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Do you guys think this will be common place in the next decade or so? If so how would this work? I heard about some company that can convert mustangs to 100% electric for 80,000 .
I have been considering converting my Porsche 914 to electric. The kit is a bit over $15,000 including shipping, but that will give me a range of 150 miles ( probably less here...Lots of hills ) and a top speed of 100 mph. I have only about $ 7,000 invested in the car, so for $22,000 I could have a clean, green, trouble free machine.
See Volksporsche AC 914 kit.
Electro Automotive: AC Conversion Kits (http://www.electroauto.com/catalog/ackits.shtml#ac914 - broken link)
Or you could buy brand new....This car is awesome!
I am in the process of restoring a 93 acura integra. Planning to put a 98 spec type R engine in it. Was thinking about converting it to electric some time down the road. Not sure if I will see this project through though. Have my heart set on restoring a 240sx (S14) and maybe swapping in a silvia engine in. Then converting it.
Location: By the sea, by the sea, by the beautiful sea
68,330 posts, read 54,419,437 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by sanspeur
I have been considering converting my Porsche 914 to electric. The kit is a bit over $15,000 including shipping, but that will give me a range of 150 miles ( probably less here...Lots of hills ) and a top speed of 100 mph. I have only about $ 7,000 invested in the car, so for $22,000 I could have a clean, green, trouble free machine.
See Volksporsche AC 914 kit.
Electro Automotive: AC Conversion Kits (http://www.electroauto.com/catalog/ackits.shtml#ac914 - broken link)
Or you could buy brand new....This car is awesome!
I noticed the kit doesn't seem to include batteries, have you priced them? And their expected life? How many miles need be driven to make the kit/installation cost pay for itself versus cost of gasoline?
While I believe we must wean ouselves from foreign oil I don't be;ieve it will be an easy process.
Yup...I forgot about the batteries. I would need about 24 of them at app. $100 each...My price just climbed to $24,400. Sadly the batteries only have a life span of about 3 to 5 years....
There would have to be a massive breakthrough in recharge times before a substantial portion of our auto fleet goes go full-electric. Electric cars may be practical for daily commuting, but the minute you want to drive anywhere outside the charge range, it becomes massively inconvenient. IMO the more likely solution will be plug-ins like the forthcoming Chevy Volt that can do electric-only for commuting and then switch over to a gasoline generator for longer trips.
I noticed the kit doesn't seem to include batteries, have you priced them? And their expected life? How many miles need be driven to make the kit/installation cost pay for itself versus cost of gasoline?
While I believe we must wean ouselves from foreign oil I don't be;ieve it will be an easy process.
There are a lot of items which would need to be added to the basic kit to make it work. It looks like the motor itself is an add on item, depending on which one you want to select. I also went to the manufacturer site and the conversion from MPG to an equivalent MGV-electric is a fairly complicated federal register formula. I didn't take the time, but I would like to know if they have included all of the cost drivers in the analysis.
When you look at the motor specs, they go something like 70 peak horsepower to continuous 20 horsepower, so the 100 MPH capability may be for about three minutes after draining the batteries.
Finally, the link below is to treehugger which has some interesting caveats (and they are huge supporters) - like flat ground, warm weather, manual transmission only, you must tear down your car, dispose of the engine and a few other details before you can get it going. So if you are a mechanical engineer, like me, it might be fun to put together over a few dull months, but if you're not, there will be a steep installation charge to pay.
Location: By the sea, by the sea, by the beautiful sea
68,330 posts, read 54,419,437 times
Reputation: 40736
Quote:
Originally Posted by sanspeur
Yup...I forgot about the batteries. I would need about 24 of them at app. $100 each...My price just climbed to $24,400. Sadly the batteries only have a life span of about 3 to 5 years....
I think it's great people are looking for alternatives to foreign oil, I just tend to look for all the hidden costs.
Years ago you'd bring a spent battery to a scrap yard, they'd weigh it and actually pay you a small amount, it then progressed to where they would take it, now they won't even take it. Disposal fees may at sometime reach a point where it's a significant cost.
The Tesla Roadster is an interesting concept with its Lithium batteries but we're going to need a large cost reduction before it's a practical alternative for the average driver.
There are a lot of items which would need to be added to the basic kit to make it work. It looks like the motor itself is an add on item, depending on which one you want to select. I also went to the manufacturer site and the conversion from MPG to an equivalent MGV-electric is a fairly complicated federal register formula. I didn't take the time, but I would like to know if they have included all of the cost drivers in the analysis.
When you look at the motor specs, they go something like 70 peak horsepower to continuous 20 horsepower, so the 100 MPH capability may be for about three minutes after draining the batteries.
Finally, the link below is to treehugger which has some interesting caveats (and they are huge supporters) - like flat ground, warm weather, manual transmission only, you must tear down your car, dispose of the engine and a few other details before you can get it going. So if you are a mechanical engineer, like me, it might be fun to put together over a few dull months, but if you're not, there will be a steep installation charge to pay.
Another little tid bit that always seems to get left out is the lack of air conditioning or heat/windsheild defrost in the winter time. I can hear it now ......well I can do without the air conditioning,...good for you...but you can not do without wipers (summer or winter) head lights at night, and windsheld defrost if you live up north here. And as mentioned battery performance falls off quickly as the ambient temp goes down, AND battery life goes down too as the ambient temp goes up. (for those in the south). The data shown is nearly always the best case stuff....if you have to engineer for year round real world situations things get a whole lot tougher.
I agree with JBrown: what do you do about HEAT, in the wintertime? In the northern states, it can easily be zero degrees (or colder) in the winter months. If a car is 100% electric, I estimate it will take about a 5000-watt heater element inside the car to keep it reasonably warm. Are the batteries going to quit after 5 or 10 miles?
Bud
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