DIY Electric Car

buildevIf you don’t like the style or price tag on the car lot, convert your own.

by Gavin Shoebridge

Converting a car to run on electricity is a piece of cake. It’s as easy as unbolting and removing the greasy engine and gas tank, then installing an electric motor and batteries. It’s not just for the guys either—really anyone can do it.
My first electric car was an old Mitsubishi that had seen better days. Its engine was dead and it was gathering dust on someone’s driveway. Rather than send it to a landfill, I bought it for $180.
Admittedly it was a real learning curve, as I’m not a mechanically minded person, but after watching a few other conversions I gave it a go. A few months later that old 1987 Mitsubishi was running again, but without a drop of gas. I’d converted it to electric.
There are some arguments that since an EV uses electricity, it is still polluting. However electric cars are super-clean to operate compared to gas cars, even if the electricity used to charge it comes from nonrenewable sources like coal. This is because electricity generates approximately 60 percent lower carbon emissions than gas. In addition, there’s a lot of waste with gas. Only around 30 percent of gas’s total energy is used for propelling the vehicle when it’s ignited in an engine. The rest is wasted in heat and smoke.
So how much will it cost? That all depends on how creative you are. A basic home-conversion could cost anything from $1,000 to $5,000, but to pimp it out could run as high as $20,000. It all depends on how fast you want to go, how far you want to go, and if you have friends who can make stuff for you—like a box to put your batteries in—in exchange for a few beers. I’ve found that enrolling friends into the job makes it a great social experience, kind of like all taking “engine ed.” together.
If you’re not sure where to start, I can assure you that getting off the sofa is actually the most difficult part. Once you’ve done that, you’ll need to track down a “donor” car suitable for your conversion. To keep costs down, I recommend using the smallest, lightest car you can get your hands on. This is because the lighter the car, the less you’ll need to spend on batteries.
The second part is finding all the right information. After watching hundreds of conversions I finally wrote an e-book and recorded a bunch of videos showing the best ways to do it, and as economically as possible, of course. They’re both written for beginners and have plenty of photos, and you can “test drive” the first 27 pages for free at EVsecrets.com.
A lot of people think electric cars are slow and weird looking. Don’t worry—those are all myths. Electric cars certainly aren’t slow. My own home-converted car had enough grunt to wheelspin easily, and the power (pun intended) to travel at speeds up to 85 mph. You can make your own electric car go as fast as you like. If you like zippy performance then consider using electric racing parts instead. Be warned though: speeding tickets aren’t any cheaper in an electric car.
So what parts will you need for a basic conversion? Not as many as a gas-powered car that’s for sure. You’ll find many of the parts in a conversion simply bolt onto the engine bay of your car, where you add the plus wire to the plus terminal, and the negative wire to the negative terminal.
It’s becoming so popular now that electric conversion kits are available for many different makes and models (google “electric car conversion kit”), making the whole process doable in just one weekend.
In addition to some fuses and on/off switches, there are four main parts to any electric conversion. The first of these is the electric motor. It’s about the size of a big watermelon and its job is to turn your wheels. It bolts onto your car’s existing gearbox where your engine is now.
The second big part to an electric car is—yup, you guessed it—the batteries. Depending on your distance and speed requirements, you might need to install anywhere from four to 44 of these things and join them together with simple, bolt-on cables.
The third big part to an electric car is called a “controller.” It acts like a floodgate between the motor and the batteries and is connected to your accelerator. This way you drive it just like a normal car with a normal gas pedal.
The last big item in an electric car is the battery charger. You’ve got to have a way to recharge your car and this is it. There are all kinds of chargers that connect to your car’s battery pack. Some are fast, some are slow; just choose one that suits your needs and budget.
To really cut costs, find second hand stuff. Often you’ll find real bargains online. If you’re just after a beater, then a fantastic way to slash costs is to find a dead electric forklift and rip it apart. Dead and rusted-out electric forklifts often have electric motors and components that are in great condition, even though the rest of the machine is all rusty. Just take a wrench with you and save yourself a bundle.
Another way to recover some money is to sell the things that come out of your car during the conversion process. The old engine, exhaust and gas tank are worth something to someone out there, at an online auction site or in your local recycling rag.
As you can see the list of ways to save money goes on and on. It depends a lot on how patient you are to wait for bargains, and how creative you are in cutting costs. In fact, with a bit of creativity you could find yourself driving your own electric car for the same amount you spent on gas last year.
For more help converting to an EV, contact the San Jose-based Electric Auto Association (eaaev.org). DIY electric vehicles are totally legal in the U.S., board member Marc Geller assured WLT, with “absolutely no legal restrictions whatsoever.” There are thousands of registered, insured, converted vehicles already on the road or in process, and you can get inspired by photos of 2707 of them (at press time) at EVAlbum.com.

Converting a car to run on electricity is a piece of cake. It’s as easy as unbolting and removing the greasy engine and gas tank, then installing an electric motor and batteries. It’s not just for the guys either—really anyone can do it.

My first electric car was an old Mitsubishi that had seen better days. Its engine was dead and it was gathering dust on someone’s driveway. Rather than send it to a landfill, I bought it for $180.

Admittedly it was a real learning curve, as I’m not a mechanically minded person, but after watching a few other conversions I gave it a go. A few months later that old 1987 Mitsubishi was running again, but without a drop of gas. I’d converted it to electric.

There are some arguments that since an EV uses electricity, it is still polluting. However electric cars are super-clean to operate compared to gas cars, even if the electricity used to charge it comes from nonrenewable sources like coal. This is because electricity generates approximately 60 percent lower carbon emissions than gas. In addition, there’s a lot of waste with gas. Only around 30 percent of gas’s total energy is used for propelling the vehicle when it’s ignited in an engine. The rest is wasted in heat and smoke.

So how much will it cost? That all depends on how creative you are. A basic home-conversion could cost anything from $1,000 to $5,000, but to pimp it out could run as high as $20,000. It all depends on how fast you want to go, how far you want to go, and if you have friends who can make stuff for you—like a box to put your batteries in—in exchange for a few beers. I’ve found that enrolling friends into the job makes it a great social experience, kind of like all taking “engine ed.” together.

If you’re not sure where to start, I can assure you that getting off the sofa is actually the most difficult part. Once you’ve done that, you’ll need to track down a “donor” car suitable for your conversion. To keep costs down, I recommend using the smallest, lightest car you can get your hands on. This is because the lighter the car, the less you’ll need to spend on batteries.

The second part is finding all the right information. After watching hundreds of conversions I finally wrote an e-book and recorded a bunch of videos showing the best ways to do it, and as economically as possible, of course. They’re both written for beginners and have plenty of photos, and you can “test drive” the first 27 pages for free at EVsecrets.com.

A lot of people think electric cars are slow and weird looking. Don’t worry—those are all myths. Electric cars certainly aren’t slow. My own home-converted car had enough grunt to wheelspin easily, and the power (pun intended) to travel at speeds up to 85 mph. You can make your own electric car go as fast as you like. If you like zippy performance then consider using electric racing parts instead. Be warned though: speeding tickets aren’t any cheaper in an electric car.

So what parts will you need for a basic conversion? Not as many as a gas-powered car that’s for sure. You’ll find many of the parts in a conversion simply bolt onto the engine bay of your car, where you add the plus wire to the plus terminal, and the negative wire to the negative terminal.

It’s becoming so popular now that electric conversion kits are available for many different makes and models (google “electric car conversion kit”), making the whole process doable in just one weekend.

In addition to some fuses and on/off switches, there are four main parts to any electric conversion. The first of these is the electric motor. It’s about the size of a big watermelon and its job is to turn your wheels. It bolts onto your car’s existing gearbox where your engine is now.

The second big part to an electric car is—yup, you guessed it—the batteries. Depending on your distance and speed requirements, you might need to install anywhere from four to 44 of these things and join them together with simple, bolt-on cables.

The third big part to an electric car is called a “controller.” It acts like a floodgate between the motor and the batteries and is connected to your accelerator. This way you drive it just like a normal car with a normal gas pedal.

The last big item in an electric car is the battery charger. You’ve got to have a way to recharge your car and this is it. There are all kinds of chargers that connect to your car’s battery pack. Some are fast, some are slow; just choose one that suits your needs and budget.

To really cut costs, find second hand stuff. Often you’ll find real bargains online. If you’re just after a beater, then a fantastic way to slash costs is to find a dead electric forklift and rip it apart. Dead and rusted-out electric forklifts often have electric motors and components that are in great condition, even though the rest of the machine is all rusty. Just take a wrench with you and save yourself a bundle.

Another way to recover some money is to sell the things that come out of your car during the conversion process. The old engine, exhaust and gas tank are worth something to someone out there, at an online auction site or in your local recycling rag.

As you can see the list of ways to save money goes on and on. It depends a lot on how patient you are to wait for bargains, and how creative you are in cutting costs. In fact, with a bit of creativity you could find yourself driving your own electric car for the same amount you spent on gas last year.

For more help converting to an EV, contact the San Jose-based Electric Auto Association (eaaev.org). DIY electric vehicles are totally legal in the U.S., board member Marc Geller assured WLT, with “absolutely no legal restrictions whatsoever.” There are thousands of registered, insured, converted vehicles already on the road or in process, and you can get inspired by photos of 2707 of them (at press time) at EVAlbum.com.

**If you liked this post, you might also enjoy Revenge of the Electric Car and Function Over Form

Related posts:

  1. Film: Revenge of the Electric Car
  2. Challenging Hybrids’ Hegemony
  3. Turn Over a New (Nissan) Leaf
  4. Gas Relief Calls for an EV

Sustainable Lifestyle | March 11, 2010

1 Comment

  • This is a great introduction to the topic of electric car conversions. I personally know several people who have completed conversions for less than $1000, though, as they were able to find a lot of free parts along the way. It took them months to track everything down, but was worth it overall.

    Thank you!