Electric Assist Project: E-charger (2000 Subaru Outback) - Page 6 - Fuel Economy, Hypermiling, EcoModding News and Forum

Dr. Jerryrigger · 08-05-2010, 12:29 PM

I'm pretty sure I'm using the plugs and wires from the factory, and they work fine (except when it's really humid, but that's just one wire)

Clev · 08-05-2010, 02:46 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Dr. Jerryrigger

I'm pretty sure I'm using the plugs and wires from the factory, and they work fine (except when it's really humid, but that's just one wire)

I think he was talking about putting in new plugs and wires now, while they're still readily accessible. Doing maintenance a bit early, rather than having to tear it all apart later when it actually needs plugs and wires.

Dr. Jerryrigger · 08-05-2010, 04:03 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Clev

I think he was talking about putting in new plugs and wires now, while they're still readily accessible. Doing maintenance a bit early, rather than having to tear it all apart later when it actually needs plugs and wires.

Yes he was, I was suggesting that the maintenance might not be necessary for another decade or so.

brucey · 08-05-2010, 07:17 PM

I'm going to go ahead and do the plugs, won't take but a few minutes and even less money. The plug wires should be good for some time. I also got the bolts for the motor today, grade 8 hardware, and some 1/4" X 1" plate. Going to use it to make 2 L brackets.

Anywho, probably won't get a lot of time to work on it the rest of the day, I promised my friend I'd help her change her brakes and well, she's paying and this aint.

ShadeTreeMech · 08-05-2010, 07:27 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by brucey

Anywho, probably won't get a lot of time to work on it the rest of the day, I promised my friend I'd help her change her brakes and well, she's paying and this aint.

Not yet it's not. be nice to figure your return on investment!

brucey · 08-08-2010, 12:20 AM

Return on investment isn't a major concern with me, I do this as a hobby/for fun. But I did figure it up at between 10~25K miles.

Anywho, made room for the motor today..

Will have to eventually make a bracket for the ABS pump, but plenty of room now.

Also looks like i"m going to have to move that power steering reservoir after all. Ah well, I'll find a place for it pretty easily. Also got grade 8 hardware for all the points that I'll be mounting to and also for the motor itself.

Gonna start making the brackets soon. Gonna have one coming off the engine block that supports the weight of the motor, and another coming off the power steering pulley (also supported by the intake manifold) that bolts directly to the motor. Anywho, got 2 plans for the belt routing atm:

Belt path 1:

Simpler:

Belt path 2:

More idler pulleys/tensioners, BUT should also give lots of wrap if there is any slip.

Dr. Jerryrigger · 08-08-2010, 02:16 PM

Nice progress! I think you'll be able to get away with option 1, due to the direction of rotation. It may be beneficial to put a tensioner on the idler pulley (like the ones for a timing belt). This will take up slack when load change, but it's hard to find a cheap one, and would be much more difficult to rig up.
Or the way I'd do it (this should be seen as a caution sign):
On the alternator's tensioner bolt I'd slip on a small, but stiff spring, like a valve spring between two washers. If I'm remembering it right the spring would go just under the bolt head (the bolt you turn for 6 minutes to loosen the belt). With this set up you would have to leave the pivot point bolt and the tensioner lock bolt loose so it could still move. This could be done safely (not really) if you add some washers, grease it up, and use a lots of Lock tight (as you can't put "proper" torque on the bolts). Finding the right spring could be difficult, as you would want one that would be only partly compressed when the belt was at proper tension.

So with option 1 you could just bolt an idler on the red bracket and be done, if you using the same belt that goes over the alternator you'll be able to get in on and off. For placement of the idler pulley, look into available sizes of belts first, and place it where it will fit an available size. A common one would be good, as you might kill a few when you first start to play with this and if you can find out a car that has a compatible belt, they're really cheap at the junk yard.

ShadeTreeMech · 08-08-2010, 03:35 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by brucey

Return on investment isn't a concern with me, I do this as a hobby/for fun. But I did figure it up at between 10~25K miles.

Anywho, made room for the motor today..

Will have to eventually make a bracket for the power steering pump, but plenty of room now.

Now I'm confused. Your PS pump seems to still be attached....and is that a Leinenkugel sitting near the firewall? I thought I was the only fool to drink and work on my cars! Sometimes it helps when working on a particularly frustrating bit.

Quote:

Belt path 1:

Simpler:

On this option, are you replacing the p/s to gen belt with a longer one? The pic isn't quite clear on that point. I wouldn't worry about slippage if you use a large enough pulley on the electric motor.

Have you sorted the AC2 to crankshaft ratio yet? ie, how fast will the electric motor spin compared to the crankshaft?

Something Ben Nelson mentioned to me is if it's possible to disengage the electric motor from the crankshaft, it would be beneficial, and make the brushes last longer. One possible scenario is the battery pack is depleted and you don't want to waste the fuel spinning a now useless motor. If you had an a/c clutch on the electric motor, you could do just that from inside the car. And the pulley on the a/c clutch would I think be close to the best ratio for what you're doing.

ShadeTreeMech · 08-08-2010, 03:38 PM

Here's an interesting thread.
http://ecomodder.com/forum/showthrea...sist-8225.html

brucey · 08-08-2010, 06:25 PM

That's a booboo on the picture, and a booboo on my wording. I forgot to erase the stock pulley path in the picture, and I meant ABS pump, not power steering pump, I guess it was still in my mind. Right now the ABS pump is held in place with zip ties only, but is surprisingly stable. I'm just not happy leaving it hanging, however. And yes, beer and buddies is required to work on cars.

Also, my motor is 6000 RPM redline, with the Electric motor being 7500 RPM. So it's going to have a 1:1.25 ratio, which puts the electric motor pulley at a little over 6 inches wide. Gonna be a honker, and I believe it's the one part I'm not going to be able to build myself.

Also, it's a brushless motor. AC Induction I believe. It should freewheel very well and once I get the power sorted out, I plan to make it have manual regen too.