Longtime Lurker Looking for Miles ZX40 Electric Micro van mods & information

[rmay635703]

Well these Greensavers seem to be working fine in the van, they are VERY odd. Their voltage recovers rapidly even when deeply discharged and now that we have our field reduction easily switchable our top speed is great.

Funny part is we actually use only 50amps on the flat at 27mph with field reduction as compared to 65amps without, very odd.

Although expensive ($200/6v) the Greensavers appear to be a legitimate alternative to AGM, the harder you draw on them the higher their voltage seems to be, I really can't explain it. Our range driven gingerly "appears" to be 40 miles trouble is the batteries keep coming back so it is difficult to determine real range, the batteries are 250ahr (180ahr under 100amp load supposedly) but I definately don't want to crap them out on a hunch, not sure how to test them as they seem to hold about the same lowish (40%dod) voltage forever. They are rated at 80% DOD which is very nice, though I never go that far.

My main concern now is that they really like to jump in voltage randomly at near the end of the charge cycle meaning some get to the overcharge area briefly (then I unplug)

My AGM charger is problematic in that it likes to go too high on the charge voltage if there is any imbalance in the batteries (even a few hundreths) so I am still not sure how to handle the things. They all end up at full charge (or a little above resting) so I really need to tone the charger down, I plan on using a timer to match up charge time to capacity used (event though my charger is automatic). Speaking of which old chargers had an 8 hour wind up timer the crappy pull the tab 24hour jobs burn up too easily anyone know where I can get an old timer cutoff.

Lots of watching the pack because of this. Bleh, otherwise good, I am hopeing for a very long life like others, hopefully I don't murder the things early.

Also I ordered an overpriced $140 Kaneka GSA60 60watt 60v solar panel for the top of the van, fits perfectly in the roof rack, I AM REALLY KICKING MYSELF I DIDN"T GET IN ON THE GROUP BUY A FEW MONTHS BACK AT $60 a panel

Now the trouble is how to build a high voltage cutoff for the solar panel so I can't overcharge. (and no I don't want a 60amp 120v MPPT charger that uses half an amp to handle my 1 amp panel trickle charging my batteries)

Cheers
Ryan

[bennelson]

[QUOTE=rmay635703;
Now the trouble is how to build a high voltage cutoff for the solar panel so I can't overcharge. (and no I don't want a 60amp 120v MPPT charger that uses half an amp to handle my 1 amp panel trickle charging my batteries)

Cheers
Ryan[/QUOTE]

Here's the charge controller I am using with my Kaneka 60watt panel:
Xantrex C40 Charge Controller

Since it's only one amp, you may not really need a controller - It would take 100 hours to recharge a 100 amp hour 48V pack..... Just let it pump.

If you plan to leave the vehicle in the sun for days at a time with the solar running, I suppose you should have something. The trouble with those Kaneka panels is that you can't use cheap 12v accessories with them!

[rmay635703]

If a low cost solution (aka low amperage) existed I would go ahead since the panels power area is way above where I need charge current, probably add about a 1/3 amp or so.

I fully plan on going without a charge controller and having a light switch to cut it off.

The car WILL sit for several weeks in the summer and my father fully charges it once it gets home which would mean troubles, especially with silicone gel cells.
His car sets for several hours and usually isn't fully charged during the day which makes a solar panel "Desulphator" attractive.

My main hope is to reduce battery wear which will extend cycle life, the rate of sulphation is cut well in half (or more) even under c/200 rates especially when the batteries are discharged.

I would strongly recommend anyone with an electric vehicle have a solar panel to trickle batteries, assuming they have room on the roof as it extends cycle life dramatically. Even if there is no range benefit

I have always disliked the fact that I can't fit 72v of low power panels onto my commuta's roof, I may well have to do it the hard way and split cells to build my own to run the desulphators on my commuta. Too bad a homemade panel costs more than factory made.

Many underestimate how much money is saved by extending cycle life of their batteries.

Cheers
Ryan

[carcrazy47]

I have a 2005 miles ZX40. I took the trans apart to see what they had done. They removed all the shifting parts, removed all the gears, except the two 2nd gears and welded one to the shaft. so that's that. Dick

[carcrazy47]

I have a 2005 Miles ZX40. Step by step how do you hook up a ampmeter to check draw the motor is using while you are driving. I need a list of other parts I will be needing to complet this job. what size ampmeter do I need. I will be changing it over to 72 v soon, where should I place the two extra batteries?

[rmay635703]

Originally Posted by carcrazy47

I have a 2005 Miles ZX40. Step by step how do you hook up a ampmeter to check draw the motor is using while you are driving.

You don't;
I wired mine up with the shunt between the last battery and the controller semi permanently.

Originally Posted by carcrazy47

I need a list of other parts I will be needing to complet this job. what size ampmeter do I need.

How big of motor and controller are you going to use? Mine is a 350amp 50mv shunt driving an old antique analog meter that I have velcro'd to my dash. I have a very similar setup on my 450amp comutacar.

I don't recommend electronic ampmeters, only ones that use a real shunt and use no real electricity to operate. (unless you want to log kw use)

This means you need

1. A 350-550amp 50mv shunt
2. A matched classic Ammeter that shows the range you desire
3. some 24 guage + wires to route under your drivers side dash through the rubber plug in the firewall.
4. A couple short 0/3 guage starting wires or welding wires to hookup the shunt between your last battery and the controller.
5. Something non-conductive and somewhat heat resistant to mount, tiestrap or tape your shunt under the hood in such a way that it won't move or jiggle much
6. Some velcro tape.

Originally Posted by carcrazy47

I will be changing it over to 72 v soon, where should I place the two extra batteries?

Behind the rear seat or remove the spare tire, hammer it out and put them in there, you will also need a cover then.

Your stock controller, contactors, DC-DC, etc can generally handle 56 or 60v of batteries as is without modification. You just need a way to charge (the stock charger has a 12v and 48v built in, use your imagination). I tested 60v and there wasn't much difference (aka 33/34mph from 28-31mph as-is) Depending on the specific controller you have, 60v of batteries may occasionally put you over the high voltage shut down if you try to drive instantly after charging, so don't do that if you test the free method.

Oh and your controller may blow up if you do this, but I never could get mine to do so no matter how I tried. So I have kept the $50 controller that came with the car, it forces my dad to drive frugally.

Cheers
Ryan

[carcrazy47]

ryan thanks for all the informaion. i will get back to you later.

[rmay635703]

Bad news, our 05 Miles ZX40 has blown apart the rear motor cradle at 9900 miles, the cheap chinese welds combined with a tripod of rotating rubber bushings put all the force of the bumps and jerks squarely into the bracket allowing the motor to hop up and down a bit which caused the bracket to flex a little with each pedal push, it appears the 9 year old chinese kid who welded it had a crack in the upper corner and it propagated throughout and torn in (2) places clean across. We made it about 100 miles after detecting the crack using straps to cradle the motor but no dice, it failed in our driveway falling onto the halfshafts.

Good Idea for anyone with a zx40 to check the motor mount(s) and strengthen these, in my case I am looking for a spare, if not, we will weld it, back it with another piece of steel and then support the motor off the end pair of bolts using chains to make sure.

Cheers
Ryan

[blownb310]

Ryan, did you ever make the repairs or has the project been scrapped?

[rmay635703]

Originally Posted by blownb310

Ryan, did you ever make the repairs or has the project been scrapped?

Ryan never scraps anything.

My 1982 diesel suburban had a blown out rear window, the rear xmbr had failed, the rear door had holes, I mounted a pickup truck topper window and bolt the the rear door up, then the body mounts failed and the body sat on the frame rails, the brake booster and all brake lines failed, the radiator leaked, the exhaust was made of a string of tin cans, the rear main seal went, the rear windows would not roll down, the drivers window would roll down but had to be pushed and duct taped up, the side window had the handle pop off, the AC worked but burned up clutches. The heater and vent would only blow on high and through all vents and defroster at the same time, The front window cracked, once the fuel lines went and the pump wasn't working correctly I finally decided to pull the motor and put it into another body and I still regret scrapping the suburban to this day.

In any event the ZX40 is alive and well, a local drunk a few days later stopped by wanting work, I gave him the really crappy bracket and told him if he could fix it I would give him $25 and he did. I then ordered a factory bracket from North Central Zenn (the only guy that really supports these cars) but the old farts bracket although really ugly is about 10 times stronger and works great.

Sadly a ****head in a volvo that shouldn't drive or be on the road ran a stop sign and now there is a big dent in the rear fender well and door. Spun the car right around in circles, he started coming to a stop after he hit me. I couldn't pull the dent so I bent the door back into shape so it opens, closes and seals but the RH rear tire tends to rub, I hammered it up as best I could but had to use a crapload or spring spacers to get the wheel to clear, for a while I used a T105/80r13 in that well so we could at least drive the car until I figured out how/what to do with it.

Today it seems to drive about the same as ever, sadly the accident damaged one of my $200 greensavers so I only have 7 of the 8 needed to drive the car, I found that the car drives OK on 42 volts but man does it suck to barely reach 24mph. I ended up putting in 3 standard deepcycles in a series/pallalel setup (because I had them) changed out the charger to a lithium 62 volt unit and love the extra go power of 54 volts, it takes longer to charge but being able to consistantly hit 32mph and 36mph with field reduction is a nice change.

So the greensavers that were not cracked seem to work just as well as ever, I still have about a 40 mile range (its harder to get the batteries fully charged at this odd voltage, sometimes the charger will sometimes it kicks out early so I have to check them every time) But short changing these gel batteries seems to bring them back to life, they do not appear to enjoy a full charge every cycle and work best when occasionally taken to full capacity, good thing they don't sulphate.

The deepcycles I trickle charge after the main charger quits to keep them alive, a bit of an irritiation but necessary since I have two different battery architectures living together under 1 roof. I have had a few balancing issues but it actually doesn't happen often using this lithium charger the batteries seem to track much better than they did on the 25 amp chinese unit.

I also did a LIFEPO4 test on the car some months back (thanx to the generous charity of one other member that frequents this forum)

Sadly the LIFEPO4 require too much attention to use daily, I plan on adding them into the mix again at some point but not until my Lightobject jobber arrives so I can have some piece of mind.

Thats about it, anyone around Wausau really good at pulling dents?

Cheers
Ryan