OwnerSteve Powers
Owner's Other EVs1979 Plymounth ETV-1
1993 Ford Festiva
LocationNorcross, Georgia US 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 6/3/2006
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