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Old 10-13-2008, 12:58 PM   #19 (permalink)
ncc74656m
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Blue Bomber Man View Post
The only reason to split up the pack would be for weight balancing. I would not break it down much further than 2 or 3 packs due to the extra weight from wiring (heavy gauge wire is needed for all electric drive).

Battery packs do indead use small cells like a phone battery, they are just all wired together with proper balancing systems in place.
And that's the answer I'm looking for. Weight Dist is indeed my goal for splitting the packs, and splitting into just two is fine, as far as I care.

So the gist of this is that if I am not using basically a custom or kit car, I shouldn't be able to ever expect more than 50 mi on batts alone, correct?

I would expect to use a car that has a base weight with ICE of around 1900 lbs, so I shouldn't be too surprised if without the engine that loses, what, 300 lbs? There are a hundred other things that can be done to shed weight, too, if done right. CF hood and trunk, for example. Removing back seats (if unused). Switching to lightweight rims and low RR tires. Granted, most of these items are obvious, but they add up.

My basic plans for weight loss would be:
- Fabbing or replacing panels with carbon fiber where possible
- Removal of unnecessary seats
- Removal and replacement of sound deadening material. The existing sprayed on rubber goop coatings are often very heavy, and in these older cars, frequently decayed anyway, minimizing their effectiveness. Strategically replacing that with modern equivalents can shed up to 50 lbs, if I recall my weights and measures from another forum.
- Unnecessary components, such as heavy subwoofers and amplifiers for stereos. If we're working on dropping weight anyway, and maximizing battery, this shouldn't be an issue.
- For the extreme users, removing interior paneling is a great way to strip weight, again, up to 50 lbs in some cases. Note that removing the dash is typically a bad idea.

I'm sure that most of this is covered elsewhere, so I'll stop talking right there, but I bet you could get the base car down about 400 lbs (before readding it all back in with the engine and batteries).
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