Battery fan noise

Discussion in 'Kia Niro' started by David T in Silicon Valley, Aug 23, 2021.

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  1. 3F51E5C9-3239-4E95-A2EF-82F376BF6554.jpeg
    I had not used DC chargers much until a recent road trip from the Bay Area to rural Colorado, backpacking etc. and back. The last two weeks I have used them a LOT.

    More often than not, the fan that kicks in when I am pulling 70-ish kW makes a noise that does not sound like a smoothly turning fan. I have recorded some using voice memos, but will need to figure out what formats this bulletin board will support.

    In short, it sounds like about 60 dB buzzing noise (conversational voice level), maybe around 50 Hz. Sometimes it is a quiet whir, which makes me think there is something wrong with the louder noise.

    Please tell me what YOUR Niro battery fan sounds like when you are drawing > 50 kW.

    Thanks!
     
    Last edited: Aug 23, 2021
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  3. Here are the sounds I recorded from outside the car right by the front bumper. The quieter had a little of the noise but the track is dominated more by little bits of ambient wind blowing over the mic. The typical is how it sounds 80-90% of the time. Then there are some brief periods where it is super quiet.

    So please share what your battery fan sounds like during a fast charge. Thanks!
     

    Attached Files:

  4. Shawn X

    Shawn X New Member

    That does sound off. My fan kicks in as well. In fact it won't charge faster than say 54kW if it doesn't kick in. But my fan sounds like a helicopter rotor noise (can't describe it well). It's not quiet like a normal fan like you can clearly hear it inside the cabin.
     
  5. Thanks for that. Your description is not inconsistent with my my "typical.mp3" file. Does yours sound like that? I think of a helicopter rotor as like that but lower frequency. Can you make a recording and post? Just wondering if mine is abnormal.
     
  6. ITown

    ITown Active Member

    Next time I DC charge I'll let you know how it compares. I DC charge fairly infrequently though.
     
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  8. Thanks, iTown.


    I also am an infrequent DC charger..except when I am road tripping. I think I have done it literally twice around home base, and one of those times was only when I wanted to dry run before my first road trip to Oregon. All in all I have probably DC'd about 30 times, most of it on the past trip.
     
  9. Paul-ATL

    Paul-ATL New Member

    Mine sounds the same. I'm not normally sitting in the car when it's fast charging, but last night I was and couldn't believe how loud/unstable that fan sounds.
     

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