Ben's Refurbished Mitsubishi Miev

[Ryland]

2012 I MIEV ES/ Salvage for Sale from Copart

is the link that Highend tried to post of Ben's car.

[highend]

exactly - so they washed it from salt & sand probably... inside looks like water penetrated all. I wonder how it smells inside.... What I would do when I buy vehicle like this:
- remove 12V battery first
- remove all interior including dashboard - to pure steel
- remove removable body panels to clean everything possible
- clean all wires & contacts
- wash all I can do with water
- wash electronics with distilled water
- allow to dry (put on the sun for a few days - but protect battery for being so hot)
- re-connect all wires, put 12V
- take good fire extinguisher for safety and few persons for help
- START IT!

[Intrigued]

subscribed... :-)

[johnsiddle]

Originally Posted by NeilBlanchard

Why would a rear wheel drive EV be better? You'd lose some regen capacity, because the rear wheels only have about 30% of the braking power vs the ~70% that the front wheel have.

Just get a Tesla!

How do you figure that out, the 70/30 split is the braking split of the hydraulics.
Rear wheel drive will have the same REGEN capacity as a front wheel drive has when turning at closed throttle.

As long as the wheels are turning and regenning then they are providing the braking effort unless you restrict the amount of regen by applying the brakes or some electronic restriction.

It would be interesting on ice though.

I could be wrong though....

[user removed]

If the car is the one linked in post 41 the most telling picture is number 8, which if I am correct is the instrument cluster located above the steering column. I believe it shows the water level with a residue on the bottom of the instrument inside the cluster itself. I could certainly be wrong but if those assumptions are true and based only on the photos provided, the water level was about the same height as the bottom of the door windows.

Most of these salvage auctions are fairly well covered with a lot of the vehicles shipped overseas. It's very competitive bidding. Might be best to find another one with some damage and use the sheet metal to fix it. Many potential buyers look the cars over throughly in person and they know what to look for.

Picture number 8 would be enough to scare me out of bidding on that car with the intention to repair it. It does not mean you will not do well with the parts over a period of time, but if that is residue from water at the bottom of that gauge and that gauge is higher than the steering column the there was water inside the car up to your armpits if you were sitting in the drivers seat.

The title is listed as IA salvage, not NC. Not sure about that, could be titled originally in Iowa (IA). Possible where it was built?

regards
Mech

[NeilBlanchard]

The reason the hydraulics are split that way is because the weight shift under braking puts more weight on the front wheels - so they can generate more braking force. The front wheels do about 70% of the braking in any situation, so they can do more regenerative braking, too.

[bennelson]

My understanding on the Iowa title is that it means the insurance company was in Iowa, that's all.

Yep, that one photo is the scary one.

I booked transportation for this, and it should be here next week.

[bennelson]

Ha Ha!
I just got the e-mail that's the "Hey, here's what's going on on Ecomodder" February update.

In it, item number 5 is THIS thread.

I love the description given:
"Ben Nelson represents both the DIY ethos and gambler's spirit all
in one project: sight unseen, he bought a new Mitsubishi iMiEV
electric car in an online insurance auction. The car was written
off for water damage, and we're following the saga to see if he's
getting the steal of the century, or a big headache:"

Why's it gotta be either or? I'm shooting for steal of the century AND a huge headache!

[z_power]

Ha, this is much nicer to read than here (scroll down to "November"): Achmed Khammas - Das Buch der Synergie - Teil C - Mobile Anwendungen 2006 (Fortsetzung)
translated: he's little to none experience, no welding skills and a drill is his only tool

btw: it's a great book about ancient and recent history of EV's, worth seeing even if you don't know German: Achmed Khammas - Das Buch der Synergie - Teil C - Mobile Anwendungsbereiche der Energiespeicherung

[cRiPpLe_rOoStEr]

Originally Posted by NeilBlanchard

Why would a rear wheel drive EV be better?

I like the driving dynamics of RWD, and it also allows for better maneuverability in tight spaces since the absence of driveshafts leaves more space for the wheels to steer