Beginner Conversion tips?

Post by **Carlton** » Sat, 14 Nov 2009, 16:11

Hello. My name is Carlton. I am a high schooler in the United States of America. I been captivated by what I seen about the electric vehicle, and am getting ready to start a conversion on an old 1995 Mitsubishi Galant. I am very excited, yet nervous too because I have not much mechanical or electrical experience. I am looking for advice and tips on beginning the conversion process. I have the support of some of my peers (about 20 or 30). My main concern right now is where and how to order the motor and assembly pieces. I am wondering if I can get sponsored so that a company or corporation can pay for the parts? I don't know. But I am also surprised at how big the electric car phenomena is around the world. I never knew that Australia had so many EV's until I found this site. I almost want to move down there just for that reason, next to the fact taht you have a lot of beaches. If you shared a similar experience, or have some advice, I'd love to hear it.

Post by **woody** » Sun, 15 Nov 2009, 00:14

Hi Carlton,

(were your parents big fans of "The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air"?)

there is an extremely well documented conversion of a Mitsubishi Tredia (KiwiEV) and he has an ebook out too.

What are your goals for the project?

E.g.
1. I just want to do it
2. I want to drive it as my main car for the next 50 years
3. It needs to not hold up cyclists too much
4. I want to go drag racing
5. I want to spend my inheritance
6. I like dumpster diving - I will spend a whole weekend to save $50.

If you are mega-budget conscious you can get dead batteries for free and see how many you can revive.
2nd hand forklift will give you most of the other parts
how much home support do you have - you'll want a garage for large chunks of time.
Do you have any electricitian / elec engineers in your family or a supportive teacher?

Ask away?

cheers,
Woody

Post by **Carlton** » Sun, 15 Nov 2009, 06:06

Ok Woody, well I was just planning on doing this conversion to save gas, and if possible drag race it so I can beat my buddy's Toyota Supra (with a turbo!!). However, I am jobless, so I have not much money. Thats why I am trying to get sponsored like this one guy in the US named John Wayland (aka "Plasma-Boy"). I have no idea how to get sponsored though, and I don't know how to order motors and electrical parts online or offline. Next to that, my high school doesn't have a garage unfortunately. And my stepmother is too greedy to let me borrow the home garage for even a few minutes, let alone a year. Oh yea, I seen the conversion of the Mitsubishi Tredia. That guy did such a good job. But he left no documentation on how long and how much he spent to convert it, but I do have more clarity on the technical aspects of conversion. Hey, is it true that a donor car with a stickshift is a better donor than one with an automatic transmission?

Post by **Electrocycle** » Sun, 15 Nov 2009, 13:42

it's a lot easier (and a bit more efficient) to use a manual transmission rather than automatic.

Post by **procrastination inc** » Mon, 16 Nov 2009, 00:09

no money is a big problem, bits are expensive. turbo supra toasting bits quadrupally so.

sponsorship is an excellent solution for your lack of cash, but you'll need to beable to show sponsors that:
1. you are capable of producing the finished product (runs on the board =small self funded project)
2. you can work the media to get your sponsors seen.

With that in mind, start small. What ever you can afford.

And have fun

Post by **Carlton** » Mon, 16 Nov 2009, 00:39

Oh man, how do I start small?

Post by **procrastination inc** » Mon, 16 Nov 2009, 01:25

something like this:
viewtopic.php?t=1435
shows skill, dedication, enthusiasm and might be achieved with a fairly modest budget.

Post by **Electrocycle** » Mon, 16 Nov 2009, 03:25

yep, you can certainly learn a lot by doing a motorcycle or even e-bike conversion.
Most of the process is the same, but the parts cost is a lot smaller.

You could probably get hold of an old motorbike for free, or at least very cheap, then scavenge most of the bits required to make it work (old forlift motors / controller, batteries from UPS systems or used car batteries, etc)

With a bit of resourcefulness and ingenuity you could build a usable bike on a very small budget.
It won't break any records, but it'll put things into perspective and give you some real world experience.

Post by **Richo** » Mon, 16 Nov 2009, 07:51

Carlton wrote:I never knew that Australia had so many EV's until I found this site. I almost want to move down there just for that reason, next to the fact taht you have a lot of beaches.

Come to Australia for the beaches stay for the eV's.

Post by **Carlton** » Tue, 17 Nov 2009, 04:23

Now thats a great idea. Thank you Richo and Electrocycle. My dad had recommended that I start off making my own toy EV and work my way up to a real vehicle. Is this a good idea?

Post by **Squiggles** » Tue, 17 Nov 2009, 05:13

Richo wrote: Come to Australia for the beaches stay for the eV's.

What's so good about the beach, you get sand in your shoes you get your hair wet......not to mention the radiation burns!

Post by **Richo** » Wed, 18 Nov 2009, 06:40

Beach chicks

Yes start small.
Skateboard -> bicycle -> scooter -> motorbike -> microcar -> sedan -> SUV -> Bus -> Truck -> Plane...

Post by **Dido Tan** » Wed, 18 Nov 2009, 22:41

Carlton wrote: Hello. My name is Carlton. I am a high schooler in the United States of America. I been captivated by what I seen about the electric vehicle, and am getting ready to start a conversion on an old 1995 Mitsubishi Galant. I am very excited, yet nervous too because I have not much mechanical or electrical experience. I am looking for advice and tips on beginning the conversion process. I have the support of some of my peers (about 20 or 30). My main concern right now is where and how to order the motor and assembly pieces. I am wondering if I can get sponsored so that a company or corporation can pay for the parts? I don't know. But I am also surprised at how big the electric car phenomena is around the world. I never knew that Australia had so many EV's until I found this site. I almost want to move down there just for that reason, next to the fact taht you have a lot of beaches. If you shared a similar experience, or have some advice, I'd love to hear it.

Hi,Carlton,If you have any problem on battery, you could ask me, maybe i could help. Let's move forward and learn together. My skype is skyenergy.dido.

Post by **Squiggles** » Thu, 19 Nov 2009, 02:08

Richo wrote: Beach chicks

You make a good point

Post by **Richo** » Thu, 19 Nov 2009, 05:20

oops I forgot the BOAT eV

Post by **Carlton** » Fri, 20 Nov 2009, 15:47

Oh man, the donor vehicle got into a front end collision with a distracted driver. I will just research so far, since I'm flat out broke and don't have anymore donor cars.

Post by **Carlton** » Fri, 20 Nov 2009, 15:48

Oh man, the donor vehicle got into a front end collision with a distracted driver. I will just research so far, since I'm flat out broke and don't have anymore donor cars. Anymore advice for someone interested in making an electric car before he/she even buys his/her first car?

Post by **Electrocycle** » Fri, 20 Nov 2009, 15:52

if it was someone else's fault, the insurance payout should be enough to fund a smaller EV conversion with some careful shopping / scavenging.

Post by **Carlton** » Fri, 20 Nov 2009, 15:55

ah thats reassuring news, but the insurance doesn't belong to me since its not my car to begin with. Thank you though Electrocycle.

Post by **lithbattboss** » Fri, 20 Nov 2009, 20:00

Richo wrote: Beach chicks

Wow....a natural blonde as well!!!

Post by **Richo** » Fri, 20 Nov 2009, 20:25

Always be on the lookout for a car with a blown engine - they usually go for next to nothing.

Post by **Carlton** » Mon, 23 Nov 2009, 12:56

ah, we got one of those. A Nissan that got struck by lightning. No joke.

Problem is, its not a manual transmission car.

Post by **Carlton** » Mon, 23 Nov 2009, 13:00

My silly dad thinks he can repair the damage.

Post by **Goombi** » Wed, 25 Nov 2009, 06:04

People that dream a lot wake up wet---- quote from italian philosopher Markucci.

Post by **Carlton** » Fri, 27 Nov 2009, 10:19

so it really is impossible to repair a lightning struck car?