The Thinkware U3000 is also very expensive, and doesn't appear to be a particularly good dashcam, but over the next few years dashcam power consumption is likely to decrease rather than continue increasing, and it will make more sense to buy a power efficient dashcam than to buy a dashcam powerbank to power an inefficient dashcam.

It is a pity that the current dash cam solution provider has no plans to provide an obviously low-power solution in the short term. Maybe people are more concerned about the quality of video recorded while driving, so the competition is concentrated in these aspects.

 

[Nigel]

It is a pity that the current dash cam solution provider has no plans to provide an obviously low-power solution in the short term. Maybe people are more concerned about the quality of video recorded while driving, so the competition is concentrated in these aspects.

It does seem that the people who buy dashcam powerbanks are the same people who buy 4K multi channel dashcams that use a lot of power.
You can buy battery powered doorbell cameras that run for 12 months between charges of their tiny internal battery, so a parking mode dashcam that will run for a week on a big car battery should be easy! A properly efficient dashcam might take until liquid fuelled cars are obsolete and we can use big electric car batteries anyway though!

 

[Deleted member 85644]

It does seem that the people who buy dashcam powerbanks are the same people who buy 4K multi channel dashcams that use a lot of power.
You can buy battery powered doorbell cameras that run for 12 months between charges of their tiny internal battery, so a parking mode dashcam that will run for a week on a big car battery should be easy! A properly efficient dashcam might take until liquid fuelled cars are obsolete and we can use big electric car batteries anyway though!

Doorbell cameras are a poor example. Manufacturers will say anywhere from one to two years. Seldom does someone get even a year of use unless the doorbell is on the backdoor and seldom rung. Most people get about 6 months and then they change batteries. If they have a sync module in the house, the batteries could last longer. Outside pedestrian, automobile and animal/moth traffic will cause the doorbell camera to have a high battery use.

 

[Deleted member 85644]

It is a pity that the current dash cam solution provider has no plans to provide an obviously low-power solution in the short term. Maybe people are more concerned about the quality of video recorded while driving, so the competition is concentrated in these aspects.

The Starvis 2 is advertised as having %30 less power consumption, the average analog voltage is 3.3 vdc. The problem is not the dashcam, the sensor, the GPS or parking mode, the problem is the car battery is not up to supplying reliable, long term power to the camera if you want parking mode. It is unlikely we will see, in my lifetime anyway, a dashcam that will run for weeks in parking mode on the average car battery. I recently replaced my stock, average performing Subaru battery with an Odyssey Group 24 dual purpose AGM battery due to accessory use. It will last longer in parking mode than the stock battery, but no much longer.

No doubt consumers want the best image quality possible, I know that I do, as do most others. That of course, with current technologies, drives a higher power usage than a camera that produces a 640x480 image. At some point it will not matter as it is a good bet that at some point in the future, all new EV cars will come with multiple dashcams that are powered from the main cells.

 

[speedingcheetah]

It is a pity that the current dash cam solution provider has no plans to provide an obviously low-power solution in the short term. Maybe people are more concerned about the quality of video recorded while driving, so the competition is concentrated in these aspects.

The Starvis 2 is advertised as having %30 less power consumption, the average analog voltage is 3.3 vdc. The problem is not the dashcam, the sensor, the GPS or parking mode, the problem is the car battery is not up to supplying reliable, long term power to the camera if you want parking mode. It is unlikely we will see, in my lifetime anyway, a dashcam that will run for weeks in parking mode on the average car battery. I recently replaced my stock, average performing Subaru battery with an Odyssey Group 24 dual purpose AGM battery due to accessory use. It will last longer in parking mode than the stock battery, but no much longer.

No doubt consumers want the best image quality possible, I know that I do, as do most others. That of course, with current technologies, drives a higher power usage than a camera that produces a 640x480 image. At some point it will not matter as it is a good bet that at some point in the future, all new EV cars will come with multiple dashcams that are powered from the main cells.

My car, has an aftermarket Remote Start system (installed by Best Buy in early 2016). Compustar with a DroneMobile add on. (and a aftermarket stereo headunit)
That DroneMobile Cellular module, was the cause of significant parasitic drain, especially, since it used 3G network.
Couple years ago, when 3G was been sunset, signal got lower and lower, and the thing had even more power drain trying to get signal.
My car battery would be dead in just under 3 days from it, overnight even in the very cold winters.
I disconnected the module, since it pretty much did not even get signal anymore (and they wanted $300 +$200+ subscription a year to upgrade it to 4G module).
And now i can get 7 days before battery is weak.

Point is, even low parasitic drain is a real issue with many vehicles. A cars battery is a Starter Battery, NOT a Deep Cycle battery.
Starter Battery is meant to stay fully charged all the time, give a massive current for a very short time, to start engine, then recharge again.
Constant deep cycling of a starter battery will kill its life... i know from experience of having to replace my car battery every couple years, instead of every 5 or 6. Even killed a AGM battery in under 3 yrs.
(when i don't drive much or long work from home times)
Dodge made it so that the battery bay will only hold a certain size battery, and I have been unable to find a "bigger" one that a store has in stock, that fits both depth and width, still secure down, and allow for the air intake duct to be re-installed over top it.

Using an external battery pack to power a dash cam for extended parking use, sounds like the best idea. But, i would think the battery type would be important. One that can withstand high heat, and very cold. I live in a place that has cold winters, to Lith-ion or similar batts, refuse to work when it that cold. ( I know cause my small portable Lith Ion battery jump starter I left in the car, fully dead/no response, in the cold winter months)

 

[Deleted member 85644]

Parasitic drain...that is a killer. I am reading on a Subaru forum the complaints about all the els and the parasitic drain on the newer cars. I just spent $3400 on my 2014 for strut assemblies, tires, filters, oil, wiper blades, BT tire pressure sensors, etc. just to keep it on the road and to keep from buying a newer car. I will drive this Subaru until I am dead, it is dead, or EV cars no longer use highly combustible lithium. Subaru Outbacks are no longer fit for purpose, they have become the "soccer mom" car, and the trendy car for wannabe outdoors men. I still wonder why their clown engineers have not put a place under the hood for dual start batteries.

 

[Dashmellow]

I will drive this Subaru until I am dead, it is dead, or EV cars no longer use highly combustible lithium.

I find it interesting that you are fearful about driving an EV with combustible lithium batteries yet you have no problem driving a conventional automobile with a tank full of combustible gasoline.

Electric vehicle fires are very rare. The risk for petrol and diesel vehicles is at least 20 times higher

Reports of electric vehicle fires might lead some people to fear the growing numbers of these vehicles will increase fire risk. In fact, replacing petrol and diesel vehicles is likely to reduce it.

theconversation.com

Myth Buster: EVs Catch Fire More than Gas Cars | DE-CO - Drive Electric Colorado

driveelectriccolorado.org

 

[kamkar]

I remember when my Volvo 121 died, getting rear ended and so shortened by 3 feet by the crash forces of getting accelerated from 20 km/h to 80 km/h in 1 M, the Volvos metal fule tank was pressed down and was just 10 mm above the asphalt.
And the boot above it, loaded up with firearms and ammo.

But then again, in a life time most should / would experience things that should prompt at least some reflection as to what the hell just went down.

 

[speedingcheetah]

It is interesting that you are fearful about driving an EV with combustible lithium batteries yet you have no problem driving a conventional automobile with a tank full of combustible gasoline.

Electric vehicle fires are very rare. The risk for petrol and diesel vehicles is at least 20 times higher

Reports of electric vehicle fires might lead some people to fear the growing numbers of these vehicles will increase fire risk. In fact, replacing petrol and diesel vehicles is likely to reduce it.

theconversation.com

Myth Buster: EVs Catch Fire More than Gas Cars | DE-CO - Drive Electric Colorado

driveelectriccolorado.org

Having seen many hundreds of car crashes in person, fire is not common a thing. Having seen maybe 7 electric car crashes, each one been lots of fire, they require special chemicals to extinguish.
Need i also mention the famous Richard Hammond Rimac crash... the batts still caught fire 5 days later

The future is... very fast, and extremely quite... but a bit burney!

 

[Dashmellow]

I too have some, "It's amazing I'm still alive stories" to tell. We could do a whole thread about it.

Having seen many hundreds of car crashes in person, fire is rarely a thing. Having seen maybe 7 electric car crashes, each one been lots of fire, they require special chemicals to extinguish.
Need i also mention the famous Richard Hammond Rimac crash... the batts still caught fire 5 days later

Spectacular lithium fires do more often make the news (and popular TV shows with laugh tracks) but the fact is that you are more likely to die in a conventional car fire according to the statistics. However many crashes you may have subjectively witnessed is basically irrelevant to the actual objective statistics nationwide.

Also, modern car battery packs such as those in the Tesla use a fire-retardant foam between the individual batteries in the pack, and there is also some means for preventing hot gasses from one overheated/exploded battery from impacting nearby batteries. Additionally, the temperatures of each of the batteries are monitored and the battery pack is actively cooled as needed, so the situation where a cell can get hot enough is very unlikely to occur in the first place. Of course, a severe crash can cause a breach in the battery pack and lead to a serious fire, as we know, but such fires, though often serious and alarming are exceedingly rare when one considers that in 2021 the US surpassed more than 2.13 million light duty EV's on the road.
The analogy is somewhat similar to airliner crashes which can also be spectacular and frightening but the chances for passengers dying in a plane crash are extremely rare.

If you bothered to read the articles I posted above, you would see that gasoline fires in cars are more than 20% more likely to occur than fires in EVs.

 

[speedingcheetah]

I too have some, "It's amazing I'm still alive stories" to tell. We could do a whole thread about it.


Spectacular lithium fires do more often make the news (and popular TV shows with laugh tracks) but the fact is that you are more likely to die in a conventional car fire according to the statistics. However many crashes you may have subjectively witnessed is basically irrelevant to the actual objective statistics nationwide.

Also, modern car battery packs such as those in the Tesla use a fire-retardant foam between the individual batteries in the pack, and there is also some means for preventing hot gasses from one overheated/exploded battery from impacting nearby batteries. Additionally, the temperatures of each of the batteries are monitored and the battery pack is actively cooled as needed, so the situation where a cell can get hot enough is very unlikely to occur in the first place. Of course, a severe crash can cause a breach in the battery pack and lead to a serious fire, as we know, but such fires, though often serious and alarming are exceedingly rare when one considers that in 2021 the US surpassed more than 2.13 million light duty EV's on the road.
The analogy is somewhat similar to airliner crashes which can also be spectacular and frightening but the chances for passengers dying in a plane crash are extremely rare.

If you bothered to read the articles I posted above, you would see that gasoline fires in cars are more than 20% more likely to occur than fires in EVs.

The stats for electric vehicles fires are only so low because there’s very little of them out there compared to fuel based vehicles. I’ll also second the fact that diesel fuel is much safer than gasoline And is used in far more things and far larger quantities than passenger vehicles, such as semis, construction vehicles,, trains, etc. But anyway, that whole debate is it own thread…..

but I still refuse to ever buy an electric vehicle. They will never be practical in my lifetime. The infrastructure for charging is not there. The power grid cannot handle it. (And the demand for it is one of the main reasons why my electric bill keeps going up) And living in an apartment complex, there is no place to charge the vehicle on site. The state of the charging stations I have seen most of the time are not functioning properly and are poorly maintained the people I know that own these vehicles complain that they’re so called fast chargers, often take hours or are in use when they get there. No thanks.

 

[Dashmellow]

The stats for electric vehicles fires are only so low because there’s very little of them out there compared to fuel based vehicles. I’ll also second the fact that diesel fuel is much safer than gasoline And is used in far more things and far larger quantities than passenger vehicles, such as semis, construction vehicles,, trains, etc. But anyway, that whole debate is it own thread…..

but I still refuse to ever buy an electric vehicle. They will never be practical in my lifetime. The infrastructure for charging is not there. The power grid cannot handle it. (And the demand for it is one of the main reasons why my electric bill keeps going up) And living in an apartment complex, there is no place to charge the vehicle on site. The state of the charging stations I have seen most of the time are not functioning properly and are poorly maintained the people I know that own these vehicles complain that they’re so called fast chargers, often take hours or are in use when they get there. No thanks.

Your notion of how statistical analysis works is flawed, as it has nothing to do with how many EV's are on the road compared to internal combustion engines, but that's another discussion entirely.

Certainly, you are not required to buy an EV if you don't want one, although this attitude is one that is not helpful in addressing the climate crisis going forward. Eventually, internal combustion engines will simply be phased out. Sorry to hear that your location has poor EV charging infrastructure. It is a problem everywhere but the tipping point is coming as more locales are installing charging infrastructure at an increasing rate. Here in Vermont I see EV charging stations wherever I go and there are more and more all the time. I also see more and more people driving EVs and now pick-up trucks. We have a major Tesla charging bay in town and many independent and municipal ones. The state and many municipalities have been making it a priority along with incentives to buy electric vehicles as part of the state's eventual goal of zero emissions. Here in Vermont we already obtain 99.8% of our electrical energy from renewable sources.

FWIW, two weeks ago, BETA Technologies opened the first large-scale manufacturing facility for electric aircraft in the country here in Vermont.

Beta Technologies Christens Electric Aircraft Production Plant

Beta Technologies celebrated the opening of its South Burlington manufacturing center on Monday, marking the milestone with praise from politicians and a stylish flyby outside...

www.sevendaysvt.com