2 Years Wheego Whip review
After owning my Wheego Whip for almost two years, I doubt few people are interested. Even so, I’ll share my experience.
If I knew a 2 years ago what I know now, I don’t know if I would still buy one. I didn’t expect smooth or trouble free year of ownership. I like the little car and the entry level EV experience I’ve had. I understood the NEV limitations. I have enjoyed working on and tinkering with different parts as I have learned more about how EVs work. I don’t believe I’d recommend one to someone who wants to ‘just drive’.
The quality of various components is below most modern cars. The 2010 model I purchased new at the start of 2014 has had an electric door lock & CV boot fail. These were covered and replaced under warranty. Not covered have been a sagging headliner, power window switch, rear window latch and the lead battery pack. After about 3,000 miles I experienced a 10 mile range reduced from 18 miles when it was new. So I bought some CALB SE 100s.
The process of changing from lead to lithium has taught me a few lessons I share here. 1st, I learned my controller is a 1238-7501 which can run up to 130 volts. The OEM power loop amplifier and dash SOC gauge are programmed for lead and have been unplugged by me. I did this after the car went into limp mode after the amp counter noticed the energy taken out of the pack while driving, but didn’t count coulombs during charging after the Delta Q was reprogrammed with a lithium algorithm. The original Delta Q charger failed about 6 months ago.
Now, I ignore the factory dash gauge and rely on a JLD404 to count energy in & out for state of charge. Regarding range, I haven’t achieved the expected 50 miles I thought I’d get after losing about 500 lbs of batteries. I haven’t had a need to travel a great distance, and I’m not willing to stress the batteries to see how far I can travel before it won’t move any more. I have been surprised just how much difference gentle vs ‘normal’ acceleration affects how many amps are drawn.
Last winter, the car stalled in the middle of the road and would not reboot. The pre charge circuit produced an error. After towing it home and researching the problem, I found that connecting an incandescent bulb worked to the main contactor worked. I was glad the Wheego headquarters mailed me a resistor at no cost. It was an easy install and it now works. Since then, I’ve gotten a couple ‘main contactor welded’ error codes. When this happens, the car shuts off so I cycle the key switch off and on and it then it restarts.
I’m not an expert in suspension components nor design. I’ve heard other Wheego owners speak of poor quality of axles and control arms. Torque steer occurs under heavy acceleration.
As of today, the amount of money I’ve spent on this car + replacement batteries is less than the cheapest used Nissan Leaf, but barely. I believe the Leaf is superior in almost every way. Prices were different 2 years ago. So in conclusion, if a reader is considering an EV purchase and cannot spend over $5,000, a Wheego is an option. Though no longer producing this model for US sales, today, Wheego is still in business and provides both technical support and replacement parts.
After owning my Wheego Whip for almost two years, I doubt few people are interested. Even so, I’ll share my experience.
If I knew a 2 years ago what I know now, I don’t know if I would still buy one. I didn’t expect smooth or trouble free year of ownership. I like the little car and the entry level EV experience I’ve had. I understood the NEV limitations. I have enjoyed working on and tinkering with different parts as I have learned more about how EVs work. I don’t believe I’d recommend one to someone who wants to ‘just drive’.
The quality of various components is below most modern cars. The 2010 model I purchased new at the start of 2014 has had an electric door lock & CV boot fail. These were covered and replaced under warranty. Not covered have been a sagging headliner, power window switch, rear window latch and the lead battery pack. After about 3,000 miles I experienced a 10 mile range reduced from 18 miles when it was new. So I bought some CALB SE 100s.
The process of changing from lead to lithium has taught me a few lessons I share here. 1st, I learned my controller is a 1238-7501 which can run up to 130 volts. The OEM power loop amplifier and dash SOC gauge are programmed for lead and have been unplugged by me. I did this after the car went into limp mode after the amp counter noticed the energy taken out of the pack while driving, but didn’t count coulombs during charging after the Delta Q was reprogrammed with a lithium algorithm. The original Delta Q charger failed about 6 months ago.
Now, I ignore the factory dash gauge and rely on a JLD404 to count energy in & out for state of charge. Regarding range, I haven’t achieved the expected 50 miles I thought I’d get after losing about 500 lbs of batteries. I haven’t had a need to travel a great distance, and I’m not willing to stress the batteries to see how far I can travel before it won’t move any more. I have been surprised just how much difference gentle vs ‘normal’ acceleration affects how many amps are drawn.
Last winter, the car stalled in the middle of the road and would not reboot. The pre charge circuit produced an error. After towing it home and researching the problem, I found that connecting an incandescent bulb worked to the main contactor worked. I was glad the Wheego headquarters mailed me a resistor at no cost. It was an easy install and it now works. Since then, I’ve gotten a couple ‘main contactor welded’ error codes. When this happens, the car shuts off so I cycle the key switch off and on and it then it restarts.
I’m not an expert in suspension components nor design. I’ve heard other Wheego owners speak of poor quality of axles and control arms. Torque steer occurs under heavy acceleration.
As of today, the amount of money I’ve spent on this car + replacement batteries is less than the cheapest used Nissan Leaf, but barely. I believe the Leaf is superior in almost every way. Prices were different 2 years ago. So in conclusion, if a reader is considering an EV purchase and cannot spend over $5,000, a Wheego is an option. Though no longer producing this model for US sales, today, Wheego is still in business and provides both technical support and replacement parts.
