June 19, 2007 by Rob.

Just in case you are following along.  Here is the final layout of the batteries:

In the future, I would leave more room (1/2″) in the boxes so the tolerance were not as tight.  I would also avoid runs the cross the battery cell access holes (see the rear pack) because this will be a maintenance pain.

Posted in Improvements, Pictures, Conversion, Planning | 1 Comment »

June 19, 2007 by Rob.

After working with the hefty 2/0 cable and huge lugs, 10 and 14 gauge wire is so wimpy! It also seems to take so much longer because there are so many more of them. Today I most of the control wires for the control board. These wires do things like energize the contactors, KSI relay, and fans. They also get the traction voltage, recharge power, and current draw.

This is very hard to show with a picture because most of the wires are intentionally hidden. I’ve opted for a terminal block connector so that I can quickly disconnect all the wires from the control board. That lets me work on the board in the relative comfort of my garage with a fan instead of leaning over the car in the sun.

Here is a layout of the hefty wiring:

Posted in Conversion | No Comments »

June 19, 2007 by Rob.

Posted today on EVDL:
“Petrol and diesel are dead,” says GM
11 June 2007

Sources: Celsais, Autocar, Hugg

General Motors is determined to “remove the car from the environment and energy debate” in the next 10 years by doing away with the internal combustion engine altogether.

Read the rest of this entry »

Posted in Green Tech, EV News | 1 Comment »

June 19, 2007 by Rob.

Posted on the EVDL:

> I am going to sell my functioning ICE but am not sure what stuff is
> important to keep?

My reply:

The simplest rule of thumb is to keep everything that is attached to the car body instead of the engine.  Make sure that you keep:

• all the wiring harness
• plastic body shields.
• all the motor mounts and mounting bolts.
• original battery
• bolts are handy, but easy to buy new.

You probably do not want anything that was belt driven from the engine (A/C compressor, p/s pump, brake vacuum pump, etc).  You’ll replace some of these functions with more efficient electric motors.  I replaced *most* of the p/s and vacuum lines: the original molded ones are a pain to work with.

You also do not need the radiator system, the fuel system, or the exhaust system.  Offload these too because you don’t want to deal with these dirty parts later.

You could sell the wiring harness, but make sure that you have very good diagrams!  You’ll want to have the speed and tachometer inputs (usually from the transmission).

Posted in AustinEV, Planning | 1 Comment »

June 19, 2007 by Rob.

Here is a blog entry that discusses subsidies of $3+/gallon.

Posted in Green Tech | 1 Comment »