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Location:
Pine Rivers QLD
Registered:
April 2005
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Electric cars....
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Mon, 12 December 2005 12:21
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Howdy all
First a little bit about myself, i am a microelectronic engineer and have done a few motor swaps in my day, i would also like to work for toyota one day designing the computerized stuff for cars, if anyone can help 
Anyway i have been interested in cars for a while and even more interested in electric cars and the use of solar panels.
I am still to find how people manage to acquire large electric motors for cars and the specs of such motors (current draw ect).
Long story short, i want to have a play and see if i can't make such a car. The most powerful motors i can acquire are 240V ones and i was thinking that if i acquire a small light car (my GF drives a 1984 or so 5 speed manual, 3cyc charade that she wants to upgrade) rip out the seats and anything else to lighten the car, rip out the cylinders (as i would think oil flow will still be required) and replace the alternator with a belt driven electric motor (like those found in washing machines ect) and belt it up to the crank shaft. run a suitable inverter and pump 240V's into the motor.
I know the issues with inverters and motors and i am well aware that this thing will be completely gutless but i should get some movement in 1st right? esp if i rev it up and drop the clutch???
I would be interested to hear what people have to say about this, this is totally just to let me have a play and see what i can achieve. Eventually i would like to rebuild a really small car like a mini to get some decent speeds.
Thanks
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Location:
Montrose, VIC
Registered:
May 2002
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Re: Electric cars....
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Mon, 12 December 2005 13:02
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Well, first of all I suggest you study (so-called) hybrid cars (prius etc.), as well as 'micro hybrid' cars, that essentially replace the alternator with a big electric motor. The ultimate problem is not the electric motors, but finding a way to get enough electricity to run them. The attractiveness of fossil fuel is the sheer energy density - even with the disgracefully shameful inefficiency with which our present systems convert it, nothing else even comes close to matching it for practical ability to fit a useful amount in a reasonable space.
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Registered:
March 2005
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Re: Electric cars....
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Mon, 12 December 2005 13:14
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why not remove all the wight of the motor, and room and put the motor straight onto the input shaft of the gearbox. A;so i would reccomend going for something like AC brushless mmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm. Especially if you can find a speed controller that is capable of regen etc.
I think one of the reasons that most manufactures go for hub motors as other already commercially available motors dont have quite enoguh power for a car but 4/2 will. Also then you can ditch all the weight of the driveline. There is no need for a diff and since electric motors generally dont need gearboxs you wont need that either.
I think you will also have to look at how your going to charge all the batteries in this beast, it could take days....
A mate and i have plans for an electric powered lazy boy chair of some concoction. Plan keeps on changing, especially when the drive line is considered. I think the ieda at the moment was to use some Briggs and Stratton motors commonly found in some electric motor cycles and two speed controllers. At 48v and a large bank of batteries with large copper rods keeping the amps flowing. I tihnk this thing is planed to have like max 14kw or something haha, in a reclining chair.
Good luck
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Location:
Pine Rivers QLD
Registered:
April 2005
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Re: Electric cars....
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Mon, 12 December 2005 13:24
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well i decided that keeping the block in will allow for really easy connection to the motor. as all i will need is a belt, also the charade is FWD so diffs and things won't be so bad.
I didn't know that people usually replace the alternator it just made sense to do it that way. Also i am a Microelectronic engineer, speed controllers are not a problem as i can build my own, yes even big mutha ones.
But like i said i want to have a play and if it works upgrade the motor or do it a different way.
What if i get a really light car (mini moke) and put 4 hub motors on? then i will have super 4WD no???
Anyway where do you acquire these hub motors.
And battery wise i was thinking in trying lithium, as i have worked a bit with them and i saw on beyond tomorrow that you buy a million AA size ones and wire them together.
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Location:
Perth
Registered:
January 2005
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Re: Electric cars....
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Mon, 12 December 2005 13:25
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Hi,
You sound like a 'hands on' kinda guy who'd rather try something out than do some calculations to see if it would work.
Go to http://www.oatleyelectronics.com/motors.html
and buy a $36 300W, 24V DC motor, and a $24 350W speed controller and build an electric go-kart.
Hopefully this will spark your interest enough for you to get your calculator out to see how to improve performance, and what the problems are 
I am build an electric cart, but I have already done rough calculations to figure out what I need. Why not start your design off with a specification of what you want, and then find out what you can achieve within your means, and then re-evaluate your spec to accomodate 
Regards, Nick.
[Updated on: Mon, 12 December 2005 13:26]
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Location:
Pine Rivers QLD
Registered:
April 2005
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Location:
Perth
Registered:
January 2005
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Location:
Kita-Ku, Sapporo, Japan
Registered:
January 2003
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Re: Electric cars....
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Mon, 12 December 2005 14:47
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i believe some of the drag electric cars (like the one in the 9's) use things like truck starter motors...
maybe use teh intahnet to search for something rather than asking toymod as your first port of call
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Registered:
March 2005
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Re: Electric cars....
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Mon, 12 December 2005 22:47
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i gernerally thought trucks used air starter motors. The good thing about starters are they are powerful. The downside is they have a very low duty cycle. They are made to run at a few seconds not constantly for minutes on end. Thats why they are good for the drags, ony need 9s worth. Another idea is maybe talking to the guy who electrified the ariel atom?
Maybe have a look at the briggs and stratton Etek. I'm not sure how much power your going to need in a charade but these things are pretty cool. 8hp continious and 16hp max. So it may be possible if you fabricated one of these into each wheel.
http://www.gravitron.co.uk/html/laaa4002.html
Thats also another idea.
Good luck
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Location:
Brisbane
Registered:
October 2004
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Location:
St James, Perth
Registered:
June 2004
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Re: Electric cars....
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Tue, 13 December 2005 03:50
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| ndgcpr wrote on Mon, 12 December 2005 21:24 |
What if i get a really light car (mini moke) and put 4 hub motors on? then i will have super 4WD no???
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Run a google search on Toyota's new prototype electric rally car. From memory, it has an electric motor at each wheel (4WD) and generates around 450NM of Torque right from idle. 
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