Donovan,
I insured through Erie Insurance here in PA without problems. I heard of other success stories using State Farm. However I believe alot has to do with the type of insurance you’re looking for. For me it was only basic liability coverage as a pleasure vehicle. Cost was $288 per year. Things get complicated when you’re looking at insuring the cost of your conversion in the case of theft or accident related repairs (i.e. comprehensive & collision). Many insurance companies won’t insure a customized car since it doesn’t fit their standard policy. Also, I didn’t tell Erie I converted it myself, only that I had a gas car “converted over to electric”. They didn’t ask for more detail so I didn’t provide any
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You really should include a contactor. Low voltage control of your high voltage is a must for safety. Your Open Revolt motor controller can turn it on after a programmed delay (to allow precharge). An inertia switch should also be in series with the contactor coil to cut power in the event of impact. Most importantly, a contactor keeps you from manually plugging/unplugging the Anderson (which has no business being in the passenger compartment). I got my kilovac contactor off ebay for $60 and routinely see them go for $70. The inertia switch was from a Ford Ranger and also purchased off ebay for $10.
I have the contactor’s coil wired to my Open Revolt controller, inertia switch, and even an e-stop switch on the dash. I use my clutch cable to disconnect the Anderson located in the engine bay (my system is clutchless). The clutch pedal is shortened to prevent accidentally bumping it during normal operation.
Good Luck
-Chris