Proper long-term storage?

I'll be leaving my i for a couple of weeks soon, and don't see anything in the manual about proper long-term storage. Tesla requires their cars to remain plugged in.

(From a local Leafer)... The Leaf cycles the charger on and off and other "activities" that use up the 12v battery in about a week if left plugged in. On the other hand, if left unplugged, the computer senses that and does a DC/DC top off to the 12v for a few minutes every 5 days (or something like that). Any activity breaks the cycle, so that's why it needs to be unplugged.
Nissan Service rep, said charge to 80%, then unplug. We did that for a full month last Oct and it was fine.

So, is it best to disconnect the 12 battery, put it on a float charger, leave the traction pack full, 80%? (Is our 100% actually 100%, or does it leave some headroom for longer cycle life.)

Before we took our recent 10-day trip in the Insight, I left the iMiEV's traction pack at 7 bars and didn't bother with the 12v; however, for a longer absence I would put a smart float charger on the iMiEV's 12v battery instead of disconnecting it. I normally always float-charge my (now rarely-used) Gen1 Insights and have tiny solar panels with smart 12v regulators on all the cars stored outside. FWIW, JoeS.

I *think* I read that Mitsu advises leaving the traction pack at about 40% SOC for long term storage . . . . however, I really doubt that 2 weeks is anywhere near what they would consider 'long term' so I think you can just leave it sit anyway you like for such a short period

Don

Any warnings about leaving it connected to EVSE? I haven't noticed any 12V parasitic load issues either, but I'll be flying, and will need the car to be fully charged upon my return....
Thanks,
Jay

jray3 said:

Any warnings about leaving it connected to EVSE? I haven't noticed any 12V parasitic load issues either, but I'll be flying, and will need the car to be fully charged upon my return....
Thanks,
Jay

Click to expand...

But that would leave the battery fully charged for 2 weeks. Dunno if I would do that.

If one needs to store an i for 6 months, what should be done? I assume that the battery pack should be charged to maybe 50% or so. But parasitic loads (e.g., keyless entry receiver, radio clock) would completely discharge the 12 v. battery which could ruin it. When I store my Insight for long Swedish winters, I take the 12 v. battery into our apartment where I can keep it charged. The battery pack management system looses track of the charge level, but it figures out the charge level after the car is driven for a few miles. I haven't experienced any more serious problems than that.

If the same were done with a i 12 v. battery, would memory loss cause any serious problems? I would not be able to charge the 12 v. battery while it's still in the car, so I would need to disconnect the 12 v. battery to protect it.

Just another datapoint: battery storage was discussed at a BayLeafs meeting a couple of weeks ago. The Leaf is shipped from Japan at a nominal 35% SOC (but not greater than 75%) and the 12v battery is disconnected.

I asked the Honolulu Mitsubishi dealer about the recommended way to store an i for 6 months. Mitsubishi technicians told the dealer that an i should be stored long-term with its battery pack's charge level at 25% and with its 12 v. battery disconnected. Apparently, the self-discharge rate isn't so great that the battery pack would be dead within 6 months.