http://www.telegraph.co.uk/motoring/green-motoring/9997563/Convert-your-classic-car-to-battery-power.html [images] Convert your classic car to battery power by Rod Ker 16 Apr 2013
[images http://i.telegraph.co.uk/multimedia/archive/02537/Electric-Herald-bo_2537577a.jpg No more polluting old petrol engine, this Herald convertible now sports clean electric propulsion http://i.telegraph.co.uk/multimedia/archive/02537/Electric-Herald-fr_2537579a.jpg http://i.telegraph.co.uk/multimedia/archive/02537/Electric-Herald-mo_2537582a.jpg http://i.telegraph.co.uk/multimedia/archive/02537/Electric-Herald-ba_2537574a.jpg http://i.telegraph.co.uk/multimedia/archive/02537/Electric-Herald-ac_2537575a.jpg ] Classic cars are great to look at but not exactly clean. Now you can have classic motoring and retain your green credentials. No more polluting old petrol engine, this Herald convertible now sports clean electric propulsion Embarrassed about your old car's bad breath and environmental unfriendliness? Worry no more, because the electric classic has arrived. Welsh wizards, Dragon EV, have been converting vehicles of all shapes and sizes to battery power for many years, the latest project being an unsuspecting 1963 Triumph Herald convertible. After half a century of propulsion by an internal combustion engine, a squeaky clean 25kW electric motor now provides the motive force. From the outside the only indications that something radical is afoot are the absence of an exhaust pipe and a slightly lower ride height. Although removing the original all-iron four-cylinder engine and its attendant cooling system obviously saves a good deal of weight, the loss is more than offset by the addition of the necessary batteries. In this case they're of the lead-acid type, similar in essence to the one that used to start the Triumph's old 1,147cc engine. Six go into a rack under the bonnet, six more in the boot, so the rear end has an additional burden equating to a couple of diet-fearing passengers. Further compromising luggage space, the boot still contains a petrol tank. No, it's not a hybrid. Fossil fuel is only used to heat and demist the interior. One of the ironies of EVs is that air-conditioning, power steering and other creature comforts can use an alarming amount of power, perhaps 20 per cent of that used to provide movement. Not so much a problem in sunny California, but keeping the interior of a car warm in typical British weather using electricity would devote precious Watts to a task formerly carried out for free by heat produced as a waste product of internal combustion. Every Dragon conversion has to be tailored to its intended use. In this instance the 25kW motor is housed in the space normally occupied by the gearbox, driving the rear wheels directly, with reverse and regenerative braking taken car of by the electronic control system living under the bonnet. Comparisons with petrol engines are odorous or odious, but in this trim performance is better than standard, probably about the same as the later 1.3-litre Herald, which was credited with 60bhp. Mild tweaking and a set of lithium batteries would give 200bhp-plus and a turn of speed to embarrass any hot hatch. Inevitably, the pay-off would be a drastic reduction in range. Driven in 1963 Herald mode, the current set-up gives up to 50 miles between charges, which will cost about £1 at off-peak rates. A very cheap way to travel – and an uncannily silent one, a point brought home by stepping straight from my own standard Herald into the electric upstart. No wheezing and rattling; just a whirr and a feeling of being launched forward by a giant rubber band. Although you have to understand that clunking and clattering noises are part of the reason why people such as myself like old cars, it's all good news so far. However, as always with EVs, the big picture is clouded. First, the "zero emissions" tag only applies once the batteries have been charged. Arriving at that stage will probably involve burning fossil fuel in a power station, so effectively you're driving a car with a very long exhaust pipe. Calculating the true "greenness" of different types of vehicles is always tricky. Electric motors are far more efficient than petrol engines, true, but devotees often underestimate the "whole life cost" of energy use and pollution caused during manufacture. The most unmentionable subject of all is the need for regular battery replacement at great expense (£2,500 for lead-acid, £12,500 for lithium-ion), multiplying the basic running cost of a couple of pence per mile. And what happens to dead batteries? Old-tech lead-acid ones are eminently recyclable, but lithium-ion ones aren't, or at least won't be until the world starts to run out of all the basic raw materials they contain. Electric vehicles, classic or otherwise, are an admirable idea, but it's hard not to think we're still waiting for the "wonder battery" promised by Edison more than a century ago, when internal combustion engines first became a practical alternative. THE FACTS Dragon Electric Herald Netgain 25kW continuously rated motor, capable of 300kW peak power (about 400bhp) Top speed: 75mph Maximum range: 50 miles (up to 150 miles with lithium-ion batteries) Clutch: none – direct drive to propshaft Gearbox: none – sufficient torque from electric motor. Reverse provided by changing polarity Ignition: none – just an on/off switch, press the pedal and go Power output: 60bhp (capable of upgrade to over 200bhp) Torque: 150lb ft approx Battery voltage: 72v Battery capacity: 15kWh Controller output: 600A maximum [© 2013 Telegraph Media Group] For all EVLN posts use: http://electric-vehicle-discussion-list.413529.n4.nabble.com/template/NamlServlet.jtp?macro=search_page&node=413529&query=evln&sort=date Here are today's archive-only EV posts: EVLN: ZeitEco Electric Is A Swiss Army Knife On Wheels EVLN: CO Gov Hickenlooper signs SB13-126 permiting l1&l2 EVSE installs EVLN: LEAF EV Norway’s second best selling car (video) EVLN: Pikes Peak Return For Upgraded TMG EV P002 racer + EVLN: Mccc Students Build Electric Racer (video) {brucedp.150m.com} -- View this message in context: http://electric-vehicle-discussion-list.413529.n4.nabble.com/EVLN-Convert-your-classic-car-to-battery-power-tp4662963.html Sent from the Electric Vehicle Discussion List mailing list archive at Nabble.com. _______________________________________________ UNSUBSCRIBE: http://www.evdl.org/help/index.html#usub http://lists.evdl.org/listinfo.cgi/ev-evdl.org For EV drag racing discussion, please use NEDRA (http://groups.yahoo.com/group/NEDRA)
