14-18yr-old HS students took 4yrs even with Rev. Gadget's involvement
http://smdp.com/samohi-students-turn-bug-into-ev/127187 Samohi students turn Bug into EV By Daily Press Staff September 20, 2013 [images http://smdp.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/09/092113_INSIDE-SCOOP.jpg Team Marine students with Volts Wattson (Photo courtesy Benjamin Kay) http://smdp.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/09/DG3A1231.jpg A look under the hood ] SAMOHI — After four years spent under the hood, students in Santa Monica High School’s environmental science and advocacy group Team Marine have finished their gas-to-electric car conversion project. The students, who range in age from 14 to 18 years old, finished the conversion of a 1971 red convertible Volkswagen Super Beetle earlier this week, according to a news release. They replaced the car’s combustion engine and gas tank with an electric motor and 30-kilowatt hour lithium iron phosphate battery pack. The students unveiled the plug-in at the Santa Monica Alternative Car Expo, which kicked off at the Civic Center parking lot Friday and runs through Saturday, Sept. 21. In coming weeks, they will conduct local tests to showcase the anticipated 100-plus mile range, maximum freeway speed, and zero to 60 mph time. The car, affectionately named Volts Wattson, was donated to Team Marine by the Poon-Fear family in 2009 with the purpose of having students turn it into an environmentally conscious EV. Since then, the students have focused on acquiring funds, parts, and the knowledge needed to overcome the many electrical, mechanical and logistical hurdles in the conversion process. Team Marine has simultaneously developed an electric vehicle instruction manual along with award-winning educational materials and multi-media presentations that are designed to raise awareness about climate change, ocean acidification, energy conservation and carbon-reduction strategies. “Electric conversions are part of the solution,” said lead student engineer Patricio Guerrero. “This project is an example of what is possible to achieve and hopefully inspires other engineers and scientists out there to go down the path of sustainability.” With technical and financial contributions from environmental partners Plug-In America, the Wells Fargo Foundation, Trexa, Alliance for Climate Education, QuikSCience, TeenNick, Left Coast Electric, city of Santa Monica, and Gas to Electric Conversions, Team Marine will tour Volts Wattson at many civic and community events, schools and other academic institutions, science fairs and alternative transportation exhibitions throughout Southern California. “Our project shows that even high school students can do things to reduce reliance on fossil fuels,” said Ivan Morales, co-captain of last year’s Team Marine. “We’ve built solar boats, and even watercraft made from plastic straws and bottles, but never anything like this,” said Samohi science teacher and Team Marine coach Benjamin Kay. “This was a prodigious mission, and as a teacher, I am proud beyond words of the students’ achievements and so thankful to our many community partners.” Team Marine, formed in 2006 by a group of environmentally conscious students to increase the public’s awareness about the sensitivity of the ocean and other natural environments, has created numerous programs to mobilize the citizens of Santa Monica and nearby areas in Los Angeles to conserve and clean-up the California coastline. Their efforts have been recognized by the city of Santa Monica, TeenNick Halo Awards, The Wyland Foundation, Southern California Edison, and other environmental organizations, companies, and government officials. [© 2013— Santa Monica Daily Press] ... http://www.leftcoastelectric.com/ Reverend Gadget's: Left Coast Electric "If Tesla Motors co founder Elon Musk is the poster boy of the electric vehicle movement then Greg ‘Gadget’ Abbott aka Reverend Gadget is its Nutty Professor." https://www.facebook.com/leftcoastelectric http://www.teammarine.org/wp-content/uploads/2012/03/Press-Release_Samohi-students-convert-bug-to-electric-vehicle_11-121.pdf ~ FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE ~ 2/8/12 Samohi Students Convert “Punch Buggy” into Electric Vehicle By Team Marine (Electric Car Team) www.teammarine.org http://www.teammarine.blogspot.com Santa Monica High School 601 Pico Blvd. Santa Monica, CA 90405 Student Contacts: Patricio Guerrero patriciogguerrero @gmail.com (310) 413-8050 Cassandra Kliewer Cassandra.Kliewer @gmail.com (310) 689-4056 Angelina Hwang h.angelina612 @gmail.com (310) 997-5518 Teacher Contact: Benjamin Kay bkay @smmusd.org (310) 395-3204 x71127 Charged up and ready to go, Team Marine may be the first teen group to convert a gas guzzling car to run on lithium ion batteries for 100+ miles. Team Marine, a student run organization at SAMOHI, received a VW Super Beetle from the Poon-Fear family to raise awareness about tailpipe pollution. The project has been steadily progressing for roughly a year, and its completion is scheduled to be reached in one month if adequate funding for batteries is received. The EV conversion process consists of removing the gas engine and its components. These are replaced with the electrical motor, motor controller, batteries, DC-DC converter, pot box, fuse with fuse block, etc. Among these, the batteries are the most important component of the car, as they store the energy that propels the car forward. The team is using lithium ion batteries due to their large energy density and conven ient size- meaning they can pack a lot of punch in a small space. Unfortunately, the lack of funding is hinder ing the conversion process as the team struggles to fund the batteries that power the car. Team Marine plans to use the car as an example for teachi ng people of all ages. The team has composed a manual explaining the steps involved in converting a gas powered car into an electric vehicle. The step-by- step manual with pictures is intended to help community members repeat the process. Additionally, the guidance of local electric car experts, notably Seth Seab urg of Trexa, Paul Pearson of Gas to Electric Conversions, Samohi’s automotive teacher Dan Cox, Rick Sikes of the City of Santa Monica and Reverend Gadget of Left Coast Electric have provided invaluable feedback and suggestions from day one. The ultimate goal for the car is to serve as a template tha t future students and others can learn from. Once completed, the electric car will be a lesson plan on whee ls, traveling to all local schools to raise awareness about reducing global warming emissions. Team Marine will teach people about the consequences of tailpipe pollutants as well as solutions. The Team Marine’s “Car Team” from left to right: Ivan Morales, Angelina Hwang, Justin Tavaf, Cassandra Kliewer, Annie Wiesenfeld, Talal Alabdali, Kalon Cheung, and Patricio Guerrero environmental problems which arise from the emissions are ocean acidification, climate change, smog, and black carbon. These matters directly affect global ecosystems and become more pronounced with increasing population size and the need for transportati on. The world’s living conditions and health are in rapid decline due to a reliance on fossil fuels. The el ectric car is one solution to these issues as it produces zero emissions. While it is not a perfect remedy, since the electricity used to power the car has some power plant emissions, EVs greatly reduce carbon dioxide emissions due to the higher efficiency of power plants. Also, as the electric grid gets greener with more solar and wind power, so will the EV. As of late, the members of Team Marine have been busy presenting their lesson plan at Lincoln Middle School and John Adams Middle School to teach students abou t the effects of internal combustion engines and better alternatives, like walking, biking, public tr ansport, and electric vehicles. If the project proceeds as planned, local institutions will soon be visited by Team Marine and its electric VW Beetle by March of this year. [© Team Marine] http://www.teammarine.org/2013/09/20/electric-car-conversion-complete/ Electric Car Conversion Complete! By Ivan – September 20, 2013 Posted in: Achievements 2013-2014, Blog [images http://www.teammarine.org/wp-content/uploads/2013/09/DG3A1328.jpg http://www.teammarine.org/wp-content/uploads/2013/09/IMG_1217.jpg http://www.teammarine.org/wp-content/uploads/2013/09/DG3A1231.jpg ] This past Monday, Team Marine completed the gas to electric conversion of a 1971 convertible Volkswagen Super Beetle. The project started in 2009, when the Poon-Fear family donated the car to Team Marine for a conversion project. The car will publicly debut at the Santa Monica Alternative Car Exposition, which takes place today and tomorrow (September 20 and 21). We hope to see you there! [© Team Marine] http://www.teennick.com/blog/2009-halo-honorees-team-marine-electric-conversion.html HALO Honorees Team Marine Convert Classic VW Bug To Electric Vehicle Sep 20, 2013 by Rachel1016 [images / Benjamin Kay http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-hMN66OXHMEM/UjxswErOJaI/AAAAAAAAAi0/lWNOlGiRhvc/s1600/DG3A1424.JPG http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-MiiMQCVhh6k/UjxsvyfeCaI/AAAAAAAAAi4/FAGnjv8I1mw/s1600/DG3A1197.JPG http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-0HjvcJ-Y2j4/Ujxsv7h_MlI/AAAAAAAAAi8/8x5SGHu7xsk/s1600/DG3A1383.JPG http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-et55br914MY/UjxswepceLI/AAAAAAAAAjM/Z2Ti62tYcpQ/s1600/IMG_1208.JPG http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-KVMtkPGsH28/UjxswI6G0NI/AAAAAAAAAjQ/8xlYrWURIiM/s1600/DG3A1479.JPG ] As you've probably heard, the 2013 HALO Awards are coming this November! Since 2009, the HALO Awards have recognized outstanding teens who go above and beyond to make the world a better place. One of the coolest things about the HALO Awards is being able to see the amazing work of past honorees long after they've been recognized by TeenNick. So this week, we caught up with 2009 HALO Honorees Team Marine, a Santa Monica-based student environmental science and advocacy group, and we learned that they're about unveil a mind-blowingly AWESOME project. Four years in the making, the all-star students of Team Marine have completed the conversion of a '71 Volkswagen Bug into an all-electric vehicle. Basically, this means this cruiser can take on the freeway without relying on gas. The record-breaking car is the first known 100+ mile range plug-in retrofitted by high school students, and when it comes to incorporating sustainability into our everyday life, electric cars are a large part of the solution. So, just how did these environmental whiz kids make it happen? Former Team Marine co-captain, Ivan Morales, gave us the lowdown: "This project began in 2009 when the Poon-Fear family donated the Bug to Team Marine for a gas to electric conversion project. Team Marine members from different years have worked on making this conversion a reality. The first step was removing gasoline related components. Another team purchased and installed the motor while another performed measurements to find how many batteries could fit in the car. As such, this project was a collaborative effort among different students over a span of 4 years." Being that the team is comprised of high schoolers, the number of students that make up Team Marine varies from year to year. Angelina Hwang, current co-captian of Team Marine gave us some insight on how different members take on different roles: "As members graduate and new members join the organization, we adapt to different roles. For members such as myself who have been part of Team Marine since the initial stages of the car, we have had the chance to work directly with the car conversion process. Members who recently joined Team Marine have been focusing on the media coverage and publicity aspects of the car project." While undertaking such a monstrous feat, the members of Team Marine had to overcome several obstacles like securing funding for expensive parts. Morales mentioned that thanks to Megan Kilroy, who won the TeenNick HALO award in 2009, the team was about to use grant money to purchase the motor early in the process. From a logistical perspective, Hwang mentioned the team had no prior knowledge of the conversion process, so they had to learn from experts in their community. Talk about determination! Patricio Guerrero, the VW Conversion Project Team Lead for Team Marine, also stressed how important it was to balance priorities in the user experience: "We needed to keep in mind that all the components had to be visible so people could easily see how the car worked but at the same time we needed to keep it safe and working properly." The team plans to debut the car, cleverly named Volts Wattson, at the Santa Monica AltCar Expo this weekend. But their initiative doesn't stop there! Team Marine member Katie Oran says, "After the debut of the car at the AltCar Expo we plan on using the car as a 'lesson plan on wheels' teaching as many people about electric cars, renewable energy, and the effects that combustion cars have on the environment; especially ocean acidification and climate change." That is a mighty check-list, my friends. As if you needed any more convincing, these kids are doing big things. We asked the members of Team Marine what advice they might have for other students who are interested in becoming involved in environmental advocacy, but may not have an outlet like Team Marine. They said that activism doesn't necessarily mean that you have to join an official organization; it starts with lifestyle changes. Whether it's buying a reusable water bottle or cutting down on your plastic use, small steps can make a big difference. And we couldn't agree more. Feeling inspired by the superstars of Team Marine? Want to show us how YOU work to make the world a better place?! We're collecting videos of teens giving back and we want to see you! Show us your HALOing moves by uploading a Vine or InstaVid to Twitter @TeenNick using the hashtag #HALOawards. There's even a chance your video could appear on air! Be sure to come back soon for more details about the 2013 HALO Awards coming to you in November! 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