Solectria Sunrise to rise again

[MetroMPG]

It was never really in production. Several prototypes were made and sold around 1995. There's a wikipedia entry: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Solectria_Sunrise

[Oval_Overload]

Ok, I just had to register here, I need to help clear things up. I had a very educational conversation with Lee last night. The reason Lee is using old FoMoCo 'super coupes' is because they had a very long production run, they are cheap (no one wants an '89 Cougar ), many parts fit the Sunrise frighteningly well, they have front and rear subframes (all suspension parts come out in one chunk), and the cars are very, very heavy, so the suspension, steering, braking, and drivetrain parts will stand up to the weight of lead batteries. I may be mistaken, but I believe he said that the Sunrise EV2 will tip the scales at a little over 50% of the donor car's GVW

[cfg83]

Oval_Overload -

Thanks for the info. I prefer adapting a pre-existing rolling chassis into a Kit Car as opposed to a ground-up tubular frame.

If you had a 217 mile range in 1996, where do you think you'll be at today?

Solectria Sunrise - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

The Sunrise is known for having achieved 375 miles on a single charge, during the 1996 American Tour de Sol[1] competition. A Sunrise was driven 217 miles from Boston to New York city "on a single battery charge, negotiating everyday traffic and highway speeds up to 65 miles per hour" (104 km/h) [2].

I do see this :

specs

Performance

* acceleration: 0-30 mph in 4 seconds, 0-60 mph in 9 seconds
* range (lead-acid): 60 miles at 60 mph, 85/55 miles city/highway

But maybe that number is out of date.

CarloSW2

[Oval_Overload]

No problem *grins*.
Isn't that last quote from Lee's site?
the Sunrise EV2 is supposed to have a faster 0-60 time than the original Solectira. I'm guessing this is due to PbA putting out more amps than Stan's EV-95's. Keep in mind that these specs are with the configuration Lee would use. The Idea here is to sell the shell, and the customer can use what ever powertrain parts they want/can get. The end user could buy the same configuration as Lee, they could ForkenSwift it, or they could Solectrize it, like my new friend Dave did with his freaken' sweet Metro.

[toyobug]

I like the design of the body..wonder if you could "cut, chop, rebuild" to fit other donor chassis?? Any thoughts on this?

[MetroMPG]

Oval Overload - thanks for popping in with the clarification.

toyobug: FYI, the bodywork isn't meant to be "draped" on a rolling chassis/floor pan like a kit car. The Sunrise is a complete composite unibody "shell" that needs suspension parts bolted on. Thus the attraction to the suspension subframe assemblies of the Ford RWD coupes.

[toyobug]

MetroMPG- thanks for setting me straight on that. I take it that you would risk affecting the Cd if you were to attempt to "cut, chop" the body. I was reading some of the Aero threads today, and saw some talk ot "belly pans"...so that makes since. Be patient with me, I'm still learning..

[MPaulHolmes]

Originally Posted by toyobug

MetroMPG- thanks for setting me straight on that. I take it that you would risk affecting the Cd if you were to attempt to "cut, chop" the body.

It's true, whenever you even scratch a CD, it doesn't work properly. It skips.

-Paul haha!

[Oval_Overload]

The Sunrise project has temporarily been temporarily placed on hold due to lack of funds. Lee said he was going back to his day job so he could pour more money into the project

If anyone would like to help get things rolling again, donations can be sent to Lee A. Hart, 814 8th Ave N, Sartell MN 56377

~OR~

Via PayPal to
leeahart@earthlink.net

Please help get the worlds most efficient car rolling again!

~O_O (oval_overload)

[MetroMPG]

Thanks for the update, Oval. I haven't checked in on the EVDL for a month or more so didn't know about this.