Project Slow Festiva - Track Prepped, Daily Driven

[RdstrBlk]

Not a hybrid, going full EV

50kw is a lot.. yes 67 hp equivalent but much higher efficiency than ICE

I think EV is the future and this is now the perfect learning platform for me to experiment with. I dont think all EVs should sacrifice handling and spiritedness.

Probably easiest to use the current transmission, FWD setup. AWD would be wicked.

I wont be going the old school lead acid battery route. Instead I plan on sourcing a used tesla battery pack, or a lithium pack made from 18650 cells, which provide great capacity and max rms power output for their price

[RdstrBlk]

Expect this to be a slow moving project I am also starting school this fall for mechanical engineering (getting a late start is alright)

[ryanprins13]

Should be sweet. Stick to fwd first time around, keep the transmission, just be sure to let off the throttle before shifts, lol.
With the car lowered for best handling will a battery pack fit under the car or will you have to put it inside the cabin?

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[RdstrBlk]

Batteries up front, and probably a few in back to displace the weight of the gas tank. Most likely not mounted underneath the car

[william]

I'd leave it all up front. Here's a good build on a geo
Thanks to photobucket the pictures are dead , this was a very professional lookin build.

http://ecomodder.com/forum/showthread.php/third-conversion-ultra-efficient-1993-geo-metro-ev-31404.html

[ryanprins13]

https://seattle.craigslist.org/tac/cto/d/ford-festiva-fester/6225183840.html

Cheap if there is anything you want off this $650 electric festiva

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[RdstrBlk]

Been a while since I've posted.. still have the festy! I'm driving it around the block every week, but that's about it. I still have it posted for sale on clist. I have had a few interested buyers but I'm not selling the car to some kid wanting a cheap sporty car with limited mechanical aptitude, which has been most of the interest so far. Not selling the car except to a good next owner. That said, discounts will be considered for forum members!

On another note, and IMO more importantly.. I recently traded in my junky old daily for a brand spankin new 2017 Ford Fiesta ST in White Platinum Metallic! Meet Egg!

Here is the very crowded driveway/garage

[ricko1966]

Hey have you gotten anywhere on an ev build yet? Been contemplating one myself for years. I have some ideas that I think are great but it would be good to have some one to bounce things off of.Would it be worth starting an EV thread? And I think I have the worlds most accurate way of making adapter plates which you may be interested in. { I use it for a adapting different gas motors to different bell housings.]

[RdstrBlk]

Ricko lets start one. I have been lurking the diyelectriccar forums for a while. The festiva is a great candidate. The big deterrent for me was the price tag. Expect to pay ~12k for a good 100HP and 100 mile range. However, that's just a ballpark figure. I think if we can optimize design efficiency, manufacture some parts for increased compatibility, and discover a good source of used tesla batteries that we can irom out a solid path for ourselves and others to be able to do the conversion, easier and cheaper.

Lets start an ev thread and start regurgitating some of the pertinent knowledge there!

FWIW I did my own ebike conversion and have a background in electronics, currently studied mechE

[ricko1966]

Now this may sound crazy but here goes. My plan was buy a used electric forklift there is my motor,batteries and controller and left over junk for making a ghetto lift outside. I know the batteries should be switched out eventually,but babysteps. My plan also involved a 5hp honda engine running an alternator to provide a charge to increase your range. You drive 30miles to the store honda motor running yes you are using more than you are generating. You park you shop half an hour honda motor still running now you can recoup some of your charge you go to a friends house park,honda motor running now you have plenty of charge to pick the kids up from school and get home. I say honda motor only because I used a honda g200 engine to charge a battery bank every morning and every evening for 7 months once. Just built the rig out of junk I had laying around. there was no power to the house period only what I generated and stored I fed the breaker box with a 2000 watt inverter and paid attention to what I was running. Solar hot water,hung my clothes to dry,if I remember right I could run the washing machine,but tv. lighting etc. no problem.Back to the point onboard charging would be better with a small diesel engine I think because the diesl would be less prone to overheating and would run longer on the same amount of fuel.

[RdstrBlk]

I wanna mount a couple of high effeciency solar panels to accomplish the same thing as the generator, it wont work as fast but Im more fond of the idea.

Forklift motors are the way to go, rated very conservatively. A 10kW motor can easily be pushed to 50kW. Just make sure you also incorporate adequate cooling for the battery bank and controllers.

I think for an extended road trip, having the generator at night when not driving and the solar on top while driving might turn it into a cool lil expedition buggy. Im a huge nerd for the mercedes unimog

[ryanprins13]

You can fit 4x 100w cheaper solar panels on the roof as seen on the plc festiva. Probably 2 more on the rear hatch but they would only work when the sun is behind you. How much power do you think a motor would consume to make a festiva go 62mph on flat ground, no wind?

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[ricko1966]

Using the manual transmission that is in whatever would be easiest, but what are your your thoughts on going Continually Variable instead. My concern with CV is that at certain road speeds the electric motor would need to turn too slow . With the manual I would use the clutch pedal starter interlock to interrupt the circuit to the motor ,allowing on the fly shifts. What are you considering for driveline? CV? conventional gearbox? Something from an alien spaceship?

[ryanprins13]

Using the manual transmission that is in whatever would be easiest, but what are your your thoughts on going Continually Variable instead. My concern with CV is that at certain road speeds the electric motor would need to turn too slow . With the manual I would use the clutch pedal starter interlock to interrupt the circuit to the motor ,allowing on the fly shifts. What are you considering for driveline? CV? conventional gearbox? Something from an alien spaceship?

I would have to find the thread back but there was a guy who used the e series transmission and starter and a 20hp diesel motor. He made it 1 wheel drive.

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[ricko1966]

That is too cool! This thread is going to be cool!!!