Wednesday, August 17, 2011

Electric Car Conversion Part 1 – The Donor Vehicle and The ICE Removal:

In 2008, I bought an old Geo Metro for $1 for the purpose of converting it to an all electric car. I calculated it would have a 40 mile range and only cost me $3000 in parts. It would be the perfect commuter car, requiring only $0.67 cents in electric fuel to get me back and forth to work each day.
Unfortunately, my enthusiasm for the project faded when we moved to another house out of the range of the car's design.

Fast Forward 3 years:
My desire for an Electric Vehicle was rekindled by the announcement of the Nissan Leaf.  But after nearly a year sitting on the waiting list, I opted to roll my own, again.

I have read that the an electric vehicle will have greater range if it can carry more batteries.  It makes sense.  More fuel = more range. 

A Geo Metro has a light frame but has little room for extra weight. A pickup truck is relatively lightweight but has a stronger frame that can handle additional battery weight.

In June 2011, I acquired a 1992 Toyota Pickup Truck. Although the mileage was high, it was in good cosmetic condition.
I ripped out all the “unnecessary” parts. The internal combustion engine, radiator, gas tank and the exhaust system. 

This lightened the truck weight by 500 lbs and freed up a lot of room in the engine compartment for an electric motor and batteries. 

4 comments:

  1. For those who still chant 'only the rich can afford it', I recently searched for a new energy supplier and all the 100% renewable electricity suppliers were cheaper than all the big 6's standard tariffs. So I switched to one that uses solar, water wheels and wind power. And a new Leaf costs less than a new Golf too. Well, almost. And it's made in Britain. The point is electric cars are rapidly becoming more cost effective than ICE cars, and let's face it

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  2. Its like you read my mind! You appear to know so much about this, like you wrote the book in it or something.



    Radiator Fan & Condenser Fans

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    1. I no longer update or maintain this blog. For new articles, updates and latest findings, check out www.JohnSavesEnergy.com

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  3. Convert a common car into an elelectric vehicle must not be an easy job. Your skills are amazing and your blog is really well done and detailed. It cost a lot convert a regular car into an electric one? It's a a difficult process? It's legal or you may have problems?

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