Some findings to share. I was able to get my lithium battery to reach shut-down temperatures by doing 8 hours of low range in 90f+ temps. Burned through half a tank of gas in 50 miles of trail. It took all day to reach that temp and it shut off just before reaching camp. This was with a moderately loaded 5th gen 4Runner (driver-only, GFC RTT, TrekBoxx, fridge, Slee sliders, aluminum front skid, winch) with the 4.0 v6.
A couple take-aways:
Airflow across the radiator, engine, and exhaust is paramount to keeping under-hood cool. Stops had a large effect on bumping up the measurements. Driving at highway speeds in similar conditions, the battery barely peaked into the triple digits. The 200’s bigger engine and tighter bay could exacerbate the effect as well as heavier loaded vehicles and mods that block airflow (bumpers, lights).
High range can help keep temps down. Less fuel burning per meter of forward movement and thus airflow. Under similar trail conditions, the battery peaked at ~115f when I ran mostly 4hi.
Internal battery temps take a long time to reach the ambient under-hood temps. It is a pretty hefty brick to heat up after all.
Note the time in the picture. We were on trail by ~10am and the temperature asymptotically approached 140f over the course of the day. I popped the hood at camp and it took about an hour for the battery to recover. Did much better the rest of the trip when more high range was used.
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