[Jens Rekker]

On a trip to Perth last week I tried to catch up with some folks that I had dealt with in the WA EV scene. On looking up ZEVA and EV Power I found that a merger had occurred since last I looked. The merged outfit is called EV Works and comprises Ian Hooper's ZEVA, Rod Dilkes' EV Power, and the mining supplies company of Rob Mason of EVWA.

I went out to their workshops in Kewdale, Perth after talking to Rob in the morning. I crashed in on them when things were quite busy with the merger, but they were really patient and made sure I got something from the visit. It was really not what I expected and quite an eye-popper. In New Zealand we have tended to conceive of small car conversions - hatchbacks and small sedans to keep the weight (and cost) down. Well, these guys at EV Works have done lots of conversions - and boy have they thrown the book out the window!

Volvo Sedan
Rob had an enormous white Volvo sedan that he had converted. It was the size of a Falcon. It had been converted with a large DC series motor and Zilla controller and about AU$22,000 worth of LiFePO4 Thundersky batteries under the bonnet and in the boot. Electric motors drive the brake servo, power steering and air-conditioning. But that's all you need to run around in comfort in an EV! Rob was trying to trouble-shoot the air-conditioning computer when I was there, but the conversion was basically done.

Ford Mustang
Rob's Mustang is again a DC Series motor conversion that lacked for nothing except perhaps range. He didn't have the Mustang there that day, but I imagine it's famed spec's are as follow: 45 x LFP Thunderskay 200Ah lithium batteries, auto trans, Zilla Z1K and 5:1 differential.

Triton Flat-deck Ute
This ute made my 8-inch ADC motor look positively anaemic by comparison. The power plant in the Triton is a 13-inch Kostov motor. If you haven't heard of these, look them up - Bulgarian by all accounts, with as much sensitivity as an Eastern Bloc shipyardworker. Since the Kostov would probably eat a standard gearbox for the morning commute, the motor output shaft is direct to differential. Not to compromise on the power capacity, the controller is a 2000 Amp Zilla. Storing all of that power are a total of 75 x 200Ah TS lithium batteries (48 KWh!!!), giving the ute a real range of 180 km. If it hadn't been suffering controller failure due to baulky reversing change-over circuits it would have been my dream ute.

Proton Jumbuck Ute
I was also really impressed with this ongoing conversion that had just reached testing stage. I didn't grab many of the specs, but the basic outline is as follows: Lithium battery pack, AC motor, Chinese AC inverter and controller. I was really impressed with the concept. This was the only conversion I saw with Regenerative Braking. The Regenerative Braking was reportedly fairly harsh and they were worried about the ability to get it past the WA vehicle safety certification. Too much braking on one axle isn't necessarily a good thing for any vehicle in an emergency braking situation. The Chinese inverter controller and purpose-built AC motor were thought to be a distinct improvement on adapting industrial soft-start VFDs and induction motors. They were also much, much cheaper than the American-sourced alternatives such as Solectria (EV Parts) or Siemens (Metric Mind). We don't yet know these Jumbucks in New Zealand, but they are Malaysian-made integrated well-side utes similar to the old Subaru MPV / Brumby ute. Quite a good conversion option in my opinion.

BMW 318I Sedan
Another one of Rob's (how many EVs can one man drive!). This is apparently the highest performance of all his conversions so far. The basic specs are: direct drive 11" DC General Electric motor, Z1K controller, 36 x LFP200Ah lithium batteries. The batteries it partly under the bonnet and a small residual pack in the boot. In addition to being an excellent around-town car, the acceleration is apparently comparable to the injected petrol engine that the electric power plan replaces, which I would have liked to have experienced. Unfortunately, the BMW marked the end of my tour.

Before I left, I met up with the other partners in EV Works; Ian Hooper and Rod Dilkes. They have each done their own conversions, Mazda MX5 and Suzuki Mighty Boy (!?), respectively. Neither of these were in the workshop that day unfortunately. These two bring more of the power electronics capabilities to the merger, from anything from battery management to controllers and instrumentation. I am curious to see what they end up releasing.