Three Out of Five Lights on Battery, but it was Dead

[Al P]

During our ride today, my wife's E3 Vibe+ shut down unexpectedly. The battery was showing 3 out of 5 lights but the display would not turn back on. Got it home, charged it fully and the display turned on normally. That has never happened before so I was wondering what might cause that. The battery is not quite two years old, and hasn't been used very much. It was kept at about 80% over the winter.

 

[rich c]

Lights usually don't mean much. Put a multi meter on it and get some numbers to see what voltage you have.

 

[PowerMe]

Could be the battery jostled a bit during the ride and lost connectivity or one of the connectors between the display control panel got jostled. I don't think you have a defective battery, just a hunch.

 

[tomjasz]

All that matters is a proper reading from the battery leads with a multimeter. This 15 cent battery displays are often very wrong. What is the actual battery voltage. Then we can move forward and help! I'm sorry you are having this problem and know how frustrating it can be!

 

[Al P]

I tested it today with a full charge. It showed 48v, which is right on the money. We rode again and it was fine. Whatever happened, if it never happens again it will be too soon.
Thanks for the help, gents.

 

[tomjasz]

I tested it today with a full charge. It showed 48v, which is right on the money. We rode again and it was fine. Whatever happened, if it never happens again it will be too soon.
Thanks for the help, gents.

A 48v battery should charge to 54.6v. Making yours not on the money, assuming it’s rated a 48v battery.

 

[LimboJim]

If that happens again mid-ride, try taking the battery completely off the bike, then putting it back on.

I've had my power shut down like that twice with two bars left on the battery indicator (20-40%) when running the motor at full power on a long, steep climb. First time I pedaled/walked the bike all the way back. Second time, I popped the battery off and back onto the bike, and it was fine. I just didn't run full power again (esp. on hills) until I charged back up.

I think I might have been demanding more watts in that moment than the battery could give, so the system shut down to protect itself. The facts that yours did this with three bars left (40-60%), and that your multimeter reads just 48v fully charged, might mean that your battery's lost a good percentage of its original capacity.

 

[Al P]

I tested it again. This time with a digital multimeter instead of my old analog meter. 53.4 v. I believe it is fine now. If it happens again, I will removing and replacing the battery.