Hey thanks for the offer! I will give the Swift trade some thought... ;-)
The first thing I'm going to do is to get a better baseline of wh/mi data before making any changes. The only measured run included a very long gradual uphill slope and was maybe done a little faster than would be optimal for an wh/mi test. So a few more runs, and also a second test route with a few runs.
In the mean time, I have already started on preparing materials for a few modifications. The easy ones to start with:
- transparent wheel covers
- transparent grill block
- belly pan
- front air dam after that
I'm also building more batteries and will be more than doubling the pack voltage over the winter. Increasing the voltage will of course, proportionally reduce the amperage draw, and improve the amphour capacity a bit. Plus simply having more kWh capacity will increase the range. The pack is now only about 9 kWh and will be increasing to about 25 kWh.
An alternate set of tires has to be considered. The efficiency calculator on this site is very informative when playing with values.
Any suggestions on tire values there? I suspect that those wide rear tires are maybe above that range of up to 0.15 as shown in the example.
Lots to do and I am anxious to see how much it helps.
Quote:
Originally Posted by dtbaker61
you don't have to change a thing, you can trade me straight across for my electric Swift, and your efficiency will soar!
....seriously, since you've checked alignment and brake drag, and built w/o transmission you can't do much about inefficiency off the line with low rpm.
- make custom grill block. leave a duct thru controller cooler, and another straight shot to the motor intake (with filter).
- make a belly pan at least from grill valance back to torsion bar. Protect motor from grit and water and smooth out airflow.
- try getting your hands on a hardtop, or test with a cheap fabric bikini top.
- really consider narrower tires. Like old '60s vette look. at least unless showing or racing. 
also keep in mind that consumption 'at the wall' measured with kill-a-watt meter will include all losses in charger during charging. I know that over 1000 miles my Swift consumes avg of 300 wattHr/mile, but the on-board cycle analyst shows battery use to be right around 225 wattHr/mile... and I KNOW I have some brake drag or bad front wheel bearings going on I havent addressed yet. |