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A DIY Electric Car Member, david85, has been testing a 200 Amp-Hour LiFePo4 Battery for a few weeks now and has been keeping a public journal of the results. If you're not familiar with LifePo4, it's a fairly new battery technology that promises greater safety than Lithium Ion or Lithium Polymer while still holding a good energy density and a decent discharge rate. Many new LiFePo4 manufacturers are popping up in China and Japan and prices continue to get lower which is very encouraging for use...

I've decided to try and work out the cost comparisons for a Lithium pack vs a Lead pack for a set range and a set number of years. Is Lead Acid actually cheaper or does is just seem that way up front? This article aims to find that out. The method is to get 10kWh of usable energy, I’ll try to get that with Lead and with Lithium and see what we find is cheaper in the long run. Assuming an efficiency of 250Wh per mile (a compact car) we should get a range of 40 miles (65km) with either pack. I’ll...

With all of the hype surrounding hybrid vehicles today, I thought I'd do some research and post my findings on the next generation of fully electric and plug-in hybrids. The fully-electric EV has had a bad name in the past, mostly due to insufficient battery technology, politics, lack of performance models and other factors. Starting this year with the Tesla Roadster, the EV is going to take on a new form in the eyes of John Q Public. Quiet, efficient EVs will start to become commonplace in the...

2007 is almost over so to wrap up the year, we've decided to make a chart of all the major motor controllers that were available for purchase in 2007. This should prove to be a good reference to people still planning their EV or others who are looking to upgrade. The types of controllers covered are for DC series-wound motors and AC motors. The major manufacturers this year are Alltrax, Cafe Electric, Curtis and Zapi. We searched for information on DC Power's controllers but either they are...