• wiglaf
  • Rookie Driver
  • Offline
  • From: Cleveland, OH
  • Registered: 2009-09-27
  • Posts: 11

Topic: I think I can make an electric car for $500

IF the batteries don't count against the $500. Gas doesn't count, right?

I would need 2 sets so that the charged one gets swapped in as the refuel..

I have a 5HP industrial motor sitting around that I got for about $60 from surplus. That place is loaded, I'm sure I can find something even better.

Motor control? $100 in parts and DIY action.

Cost of the car itself should be offset by selling off a working motor, or just stupidly cheap if the motor is already trashed.

Rest of the $500 is lost in cost of materials, copper wire and stuff.


what do you guys think? obviously it's a hassle but I'm sure I could get some company to shell out for the costs if it'll help them look green.
It all hinges on if Jay and the team count the batteries or not.

  • From: Portland
  • Registered: 2009-05-02
  • Posts: 568

Re: I think I can make an electric car for $500

I think you may need more than 5HP... but hell, I think were making less than 70.

Matt
Free Range Racing
  • From: Emeryville CA
  • Registered: 2009-04-30
  • Posts: 572

Re: I think I can make an electric car for $500

I think the prospect of some poor bastard working on an electric Lemons car while lying in a mud puddle a la Nelson Ledges is worth a little judicial leniency....keep us posted on your progress and we'll see what we can work out.

Nick_LemonsHQ's Website

  • From: Austin, TX
  • Registered: 2009-06-30
  • Posts: 43

Re: I think I can make an electric car for $500

Keep your eyes peeled for Postal cars that were converted to electric.  I could kick myself for not buying the $500 Postal Chevy Chevette 2-door that had been converted to Electric on craigslist.

There are lots of EV racers and mod companies if you search online.  Mostly drag racing stuff, but perhaps one of them can help sponsor the batteries.  Also talk to the people who make custom golf carts.

Consider a "homemade hybrid" with a diesel generator in the trunk to continuously charge the batteries as you drive. 

Ryan

Team Unintended Acceleration
2008 YeeHaw It's Texas Lemons
2009 Gator-O-Rama Texas Lemons
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phatcashenglish's Website

  • From: Land Of Subarus, Colorado
  • Registered: 2009-04-30
  • Posts: 9,416

Re: I think I can make an electric car for $500

I've seen electric Escorts for sale at the California State surplus auction at Sacramento, in between ex-CHP Crown Vics and CalTrans road-striping trucks.

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  • wiglaf
  • Rookie Driver
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  • From: Cleveland, OH
  • Registered: 2009-09-27
  • Posts: 11

Re: I think I can make an electric car for $500

don't be deceived by the low HP number, 10HP of electric would be plenty enough to rocket a 3000lb car around a track. Or at least stay ahead of that slowpoke lada.

i have considered the generator route as well. this is my plan with the DD car, but unfortunately nobody cares to sponsor my daily driver so it isn't gonna happen. at least not until my roof is fixed.

average power for the freeway I could get by with 20~30HP generator. for the track this setup would need to crank out a much higher average, enough to make keeping the original motor worthwhile. At this point the electric thing seems kind of pointless? A big part of the appeal is to offload all of the inefficient unreliable stuff.. so most likely it won't be the car that breaks, just the freaking generator to charge the batteries with.

Well don't subscribe just yet, this whole thing might be too irrational to even attempt. I'm just trying to feel out if I should even bother with the calculations based on what gets counted with the $500 here.

  • From: Safety Harbor, FL (Tampa)
  • Registered: 2009-04-30
  • Posts: 668

Re: I think I can make an electric car for $500

I wouldn't sweat the $500 for such a project.  Highly unlikely that you'll get anywhere near "winning", and probably won't be trying all that hard, anyway.  The judges are gonna think your car is cool as hell, know it doesn't have a chance in hell, and likely waive it through judging without a word... unless they just want to SEE what you've done... they might open the hood just to see the craftsmanship of your battery racks and all that.

But, in the end, even if they give you 200 penalty laps, who cares?  They'll still let you race.  Build it!  Have fun!

Lemons South 2008 - Fail, Lemons South Spring 2009 - Fail, Lemons Detroit(ish) 2008 - Fail, Lemons South Fall 2009 - Fail, Lamest Day 2009 - Fail, Miami 2010 (Chump) - 2nd!, Sebring 2010 (Chump) - Fail, Cuba 2010 - Crew Chief, Roebling 2011 (Chump) - 8th!, Sebring 2011(Chump) - 19th!
  • From: Shaker Heights, OH
  • Registered: 2009-06-23
  • Posts: 190

Re: I think I can make an electric car for $500

My big concern would be in finding a way to charge the batteries quickly enough. Most of the electric cars that I've (very casually) looked at take somewhere in the neighborhood of six+ hours to charge a battery pack that lasts for two.

I can't wait to see how this car turns out.

cbustapeck's Website

9 Reply by Buzz Killington (edited by Buzz Killington 2009-10-16 11:16 AM)

  • From: 5,280 ft.
  • Registered: 2009-05-01
  • Posts: 1,298

Re: I think I can make an electric car for $500

the average Lemons racer seems to be stopping for gas every 90-120 mins anyway.  if your battery pack takes X hours to recharge, you simply need ot figure out how many battery packs you need in order to keep cycling through.  for a 2 hour run time and a 6 hour charge, you'd need 4 packs and the ability to charge simultaneously those that aren't being used.

wiglaf wrote:

don't be deceived by the low HP number, 10HP of electric would be plenty enough to rocket a 3000lb car around a track. Or at least stay ahead of that slowpoke lada.

really?  is 10 horsepower generated by electricity more than 10 hp generated by internal combustion?

son, you keep breaking the laws of physics like that, you might end up getting a ticket.  wink

edit:  BTW, you should absolutely do this.

mike - Schumacher Taxi Service
12+-time loser
"Winner" - We Got Screwed, NJMP '11

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  • RobL
  • RobL
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  • From: Philly area
  • Registered: 2009-04-30
  • Posts: 2,721

Re: I think I can make an electric car for $500

Buzz Killington wrote:

really?  is 10 horsepower generated by electricity more than 10 hp generated by internal combustion?

Um, kind of...

http://www.phillyscca.com/forum/viewtop … t=electric

So 70hp worth of electric motors can produce ~600ft*lb of torque starting at 0 RPM.

--Rob Leone Schumacher Taxi Service
We won the IOE at Southern Discomfort.
We got screwed at The Real Hoopties of New Jersey  and we took cars down with us.
We got the curse at Capitol Offense but they wouldn't let us destroy the car.

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  • From: Long Beach, CA
  • Registered: 2009-06-14
  • Posts: 294

Re: I think I can make an electric car for $500

I with cbustapeck on this one. 

It seems like you're going to be spending a lot of time sitting not racing while waiting for batteries to charge rather than spending a lot of time not racing while changing head gaskets.

-Kyle
Eyesore Racing
"That's probably wrong, but it's worth a shot."

wrappedinbacon's Website

  • Registered: 2009-05-01
  • Posts: 526

Re: I think I can make an electric car for $500

cbustapeck wrote:

My big concern would be in finding a way to charge the batteries quickly enough. Most of the electric cars that I've (very casually) looked at take somewhere in the neighborhood of six+ hours to charge a battery pack that lasts for two.

I can't wait to see how this car turns out.

Well you could use the the same theory that Chevy has put into its "Volt"
Put in some batteries and when they go dead,  a big fat generator kicks in to get you around the track.
The theory with the Volt from what I understand is that it will go some where between 40 and 70 miles between charges but then a fuel generator starts producing power. So in theory if you go ten miles at a time and plug it in it will average 230mpg over the course of a week.

So the same theory could work with your car. Batteries get you around the track for the first 40 laps and then the 5000 watt generator with a 20 gallon gas tank finishes the job.:D

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