By now many are lusting quite hard over the new acquisition of the Siemens Motors and Controllers and yes, the Borg Warner Gear boxes. How I'd love to get my hands one a set. Then I'd need to figure out what vehicle it would best fit in and would I be able to actually do the conversion of the transmission safely into another vehicle. Some of the army of 100,000 can. I on the other hand have no access to any facility that would include the space or machinery nor do I have the ability to operate said machinery if I did have access. This leaves me lusting but totally out of the game on that part. I can however attach a motor to an existing transmission setup.
I will say to those that can't and should not get them, don't fret and most of all don't lust after something you just can't do. Let others do that and be happy with what you can offer. I will be continuing my quest for a reasonable electric drive that ANY one can do. Not just for SOME to do.
We need an army that CAN put together a car in that swept out space. It's not just about being able to afford to but that we can actually DO it.
DC is one way and AC another as in the HPEVS line of motors and Curtis controllers. Affordable but not for every type of car. Everyone can do those. I'd like to see a better controller from Curtis or someone that will handle not only the low voltage systems but also if needed handle higher voltage systems in one unit. DMOC does not come to mind but Scott Drives do. Nothing against the DMOC and no doubt they are good.
So what are the choices we have that are currently selling to the general public willing to depart with those green backs. Well we have the "crappy" Kostov motors. The "Awesome" warp motors, and the odd assortment D&D motors and a few others that are a bit obscure but still quite usable. Controllers for DC are Synkromotive, P&S home built kit, WarpDrive, Soliton1 and Jr and the ever elusive Zilla. These are components that are fully supported and available. I am not talking about the odd assortment of OEM stuff or that found in the wrecking yards or from old forklifts. All of which can and do provide many good components. So the onset of a few of the Siemens motors is good but it is in a class of those obscure components that fall in the realm of your on your own sucker. If they become affordably available and with full factory support then they will be a viable source. Like Lithium, they need to be available and at a price that is of value even for us tinkerers and doers.
It still supports this in not a matter of innovating but of acceptance. Innovators will however come up with some cool things. But as for building or converting a car it is OLD hack. Sure, I can't build a car that would be on the Level of the Leaf but building cars is OLD and adding in an electric motor is no big issue. What will be the big issue is the publics acceptance and adoption of the electric car. It will change the world.
The army of a hundred thousand will be the air that breaths acceptance into the movement. Not downloading a program into a controller. I had to learn to download a program into my cars chip to get better performance. Nothing new but it was a learning curve for myself. Not world shattering nor very DIY. DIY is building the controller AND programming it from the ground up. Like Soliton1 guys did. My hats off to them. True DIY and then manufacturer and reseller. They build their own. They had the idea and then became more than DIY but it grew from DIY. Tesla is the result of true DIY. So is Apple.
Lets motivate the masses and have a movement. Innovation will follow.
Pete :)
Pete,
ReplyDeleteDon't get discouraged, you have been trying to show the community how to build a car that everyone can afford and is still fully functional. You have the ability to buy build and trade up your rides so you are constantly ending up with better and better donor cars to convert.
I have been a little dismayed at how hard it is to get local EVers to unite. It seems like if we all started helping each other, kind of like a barn raising, we could get some excitement and momentum going at the local level. It surprised me at EVVCON when I asked Jack if there were any local groups getting into conversions. His answer was no. If we can't get any momentum in MECCA, how are we going to grow the movement?
I believe you can build a fun to drive car on a budget that looks good, runs good and does not empty your entire bank account. Some good topics for your blog in the future would be how to find good used motors, controllers, LiFePo4 batteries and all of the equipment needed to build the car. You seem to really have a knack for that.
Regards,
Randy
Randy,
ReplyDeleteI won't be dismayed. Its a tough crowd out there. I have many that are interested but not yet willing to take the dive. I have even given them rides. Not good enough. They must get behind the wheel and they must SEE the vehicle too. We had a EAA Chapter in Chico and had a respectable group that meet once per month. I got to go to two before they finally just vaporized. Too bad too. John who is just a few miles from me has an old Harley Trike that he converted many years ago to electric and had recently (last year) converted to GBS lithium cells. Being it has a nice box on the back he was able to now drive a long distance with his new found fun. I have not heard from him but has followed some forums for awhile. I have been trying to get some back together and trying to get some to actually come over and build. But alas work really does get in the way and not everyones schedule plays nice and it is hard to take time off for play.
I will continue with what I have and I will be working towards doing some AC stuff that will be perfect for the smaller vehicles. Many loved my MG. It was small, fun and in my opinion would be a great vehicle with out the stigma of the old VW. Not everyone likes the old cans. I was thinking of getting another Midget and installing an AC-50. Same for my Bus but the MG would really have more curb appeal. Finding a car to convert must be done with care. Not all make good conversions but you really want to have one that can be used year round. You want heat and air if you live in a hot zone. Unlike my Roadster which can only be driven in fair weather you need a full time conversion. I can afford the fun vehicle because I already own a year round electric. Yes, it is up to us to tell everyone else what they need and want to a point. You need a year round vehicle and lithium batteries. DC or AC. Small car? Consider AC. Really. It really is a good deal from HPEVS. A real good controller from Curtis but hope for another higher voltage/amperage one from someone else.
I do think DC will become a thing of the past. Really. But for now don't forgo DC. They are powerful and plentiful. Long lasting and durable. So are the controllers. Lots you can do with DC. Go with DC and a Synkromotive and you can even do fast charging with the controller if you have a bank of DC batteries to draw from. You can also setup for fast charging or normal charging with AC through the controller giving you the ability to forgo the built in charger saving you money.
Yes, you too can build a good lithium based conversion on a budget contrary to popular belief from one we know.
Thanks
Pete :)