Choosing batteries

As described in an article on using second hand Tesla batteries, the only real advantage of second hand batteries is price. The disadvantages are:

The alternative to used Tesla battery packs is to purchase new prismatic (large rectangular) cell batteries. The advantages of using new batteries are:

The disadvantages of the LiFePO4 batteries are:

Battery Enclosure Design

The battery enclosure for a used Tesla battery is complex because it needs to accommodate the cooling fluid circulating through the batteries - so needs to include pumps and plumbing.

The battery enclosure for prismatic LiFePO4 cells needs to be designed with elastic spacers and adjustable clamps to keep the batteries under compression throughout the charge/discharge cycle.

The battery enclosures also need to meet the Australian design rules (known as VSB14) for electric vehicles - for example, the battery enclosure must be design to withstand the forces of 20x the weight of the batteries in the event of a head-on collision, and 15x the weight of the batteries in the event of a side collision. The design and mounting of the battery enclosures should be specified by an engineer to ensure the vehicle can be registered.