Alright, I'm pretty new to all this, so I have been reading through this site for sometimes hours on end. the "electric assist" threads have me particularly intrigued.
my question is about an electric assist, solely for accelerating from a stop light to around 20 mph. I keep reading that a "controller" is one of the most expensive parts of a full EV conversion. since my intended range of speed is very small, and only for a few seconds at a time, is there a way around that expense?
heres the thought that just popped in my head. while my explorer is a 2 wheel drive, the frame has all the brackets to install the 4wd front axle parts. even the spindles have a threaded plug where the axle shafts would go. I could probably get all the 4wd parts (except the transfer case, which wouldn't be needed) for relatively cheap from a junkyard, since this front suspension was used from '95 to '00 in explorers, '95 to '03 in explorer sports, and in the newer rangers. basically an electric motor about where the transfer case would be, hooked to the front axle with a driveshaft, and a "momentary" switch for on/off. i can mount batteries where the spare used to be, under the truck. the cable crank is broken, so the spare is now tied down inside.
since i have an automatic, i can't EOC to a stop light, and of course my worse gas mileage is accelerating from a stop light. my daily commute is around 40-50 miles and i have the potential to hit 28 stop lights in that 40-50 miles. i usually don't hit that many, i can usually time half of them.
So would this be a worthwhile venture? basically i would just let my truck idle while i used the electric motor to get going, then turn off electric and resume normal operation. of course weight would be an issue, so how few of batteries could i get away with? i could charge it at home, so i wouldn't need a charger on board.
one problem i see with this is that the electric motor would still spin even when not in use. there where 2 hub systems used with this 4wd system. one had pulse vacuum operated hubs, and the other was "locked" all the time, with the only disconnect being at the transfer case. the vacuum system was junk, it was only used on 98 and 99 rangers, so i want to stay away from that. that leaves me with a front driveline that turns all the time, but that doesn't seem to make much of a difference in stock 4x4's.
so let me have it. good, bad, whatever. i've got thick skin
