Need help with wiring

[danielken37]

Hi.
Someone gave me this Fat Tire scooter that was not working and I brought it home to see if I can fix it.
It looks new, but the previous owner said that it suddenly stopped working so his neighbor came and tried to install a new motor controller, but just messed up all the wiring.
When I got it, first thing I did was testing the battery and realized it didnt go over 60V, so I took the pack apart and saw that one of the balancer cables was loose. I fixed that and now the battery is charging pass 60V.
Next step is the wiring. I took all of it apart and i see the ones that come from the motor and a terminal for the hall sensor, I see also the throttle cables with a connector that matches one in the controller, but I see a bunch of other cables coming from the breaks and the key switch, and some weird box that looks like an alarm buzzer and a blinker.
The keys that came with the scooter have a remote fob like regular cars, looks like a car alarm.
All that is disconnected and I dont know how to match the wirings.
I tried to get a manual for the controller but found none. The controller has connectors with labels in chinese, and Google translate gives me descriptions I dont understand.
I took pictures of everything.
I wonder if I post them here, maybe someone can give me a hand.
Thanks a lot.

 

[6zfshdb]

Welcome to the forum!
Without the make & year of the scooter, it will be difficult to offer any specific advice.
By all means, post pictures and I'm sure someone will provide some help.

In general, here are some things to keep in mind:

I have seen many of these controllers which have more leads than are necessary for a particular bike/scooter. The controller is likely designed for more than one model.

Some bikes don't have brake cutouts but the controller usually has connections for them.

There can also be a data cable used for programming the controller.

The controller may have connections for torque and/or cadence sensors but If the scooter has no pedals, these will also be unused.

 

[AHicks]

Easiest way to attack that project, the method I would use, is to identify the basic functions required of an e-bike. Battery leads, Throttle, PAS sensor, speed sensor (maybe?), brake leads used to kill the power, wires to the display, etc. Do that for the motor side, and for the bike side. Then, match them up. Use google searches! Basically, rather than let all that wiring intimidate you as a whole (yes, there's a lot of wiring there!), break that up into smaller tasks. Start with the battery, then maybe the display. From there, things get MUCH easier!

And sure, post the pics! Some will be easy to identify, others maybe not so much.
If you're into it right, sounds like a great project!

 

[danielken37]

Both of you are correct.
The controller was not specific for this scooter, but I was able to figure out the motor phases and the Hall sensor connector (that last one matches, both in number of wires and colors so i connected it as it is).
Next was the Throttle, it had three wires, those also matched a connector in the controller.
I also found the key switch, with two naked wires, and with a multimeter and saw that they just close a circuit, so with lot of guessing I was able to find a thick red wire on the controller (different than the obvious power wired red/black) that I assumed was the one that kept the controller "On", so I wired the switch there.
With those things connected I ventured to plug the battery and the 30 Amp fuse. I almost jumped out of my skin when a big spark came out of the fuse box, so I unplugged it, checked my wiring and tried again, always big spark, always got scared!! But since the fuse didn't blow, I started guessing the spark was expected, and then I read somewhere online that there is a big capacitor inside the controller (this is a cheap controller), and when it charges upon connection it draws a lot of current. So I eventually was brave enough to leave the fuse connected and voila ! the wheel was turning with the throttle.

After some more guessing I was able to connect the LCD, showing battery levels, and I found a wire that provides the speed signal from the controller, but my LCD shows it on KPH and I dont know how to change that, the LCD does not have buttons. There was another wire from the LCD and I discovered it was for "front light status", then I wired it with the lights.
I was able to figure out the rear running lights too.

Im missing:
1- LCD on MPH , I have no idea how to change it (the LCD has "MPH" capabilities, I can see that if I look at it sideway, but it is dim , I need to show that instead of the KPH)
2- Turning lights, the scooter had a little round box that looks like a flasher, with 3 wires, but I dont know how to wire it to the rear lights.
3- Since I had to repair the battery, it is now wrapped with its plastic panels and duct tape, because I dont have PVC shrink wrap and water sealant, I need to buy that.

My biggest challenge was then the wiring for lights, because there is a common ground for everything, then there are running lights that are supposed to be On with the ignition switch, and then regular front light, turn lights and horn connected to the left side of the handlebar,, and them the breaks, that are coming from some pressure switch on the levers.
I got headaches trying to figure out the wiring.

My wiring is horrible, it is scary, specially because this thing is 60Volts. i was testing yesterday night and I turned back as soon as the sprinklers in my neighborhood started, I dont think this scooter and water will mix.
I was thinking today and probably a good idea would be to find automotive connectors (30 pins or such), and some 2 and 3 pins,, and make a waterproof harness, with safer connections that could be easy to unplug in case of danger.

Im trying to get some pictures on my PC so I post here,, later tonight.
Thanks guys for the help !!

 

[danielken37]

This is the scooter:

The LCD is on the right side, I was able to connect it and show only those two things so far,, the numbers increases with speed, all the way to 41 Km (I assume it means KPH)

If I look at the LCD sideway, I see it has more capabilities,, but only one wire on the LCD is available to data, so Im not sure how the controlled could send more data on the same wire it is already sending speed.

These are the controls on the left side of the handlebar

Rear running lights seems to be working fine now:

Front running light also turns up with the switch now

Front light is also working now:

Battery does not have wrapping, you can see my duct tape on edges. The wiring for the controller is awful, I know.
I could not do better with what I had available,, a multimeter, a wire striper, spare stranded wire, electric tape and some household twisted-on wire connectors.

More wiring, dont yell at me

This is a fob that came with it,, and I figure out (almost) the alarm part.

This is the thing that I think is a flasher, although I have no idea the pinout and how to wire it.

This box below is some sort of alarm and siren,, the plugs match on the controller, and it works,, but I dont know what is the loose blue wire for, so I didnt want to leave it connected.

Thats all,, perhaps you can advise me something here

Thanks a lot.

 

[danielken37]

Just in case it helps.
These are some extra pics I took while I was putting everything together.

Like I said,, I had to open the battery and found a balancer wire disconnected, so I fixed that and the battery got pass 44 and went all the way to 67.2V
it was strange that the label outside said 18650 16S10P... but if you count, there are 16 in series and 9 in parallel, not 10.
Yes, thats a "Fluke Multimeter", but Im not electrician, I got it as a present from someone who is, and had served me well for many years in household-related stuff.

This is how the end of the front and rear lights as well as the control panel looks like.

I made this list using my multimeter, to the best of my abilities. Im struggling on where to put the blinker and how to wire it.

 

[danielken37]

And.. the labels in english you see on the wiring are mine, after I figured out some stuff. I did it in case I have to fix this down the road, as my memory is kind of bad for these things.

 

[danielken37]

Well.. Scooter is done. I was able to figure out the wiring for all remaining components and functionality. After few days, I will close this thread, if I can, or delete it altogether.

 

[harryS]

Well done. Leave the post up. Maybe someone else has the same scooter.

 

[AHicks]

And.. the labels in english you see on the wiring are mine, after I figured out some stuff. I did it in case I have to fix this down the road, as my memory is kind of bad for these things.

Labeling and notes are both smart. Seems to help when sorting everything out like you had to do.....