| Owner | Paul Pancella | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Location | Kalamazoo, Michigan US map | ||||||||
| Web/Email | WebPage | ||||||||
| Vehicle | 1992 Honda Civic CX Hatchback The base model Civic hatchback from that year, which I bought slightly used in 1993 and drove for 15 years. No power steering, no AC, one airbag. Characteristic rust around rear wheel wells. | ||||||||
| Motor | Lynch LMC-2X2-D127 Permanent Magnet DC Two 200-D127 motors mounted in tandem by the British motor company Lynch. Rated 33/68 hp continuous/peak at 144V. Only weighs about 50 pounds! | ||||||||
| Drivetrain | 5 speed manual transmission (S20), now clutchless. | ||||||||
| Controller | Kelly KDH14651B Rated for 650A (very briefly) at 144V, 260A continuous. Regenerative braking controlled via a third pedal interface. | ||||||||
| Batteries | 12 Saft NHE 10-100, 12.00 Volt, Nickel-Metal Hydride Capacity is supposed to be 93 Amp-hours, but I haven't seen nearly that much. They possess liquid cooling jackets, which I may or may not use. I've added half a module to compensate for some weak cells in the string. | ||||||||
| System Voltage | 150 Volts | ||||||||
| Charger | Zivan NG3 Includes temperature probe. Programmed for NiMH charging curve, 115 VAC supply. Peak power on the DC side ~1500 Watts. | ||||||||
| Heater | Nominal 1500 W ceramic electric heating element in place of the old heater core. High/low switch to use all or half of the elements. Works well. | ||||||||
| DC/DC Converter | Iota DLS-30 (Series M) 30 Amp, seems adequate so far. I replaced accessory battery with Optima Yellow Top of the same physical size. | ||||||||
| Instrumentation | Two bipolar current meters for different ranges. Digital voltmeters for pack and 12V system. PakTrakr for fuel gauge and monitoring balance among traction battery modules. Cheap digital remote thermometers to display motor and controller temperatures on the dashboard. Recently added a "canary" analog voltmeter, for easy constant monitoring of weakest module in the traction pack. | ||||||||
| Top Speed | 50 MPH (80 KPH) so far. Will probably go faster. | ||||||||
| Acceleration | fairly anemic | ||||||||
| Range | 30 Miles (48 Kilometers) It took a lot of messing around to get a pack that was balanced enough to do this. In good weather, city driving, no accessories, this distance brings me down to about 30% SoC. | ||||||||
| Watt Hours/Mile | 260 Wh/Mile Measured at AC supply. Typical, stop and go driving, not much terrain, 55 deg. F, no accessories, using regenerative braking. | ||||||||
| EV Miles |
| ||||||||
| Seating Capacity | As factory original, 5, although the three in back would have to be small. | ||||||||
| Curb Weight | 2,400 Pounds (1,090 Kilograms) +/- 30 pounds 60% on front axle | ||||||||
| Tires | Sumitomo all-season HTR-T4 on lightweight VX alloy rims. Size: P165/70 R13 51 psi on the sidewall! I plan to run them about 60 psi. | ||||||||
| Conversion Time | Elapsed time: 4 months to first road test. Estimate about 300 man-hours so far, including myself and everyone else who has labored on hardware. Doesn't count design and research/shopping time. | ||||||||
| Conversion Cost | Right around $15,000 for parts and materials. | ||||||||
| Additional Features | Regenerative Braking really works! Since I have no clutch, I control regen by a third pedal (left foot) completely independent of factory brakes. I retained all of the passenger volume and almost all of the original cargo volume. Cargo area floor is raised about 3 inches. The finished car is relatively lightweight, due to the choices on motor and batteries, but expensive for the same reasons. About 300 pounds heavier than original, still 650 lbs. below the GVWR. I saved $ome by not needing a suspension upgrade, original brakes work fine, and I did not cut into the unibody at all. Replaced right outside mirror with CMOS camera/LCD screen. Solar panels on dashboard help out the 12V battery during daytime driving (and parking). Dome light and third brake light replaced with LEDs. | ||||||||
| Became operational Thanksgiving 2008 at 132V. Upgraded to 144V early Spring, 2009. Got lots of help from folks online, local buds, and the new Michigan chapter of the EAA (WebPage ). Hope to make it reliable and easy enough to operate that my wife will drive it. February 2009 notes: It's still cold out, but I've decided to go ahead and upgrade to 144 V, so I'll be modifying a battery rack and sending the Zivan back for re-calibration. There's plenty of physical room, and the suspension is sitting right where I left it, so 40 more pounds shouldn't hurt. Replacing the pedal unit that controls regen at the same time, the built-in microswitch failed. mid-March 2009: She's back on the road at 144V. Got a generous trade-up deal from Kelly, who basically refunded my full original purchase price to go to the new isolated controller. Still have some instrumentation issues, but the torque is noticeably improved, and regen is working for the first time. July 2009: Good thing you can't get these NiMH batteries. They have not performed as expected. I tried to break them in gradually, but almost from the start, it appears they were not well matched or balanced. When I went out to test my range in March, I must have overstressed them, even though I only went 30 miles. I've replaced four of the modules, but I don't know if I've shortened the life of some of the others, too, and they haven't come close to the expected storage capacity. Oh well, live and learn. September 2009: Getting the car back into regular operation. Can go 20 miles if I'm careful. Only got that after lots of work balancing cell by cell. Still have some weak modules, but I refuse to buy any more of these. Saving up for a lithium pack now. Late October, 2009: Lots of work nursing the battery pack back to health, and I can go 30 miles again, but now without killing any modules. Now frustrated by the Zivan refusing to shut itself off. November, 2009: I've added some PowerCheq modules to keep the traction modules balanced, now that my pack is in pretty good shape. Finished the fiberglass fairing for the rearview camera on the right side. I added another relay so that the DC-DC converter shuts down when the car is off. | |||||||||
1992 Honda Civic
“Hondatron?”
Last Updated 11-21-2009
Copyright © 1997-2009 by Mike Chancey