View Single Post
Old 09-01-2012, 10:39 PM   #150 (permalink)
thingstodo
Master EcoModder
 
Join Date: Sep 2010
Location: Saskatoon, canada
Posts: 1,488

Ford Prefect - '18 Ford F150 XLT XTR

Tess - '22 Tesla Y LR
Thanks: 749
Thanked 565 Times in 447 Posts
SalvageS10 build is not abandoned ...

I have joined team WIKISPEED, who have built a 100+ mpg gas vehicle, and are working to complete the development, begin production, and sell the vehicles at an affordable price.

The present WIKISPEED vehicle is a modular design, using an aluminum frame and a carbon fiber shell. The motor, transmission, gas tank, exhaust system, and ECU are all contained within a module that measures around 40 inches by 40 inches by 20 inches tall. And drawings are available for most of the original parts FREE OF CHARGE. Several parts of the drive train are OEM parts for a 2006 Honda Civic.

'But this is OFF TOPIC for Fossil Fuel Free!'

Team WIKISPEED presently does not have an electric motor module. Their motor module is based on parts from a 2006+ Honda Civic 1.8l. I would like to make an electric motor module instead. That would make the WIKISPEED car a good platform to use for an EV conversion .. but not REALLY a conversion since you are not taking out a gas engine and throwing it away. You just don't purchase the ICE engine module, you purchase the Electric Engine Module instead, or build your own electric engine module.

'But how does that tie in to SalvageS10, the conversion that you've put blood and sweat into?'

I messed up - big time - trying to couple my 40 HP electric motor with the drive train on SalvageS10. I had a few setbacks, changing the motor from driving the rear differential directly to using the transfer case, then using the transmission, trying to use the front drive shaft ... anyway, I thought I had a solution, but it turns out that I did not. In my time-honored tradition, I'm throwing the project in the corner for a while and working on something else. That something else is related - if the output shaft of the electric motor module for the WIKISPEED car can be coupled to the rear differential of SalvageS10, I can test version 1 of the 'electric motor module' without building a WIKISPEED car. Not building an entire CAR should speed things up a bit for me. I could purchase the current prototype version of the WIKISPEED car instead - but there are some issues to address with licensing, insurance, and government paperwork. Things that I hope to avoid by testing SalvageS10 on my own property. If further testing is required, I hope to convince one of the local farmers to let me test on his land.

Some time and effort on my part will be required to locate a coupler (that will work, this time) to couple the electric motor module to SalvageS10, but it is time and effort well spent.

Summary:
- my wife is happy because I will park SalvageS10 'in the meadow' - out of my wife's sight, out of our neighbor's sight. A happy wife is always a worthwhile goal.
- Whenever I get the electric motor module assembled, I can test it by having it drive SalvageS10 (some optimism here - the electric motor module would need to be operational by November to get SalvageS10 out of 'the meadow' before winter and snow set in).

As usual, I've written up my plan. We'll see how it turns out.

Check out the Electric Motor Module build here
http://ecomodder.com/forum/showthrea...tml#post325396

Last edited by thingstodo; 09-01-2012 at 10:58 PM.. Reason: Add link
  Reply With Quote