| Q: |
How much does it cost to run an electric
car compared to a gas car. |
|
A:
1.
|
If you are getting 20 miles per gallon
at $3 per gallon and you go 30,000 miles you will spend about
$4,500 dollars for gas alone. If you average 30 miles a day at
60 cents per charge for three years about 30,000 miles about $600
and then have to change your batteries for $1800 dollars you will
have spent $2,400. Figure in that electric motors are not running
when you are at traffic lights or in traffic jams so you are not
spending energy when standing still. You will not have to change
oil or spark plugs every 5,000 miles and the electric motor can
last ten times longer than a gas engine. So drive on to 150,000
miles about the life of your gas engine you will spend more than
$22,500 in gas alone compared to less than $12,000 in electricity
and batteries. This is enough to pay for your conversion and your
electric motor is still good while your I.C.engine is junk. |
| Q: |
How much does it cost to convert a
gas vehicle to electric? |
A:
2. |
It depends on the vehicle you are converting
and the performance you need. Are you going AC or DC power, using
new or used parts? At this time GREV is only working with DC.
AC is just too cost prohibitive for us. The basic components are:
Motor 48 to 350 volts $200 to $7,000, Controller 400 to 2000 amps
$500 to $5,000, Batteries Lead Acid 6 or 12 volt or exotics in
a 48 to 350 volt pack $200 to $20,000. Conversion
Packages
This should give you an idea of just how varied this answer can
be. |
| Q: |
What is the best vehicle for a conversion? |
A:
3. |
We always have to ask what you need this vehicle
to do in terms of speed and range. A rule of thumb is 500 to 1000
pounds of lead acid batteries will give you the range of a gallon
of gas. Weight is a major factor, for more range and speed a light
sturdy car or truck is best. You have to look at the spaces for
batteries. Unless you are using one of the highly recommended
Mike Brown kits for the Porsche 914 or VW Jetta it is pretty much
a custom job that will require some engineering and machine work
on somebody's part. |
| Q: |
What type of batteries should I use? |
A:
4. |
The type of batteries you use will
depend on the performance you want.
We use Lead Acid Batteries; they are affordable and readily available.
There are many ways to configure battery packs.
You will have many questions concerning batteries so in an attempt
to answer most of them here we offer these comparisons.
We offer these three 12KW 120 volt battery packs as hypothetical
examples for the same 3,500lb vehicle with the same motor and
controller.
20 * 6 volt deep cycle golf cart batteries with water levels to
be maintained; this pack might weigh about 1300lbs and cost about
$1,800. If you keep the water levels up and don't over charge
or go below % 50 discharges too often this would be averaging
20 to 30 an occasional 40 miles a day they should last 3 to 4
years.
25 * 12 volt AGM (Absorption Glass Mat) sealed maintenance
free batteries also weigh about 1300lbs but cost about
$4,800. You won't have to worry about fluid levels but you still
have to be careful not to over charge or discharge to much and
you should be able to get 3 to 4 years out of them. We do not
suggest anyone purchase Lithium batteries unless you have money
in your budget to risk on research and developement. Check out
the: WFFC
Battery Show Down
|
Battery
Type
|
W*Hr/
Litre |
Watts/Kg |
Life
(re-charge) |
US$
/ Watts |
| PbO2/H2SO4 |
65 |
35 |
400 |
$0.16 |
| NiCOH/KOH/Cd |
150 |
60 |
500 |
$0.96 |
| NiCOH/KOH/MH |
170 |
70 |
1500 |
$2.00 |
| LiCoO2 |
120 |
100 |
500 |
$1.35 |
| LiMnO2/LiBF6/C |
200 |
200 |
500 |
$1.09 |
|
LiFePO4 TS-LFP |
330 |
720 |
1100 |
We will let
you know |
|
| Q: |
How do you calculate how many batteries
you need?
|
A:
5. |
You have to give your acceleration,
range performance and budget requirements first.Let's start with
the voltage of your system. This would be determined by the controller
you use; check the nominal voltage. Higher the voltage and amperage
the more power the vehicle will have. Then divide the nominal
voltage by the size battery you will use; 6 volt, 8 volt or 12
volt. This is the number of batteries you will run in series.
The higher the amp hours the greater the range. If you want to
double the number of batteries then you would buddy up two in
parallel and then run the pairs in series. You also have to consider
space available and the weight that your motor, controller and
suspension can handle.
|
| Q: |
How do I hook up the air conditioner
? |
A:
6. |
Steve usually puts a pulley on the end
shaft but if you don't have a end shaft or enough room you will
need to fit a small electric motor to operate the compressor. |
| Q: |
Can Grassroots Electric Vehicle Company
be “commissioned” to do a conversion for me? |
A:
7. |
We do help people get conversions done.
See our Grassroots Electric Vehicle Conversion
Shops Directory. Professionals experienced in converting
gas vehicles to electric, willing to help you. Shops get $25 to
$250 dollars per hour depending on the caliber of your project.
Experienced technitions get a consultation fee of $25 per half
hour.
If you would like to schedule a tech to call you back to help
with his undivided attention call Jon at:702 277-7544 |
| Q: |
What voltage motor do I need? |
A:
8. |
I would have to ask you; what kind of
load are you going to put on the motor, and at what RPM will it
be running? Then I could tell you what voltage controller you
should use. The controller correctly matched to the motor will
give it the right voltage. The weight of the motor magnets and
size of its brushes determine the power and torque.The rpm rating
for the 9" and 11" motors is 5000rpm and they are happy
to spin this fast; so that if you hook them up direct to your
differencial and you have enough power at 5000rpm you would go
over 100mph; 60kilowatts |
| Q: |
So, what voltage would you recommend
for a normal car?
What controller would you use? |
A:
9. |
In general; I put as many batteries
in as possible. The Zilla controllers
are the best dc controllers on the market and they come in 3 voltages
156v, 300v and 348v at 1000 or 2000 amps. As distance is related
to weight of batteries, golf cart batteries give lots of weight
at 65lbs each. You get the most for the money but it is hard to
get the voltage high when you need 20 of them, just to get 120
volts. Of course 12v AGMs give you twice the voltage for the same
number of batteries and they come in smaller sizes so with them
your voltage can be much higher, all the way up to 348 volts as
the controller is rated it will smartly give the motor as much
voltage as it can take. AGM batteries are also happier delivering
hi amps and can put out 5 times the hp per pound. Their higher
price, usually more than double that of the 6 volt golf cart batteries
is what keeps them from being the all-around winner. |
| Q: |
Were do you plug your EV
in? |
A:
10. |
This depends on your vehicle and charger. You want to plug
in when ever possible at the nearest available outlet. At home
you should have a 240 volt outlet like for the dryer or air
conditioner, you can have one put in a convenient location.
You want to draw as many amps as safely possible, 50 amps would
be great.The PCF20, PCF30 and PCF50 are Extremely
versatile battery chargers, designed to charge any battery
pack from 12 volts to 360 You should be able to plug into 110
at remote locations without drawing to hot of amperage or you
will trip your friends breaker. Most 110 outlets will let you
draw about 10 amps, but not all. Before you plug in, you should
let you friends know you might trip the breaker to find out
if this would be a problem if they have to reset the breaker.
When you own an electric vehicle every trip must be planned
so that you will have enough time and juice to get to your next
charge.
|
| Q: |
What is an electric vehicle
contactor? and do you think I need one? |
A:
11. |
The contactor is like a
big relay , it disconnects the power from the batteries to the
controller , and can handle all the power that comes from the
batteries . If there is any problem opening this will disconnect
power from controller and motor . It runs from the 12v supply
battery |
| Q: |
Why won't a generator on
the wheel work in an electric vehicle? |
A:
12. |
A generator takes more
power to turn because of electromatic flux, friction and extra
wieght then the power it generates; otherwise it would be perpetual
motion. Regenerative braking; utilizes the motor by converting
the motor into a generator and utilizing the electromatic flux
for braking. |
