New to ecomodder...

[nicman]

Hi all.

My oldest son is heading off to college, out of state, for the first time. He recently asked if I wanted to work on a father-son project: converting a conventional car into an electric one. Of course, I said yes, but don't have any experience doing so... so the research began and I quickly stumbled upon this website.

So far, we have nothing (not even the vehicle)... we're really just beginning, so just doing a lot of reading. I'm not much of a 'car guy' and will probably need help mechanically, but I'm a EE and feel comfortable with the sparky stuff.

I hope to learn from all of you here. Thanks.

[Daox]

Welcome to the site.

What are the goals for the EV?

[Sporty Modder]

What vehicle are you planning to use? An early 90s compact would work good.

[larrybuck]

Welcome! I'm sure you'll find plenty of info, and help here.

Just dive right in, and ask questions in the Fossil free section.

I don't have any electric car experience, but will share my 2cents worth.

I think an early Pontiac Fiero ('84 in particular) might be a good choice.

Rear wheel drive cars seem to be easier to set up; I have heard that the Fiero
handles extra weight fairly well. A non rust body, and pleasant looks that wouldn't
be a college age turnoff.

The reason I selected specifically an '84 is that many people don't like the centrally
located fuel tank that you would remove anyway. The stories about being prone to eng. fires also turns people off of early models.

This could translate into a VERY friendly initial purchase price for you.

The interiors are quite handsome stock.

Again; welcome!

[wxxyz]

Your son is going away, and you're trying to build an ev with him? Is that before he leaves? Or is it with a different son?

[cleanspeed1]

Check out the Forkenswift. Just punch it in our search engine and see how it was done.

Just get something you like and do it, no matter what it is. Practicality is fine, but cool is forever!

[ps2fixer]

Welcome to ecomodder!

I don't directly have EV experience, but you will need some parts. They could come from other EVs such as a fork lift, just remember their size and "power" has to match or be better than what you expect out of the car, at least with out swapping out parts with larger ones.

The biggest thing that has stopped me from attempting something like this is range (36 miles one way to work) and cost, batteries are not cheap, but are cheaper than gas including the charge costs.

While your looking up EV things, I would suggest looking around at solar panels as well, since they produce power while your not driving it (in the sun of course), and if you think about it early in the project, it would have little to no aero effect on the finished car.

If I was going to convert a car, I would look for either 1. small and can carry a fair amount of weight, or 2. any car that gets good mpg but is a tad bit larger of a car (battery space). I have seen photos/videos of small trucks being converted as well.

However you go about this, I hope to see a project thread on it full of photos, details, and what issues you run into. Good luck with your project!