OwnerSteve Powers
(former owner, EV has been sold)
Owner's Other EVs1979 Plymounth ETV-1
1993 Ford Festiva
1980 Jet Industries Electrica 007
1999 Solectria Force
1983 Mitsubishi Cordia
2013 Wheego Life
LocationAtlanta, Georgia United States map
Email email image
Vehicle1992 Ford Festiva
Donor car had blown engine with 224,763 miles on the odometer, purchased in North Carolina for $150.
Motorunknown 7 Separately Excited DC
Motor was purchased from e-bay for $80 + shipping. It was a 36 Volt lift motor out of a Hyster fork lift.
DrivetrainStock 5 speed manual with flywheel adapter custom machined out of Luvjoy coupler (Steve Clunn www.grassrootsev.com method).
ControllerGeneral Electric EV-1B
Control was contactor (84 Volt) on the armature and GE EV-1B on the field (84 - 36 Volt). Takeoff 84 V / 84 V. Max speed 84 V / 36 V. Instead of a 0 - 5 k pot, a 2.5 - 0 k pot (high to low) was used.
Batteries14 Sam's Club Golf Cart, 6.00 Volt, Lead-Acid, Flooded
System Voltage84 Volts
Charger Individual 12 V deep cycle battery chargers
Multiple chargers to individually balance the pack.
HeaterNo heat. No AC, but I could have driven the AC compressor off an aux motor, but I never go around to it.
DC/DC Converter
None.
InstrumentationNone. I didn't think I needed any, but I could have read the motor amps off the EV-1B with the use of a simple voltmeter.
Top Speed50 MPH (80 KPH)
Top speed was never tested (see comments below). Estimated to be 45 - 50 MPH.
Acceleration0 - 45 in about 18 sec (estimated). Never tested.
Range25 Miles (40 Kilometers)
Estimated range was 25 Miles in stop and go, mostly flat, 35 - 45 MPH.
EV Miles
Start:224,763 Miles (361,643 Kilometers)
Current:224,763 Miles (361,643 Kilometers)
Total:0 Miles (0 Kilometers)
 
    As of 9/1/2011
Seating CapacityOnly two people. No back seat.
Curb Weight2,800 Pounds (1,272 Kilograms)
Estimated. Donor started at 1750 lb.
Tires12 inch well used tires.
Conversion TimeAfter 8 months, I realized that the donor car I selected needed to much work. I also realized that the car was underpowered at about 10 HP nominal, 30 HP maximum. I parted out the car and am now looking for a new chasis.
Conversion Cost$1600 invested. If completed, it would have cost $4500.
Additional FeaturesLow cost conversion.
This 4th EV of mine was a valuable learning experience. I realized the importance of good design work up front and selecting a donor car in better mechanical condition. If I had to do it again, I would have found a 93 Festiva (last model year made) with 50 - 80k miles in good mechanical condition as the donor. I would have used a 9" ADC motor (it would have fit). I would have used a 144 V system (18 X 8 V) flooded golf cart batteries. I would have bought a different controller, minimum 144 V x 600 Amp (prefer 1000 Amps). I still would have used individual chargers to keep the batteries balanced, but I would have installed a battery monitoring system to ensure that they all fully charged.

code by jerry