[AusEV-announce] AustinEV Meeting - intro to EVs - Saturday, March 8 1-3pm

[Aaron Choate]

Hi All,

Erik Bigelow will be doing the EV Intro talk/seminar again on March 8th at
Terrazas Branch Library from 1-3 pm.

http://www.austinlibrary.com/apllocations.cfm?acronym=atb

The goal of this free workshop is to cover
the basics of what is involved in an electric vehicle conversion.

Specific answers will depend on the details of your conversion, but
we're here to help frame the process and set realistic expectations.

Here's a list of some of the topics we'll hit - I'm sure there will be more:

Choosing a donor vehicle
Battery types
AC vs. DC systems
Safety
Keep the transmission? Clutch?
To use a kit or not?
Heat & A/C


Please RSVP to Erik directly at electricbasset at gmail.com, bring your
questions and we'll see you Saturday March 8th!

Aaron Choate


Below is a list of questions that people emailed to Erik the last
time. We are attaching
them here to spur more questions you might have.

----------------------------------------

1.  How to spot a good donor vehicle, & where to look (especially for
those of us who were not "car people" -- until the EV  ; )

2.  New & future battery possibilities (that Cedar Park company??).

3.  Problems you encountered that were not covered in the "Convert It"
book (or you think were especially important...).

4.  Companies you found especially helpful (kit resources, etc...)

5.  Companies you would steer clear of & why.

6.  Air bags???  This one is on behalf of my mother whose 1st question
was... you guessed it!  I have been driving a 1989 car all this time, so
that is not as important to me.  I just want an EV!  I only throw this
question in because some of our group seem very safety conscious (judging
from the e-mails).

----------------------------------------

I'm new to ev's, so anything will help.

----------------------------------------

An overview of safety accessories and failsafe measures would be handy.
I've built a few crude systems and have put them to practical use, but
I'd like tips on how to prepare for the unexpected and how to make my EV
super-duper safe.

----------------------------------------

1)  I want to know more using an electric car as a commuter vehicle.
All the pros and cons.
2)  I want to know more about the time involved.  Can someone who
wants an electric car to fill a practical need get one converted in a
relatively short amount of time?  Or does everyone need to put in a
year of work?

----------------------------------------

I have seen some of the conversion calculators on the net and it would
be nice to know what kinds of things make what kinds of difference.
For example, why are higher voltage systems preferred? Also it seems
like some people leave in the transmission, but I thought that you
could direct drive the axles with an electric and that this was even
one of the advantages of the electric system.

----------------------------------------

What cars are best for conversions.  Where are the best places to get
the batteries.

How about maintenance of the EV once built.

----------------------------------------

How much is it really going to cost me?  If I start
with nothing, what are some of the other unlisted
costs of an EV, ie..automotive tools, etc.?

How can I judge if this car is simply to old for the conversion?
Info or parts availability?  Which factory parts
should I make sure are going to be available in the
future?