[jackbauer]

Ok folks I have officially started on my bmw316 ev conversion. Donor car is a 1996 316i with a seriously melted 1.6l petrol engine. Drove it a mile from previous owner to my workshop and we had smoke coming out of the radiator and steam from the exhaust accompanied by some nice grinding and banging noises

Car has 106k miles and was main delaer serviced up to 75k and is in overall good condition. So far the plan is to remove ice and all its associated components and drop in an 80v mitsubishi compound wound forklift motor. Will probably run at 96v with regen. I'll be building an igbt based pwm controller and hope to run a 96v 135ah nimh pack. Not sure if it will go to plan but nothing ventured nothing gained. Main work will start early next week. Still in a parts gathering mode.

[Woodsmith]

Good start, motor and, errr, motor!

What sort of final weight are you expecting with the Beemer?

[jackbauer]

Well kerb weight is 1250kg so i plan to loose 250kg with engine and other bits. Gain say 100kg with motor and plate , 150kg if my nimh battery plan works and say another 50kg for charger and other stuff. so mabey 1300 to 1400kg new kerb weight.

[Woodsmith]

I keep worrying about weight in my searches for a donor car.

I've been tempted to have a pair of Skoda Octavia estates, one diesel and one electric but I know how heavy my diesel one feels. Although it would have scope for an awful lot of batteries, if I could afford them.

[jackbauer]

Ideally find something with a blown engine. saved me a fortune.

[Woodsmith]

Originally Posted by jackbauer

Ideally find something with a blown engine. saved me a fortune.

This looked interesting but needs too much welding for the money.
This is more sensible.
And this would be like picking the lame puppy at the pound!

[DIYguy]

Originally Posted by jackbauer

Ok folks I have officially started on my bmw316 ev conversion. Donor car is a 1996 316i with a seriously melted 1.6l petrol engine. Drove it a mile from previous owner to my workshop and we had smoke coming out of the radiator and steam from the exhaust accompanied by some nice grinding and banging noises

Car has 106k miles and was main delaer serviced up to 75k and is in overall good condition. So far the plan is to remove ice and all its associated components and drop in an 80v mitsubishi compound wound forklift motor. Will probably run at 96v with regen. I'll be building an igbt based pwm controller and hope to run a 96v 135ah nimh pack. Not sure if it will go to plan but nothing ventured nothing gained. Main work will start early next week. Still in a parts gathering mode.

May I ask why you have settled on a 96 volt battery? I would suggest thinking about this further. It's not a real large car...but I expect that you may be disappointed with the performance at this voltage. Personally, I wouldn't go less than 144 or so. Preferrably 156 or more. I just think there are so many good reasons for going higher...as high as your components will allow at least.

Just food for thought mate.

[madderscience]

that lame puppy might be worth a closer look if it is in good shape (basically, no rust) under all that dirt.

(of course I am very biased )

1st gen mr2's mostly rust in the trunk floor, "frunk" floor, and rear wheel arches and sills. If its clean there, its a nice solid chassis. Engine and associated take-out crap weighs about 500lbs leaving about a 1600lb roller.

[jackbauer]

Well i'm looking at 96v as i reckon i can run my 80v motor at that voltage without brush advance and hence be able to regen with the shunt windings. Just the theory at this stage may well change.

Ideally look for cars with common engine problems. In my case the bmw 316i suffer from viscous fan failure and overheating. Couple this with being owned by a moron "duh...coolant?....is that like a new aftershave?" then your on a winner. How about rovers? they blow head gaskets all the time and should be plentyfull in the uk.

[Woodsmith]

Originally Posted by jackbauer

How about rovers? they blow head gaskets all the time and should be plentyfull in the uk.

Sorry to go off topic on your thread but....

If I was to spend several thousand quid on the conversion I wouldn't want it in a lousy looking car that I wouldn't want to keep for a lot of years.
I am looking for something that I would be happy to be seen in and will still look good, or classic, in ten or more years time.

I think the only Rover, apart from the Land Rover, that I would want is the P5B Coupe but that is a bit weighty.

I know its personal taste at the end of the day but it does matter to one's enjoyment of the vehicle and the effort that will go into it.