Importing EV batteries into Australia

HiGuys,

So.... I live in Australia. Government policies here are complicated and have resulted in low levels of EV purchase. Our property has a stand alone 48V solar system with a lead acidbattery bank that will need to be upgraded in the next 1-2 years.

The best solution might be to purchase a crashed EV battery, break down the modules and build a 48vbattery bank butthere don't seem to be any to buy in Australia.

It looks like you can buy crashed EV's all over the USA but according to an Australian Government website, it's illegal to import a vehicle into Australia to break up for parts. SoI can't import one to get the battery and on sell the restto a wrecker. A permit is required to bring a vehicle in so it would never make it off the docks without going through the legal channels.

No permit is required to import vehicleparts so I can just buy a battery bank and have it shipped herebut the shipping costcan be a killer.

Does anyone have a suggestion of where to purchase used EV batteries from low mileage cars in Japan or the USA andhow to ship theminto Australia with minimal shipping costs? I'm looking forapprox.40kw of EV battery but will take what I can get.

Chevy Bolt bank...
2 x Chevy Volt banks
2 x Chevy Spark banks...
Newer Nissan Leaf bank...
2 x older Nissan Leaf banks
Any ideas?


Thank you

Duncan

Yeah the work around is cutting the car in half turns it into "used car parts", which can then be imported unmolested.
It goes without saying you need to dismantle the HV wiring before doing that.

I'd have a talk with your state'shttp://aeva.asn.au/ branch, they should help.

Thanks Station. Have you had success doing that?

Perhaps check these guys out - evworks.com.au

Aussioffgrid said:

Thanks Station. Have you had success doing that?

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Was the recommended way to do it, I was only after the battery, so would have had to find someone already bringing a container of car parts into Australia.
Didn't go ahead with it for several reasons.

Mighty Car Mods have some videos on importing cars from Japan.
They took the the two halves of the car and transferred the parts onto the shell of a lower spec car to get back the original car.

I have imported several Mitsubishi Outlander PHEV and Mitsubishi MiEV battery packs, both LEV50N and LEV40 Lithium Ion batteries. I also have access to Tesla battery packs, but am yet to find a client looking to purchase.

Personally I would recommend you look seriously when thinking about purchasing the likes of Leaf cells as they are not prismatic and can be problematic unless you take serious steps to mount them correctly.

If you are serious about seeking EV cells, then drop me a private message. The cells I source are not cheap, but the people I've supplied and myself are very happy with the Mitsubishi cells because they are reliable and easy to use with existing PV and BMS systems.

gregoinc said:

Personally I would recommend you look seriously when thinking about purchasing the likes of Leaf cells as they are not prismatic and can be problematic unless you take serious steps to mount them correctly.

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Could you add a little more detail to the above comment please.

EV cars are very popular here in California which is probably why we have a good supply of wrecked EVs I dont know much about export, but perhaps work with a company here stateside to see if they would be able to export the entire car or better yet just the battery pack.

I know there are a few companies that deal with EV parts, I have only worked with one who I have bought from. Perhaps reach out to EV West or another company like them to see if they would work with you and export. EV West is no stranger to tearing down an EV, maybe you get lucky and get a complete module.

Another option is just buying from eBay. I have seen people selling complete EV car pack modules. If they ship export, you should be good.