Wonderboy's Tercel EV Conversion

[Wonderboy]

I started to make a plywood adapter plate for the transmission today using the handy-dandy adapter plate that was already between the motor and trans. I got all the mounting holes drilled for the transmission, but when I moved on to attack the electric motor part I ran into a problem. I cleaned up the grease a bit, but there is still a bunch in between the fins around the shaft side of the motor. I wanted to get it out of there and clean up the innards of the motor, but I could not get the freaking thing out! I have another motor very similar to this, and when I remove the bolts on the shaft side, I can just pop it right out of there. I tried prying to the point where I was afraid of bending the aluminum (I got one big pop in the right direction, but then it moved no farther) and I tried using a punch to whack the other end of the "center spinny part" of the motor where there is a hole in the aluminum endcap. No dice. Wish I could get pics, but not today. It's an ADC a89-4001 6.7" series wound motor...pretty much all advanced dc motors look (black middle and aluminum end caps) and probably act the same. Any ideas? I already feel I was a bit rough with the pounding considering what sometimes happens to refrigerator magnets when dropped...

[Daox]

Perhaps use a pulley puller?

[Wonderboy]

I actually tried doing that, but there's not really anything to push/pull on. The entire endcap and shaft all come out as one piece, so there's nothing to hold on to on that end, and I'd have to make a big hole or somehow convert the size of the puller so that it fits in the little hole on the commutator endcap. Does anyone know if there is a risk of demagnetizing or harming anything by whacking parts of the motor or housing with a hammer?

[Christ]

Well, from rebuilding starter motors, I know that the number one cause of irreparable damage is the "hammer trick", wherein people somehow think it's a good idea to whack the button on the back of the starter with a hammer, even though there's a compressed ferrite powder magnet on the inside of the housing with no cushion against the impact.

That said, you're working with a slightly larger motor, but you're probably better off using a deadblow hammer or a rubber mallet, or at least using a wood dowel to absorb some of the impact shock.

[Wonderboy]

I'm a little bummed out by this:

I was trying my best to be gentle prying the endcap off, but I was not gentle enough, as it would seem. I hope that the endcap from my other ADC motor will suffice to replace this. Even after breaking it, it still won't budge. I got pretty aggravated about it and had to go do something else. It seems like the bearing in that endcap is either really stuck in there, or not supposed to come out. I don't know why one very similar ADC motor would allow me to remove the goods to clean up while this one wouldn't....I would really hate for this to be a waste of time and energy I wish I had Ben's patience for stuff like this.

[Christ]

Originally Posted by Wonderboy

I'm a little bummed out by this:

I was trying my best to be gentle prying the endcap off, but I was not gentle enough, as it would seem. I hope that the endcap from my other ADC motor will suffice to replace this. Even after breaking it, it still won't budge. I got pretty aggravated about it and had to go do something else. It seems like the bearing in that endcap is either really stuck in there, or not supposed to come out. I don't know why one very similar ADC motor would allow me to remove the goods to clean up while this one wouldn't....I would really hate for this to be a waste of time and energy I wish I had Ben's patience for stuff like this.

It occurs to me that now might be a little late to mention it, but the aluminum end cap will expand faster under heat than the steel armature will... might have been a good idea to hit the end cap with a propane torch for a few mins to expand it a little bit?

It may have been an interference fit, and after years of corrosion and such, may have "bonded" the surfaces.

[Wonderboy]

I Finally got a 24v heavy duty GE motor and the transmission for this car mated! I'm not dead and neither is this project - just very slow

I used lovejoy couplers. One fit so well that I had to hammer it onto the transmission, which sort of created its own splines in the coupler. The coupler on the motor fit snugly, and the key fit directly down into a spline groove. If this coupling solution is to work with these lovejoy couplers, it would have to be in this circumstance because fortunately I don't think I could get either of them to fit any more snug. Next is mounting it in the engine bay - be back in a couple years! :P

[MetroMPG]

Will! Nice to read an update.

Say... if I split your earlier posts about your Honda Insight into your own thread will you update that too? I'm curious to know how you're doing with that machine as well.

EDIT: see http://ecomodder.com/forum/showthrea...spd-19759.html

[Wonderboy]

ookie!

[Daox]

Woohoo an update.