Rust usually begins through the chips and cracks you receive from the pebbles and stones that hit your car through daily driving. With a small nick exposing bare metal in an unnoticeable location, rust will begin to form.

Once rust begins to happen, it cannot be stopped, only repaired. Whether you spend many of thousands of dollars on your homemade electric car or a couple of hundreds of dollars, you want to keep it looking nice.

While after spending so much money on your EV, you may not be left with a lot of money to repair damages such as rust. Below is a guide to repairing the rust without emptying your pockets.

A few things you will need include a good amount of elbow grease, a fibreglass cloth kit, electric grinder and cordless drill, spreader, sandpaper and sanding discs. Here are 10 easy steps to fixing the rust on your car:

Step 1 – Access where the rust is located.

Once finding the rusted spots, remove all excess trim and loose debris from the corroded part of the vehicle. Next, remove the rusted metal but leave enough to keep the shape of the electric car.

Step 2 – Prepare the electric grinder with 24-grit disc.

Just about 4 inches from the edge of the rust hole, grind all traces of the rust including the primer and paint.

Step 3 – Sanding.

Using a 100-grit sanding block, sand the corroded surface until it is clear and shiny. Using a ball-peen hammer, tap around the edges of the rust hole, slightly turning it inwards.

Step 4 – Filming rust hole.

Cut the release film from the fiberglass cloth kit about three inches larger than the sanded area. Using this piece of film, place it over the rust hole. Use a pencil to mark this area but do not wrinkle the film.

Step 5 – Covering.

To cover the rust hole, cut two pieces of Fibreglass matte. Cut one piece of this matte about one inch smaller than the size of the first matte.

Step 6 – Using repair jelly.

Spread the cut release film over it a layer of auto body repair jelly. The film needs to be facing outward. Next, take the smaller fiberglass matte and place it over the release film with the jelly.

Spread more repair jelly to the smaller fiberglass matte and place the larger cloth on it.

Step 7 – Filling.

After step 6 is completed, place the entire repair material over the rust hole. Again, the film must be facing outward.

Going in an outward motion, use a spreader to smooth it out over the rust hole. Remove all bubbles and follow the shape of the car.

Step 8 – Let the repair set overnight.

Following the next day, remove the release film. Check if the material is completely set. Using an electric drill and sanding disc, sand the repaired area. Finish the repair and sanding using a block sander.

Step 9 – Fill in the low spots with the filler material.

After the filler dries, use an 80-grit sandpaper to file and smooth it out.

Step 10 – Smoothing.

To complete the repair, apply the topcoat and hardener to create a smooth finish. Use a 200-grit smooth the topcoat, then use the 400-grit sanding block to finalize the repaired rust hole.

Many people would like to know if electric cars are truly more inexpensive to run than standard gas powered cars. At a quick glance, the obviously glaring answer would be a huge YES!

The ability to drive much further on a dollar’s worth of electricity versus a dollar’s worth of gas is what we are looking at when we consider having greater efficiency.

Of course, there can always be exceptions to this standard rule; however, it is common that a homemade electric car has about thirty percent more efficiency than a standard gasoline powered vehicle.

Still, there are things to think about when computing the differences between the option of gasoline powered and electric powered forms of transportation. DIY electric cars use deep cycle lead-acid batteries, which can typically require replacement with a brand new battery pack approximately every three or so years, under normal operating conditions. The cost of doing so is approximately around $2500, give and take depending on the model of battery you use.

A cost as great as this, is certainly something which must be taken into consideration when making a decision. Dependent upon on the exact type of lead-acid battery you have, you may also need to purchase one or two gallons of distilled water every three or so months, in order to top up your batteries. Although it’s not a huge expense, consider you could possibly distill it yourself if absolutely necessary.

Taking that into consideration, let’s now look at the operating expenditures of an electric car: The first task is to work out how much it is going to cost in electricity charges each year to drive your car a distance of 10,000 miles. It is typical by conversion that you might expect to drive four miles per unit, referred to as a kilowatt hour, of electricity.

The cost of a unit of electricity may be around fifteen cents (US), which would make the electric car really cost around 3.75 cents per mile to drive. At a rate of 10,000 miles per year, that would work out to about $375 worth of electricity per year.

The possible generation of electricity is a whole other story, to be left for another conversation, but should be kept it in mind as an alternative to eliminate this cost.

Next, we will add to the cost, the calculation of a new replacement pack of batteries. Remember, this is a cost of approximately $2500 every three years or roughly $833 per each year.

Don’t forget that there are other fees too, such as insurance, road tax (as applicable), new tires and standard wear and tear. Add all that together and you could be looking somewhere around $1700 in expenses. (In this calculation, I have not accounted for devaluation of the vehicle since electric cars hold their value extremely well).

The United States Department of Labor has stated that by comparison, the average gasoline powered car costs approximately $2,227 per year, just in gasoline and motor oil expenses. Gasoline powered cars cost an additional $2,355 in other common vehicle-related costs, such as fluid replacements, exhaust repairs, and the like. That is a total sum of $4582 US to drive a standard gasoline powered vehicle.

Do note that these prices are based on gas being at a cost of or below $2.20 US per gallon. Even in the case of excluding tax breaks and the refunds available to many electric car drivers, and perks such as carpool lane access, free parking and free public charging, the average the electric car is a great deal cheaper to own and drive than the gasoline powered option.

Remember, the more the price of fuel and oil rises (which is very likely by the way), the less expensive when compared will be the cost of a pure electric car.

DIY Electric Car Conversion Guide

Are you planning to convert a conventional automobile into a homemade electric vehicle? If you are, it is best you read up on the science of electric car conversion.

Before you begin your electric vehicle conversion project, check out the Convert2EV ebook by Les and Jane Oke. The Okes live a green lifestyle in Canada and one way of keeping their carbon footprint small is by using pure electric car. The Convert2EV manual was written based on their experience of retrofitting old gas guzzler into electric vehicle.

==> Click here to visit Convert2EV now!

How much would a Do It Yourself (DIY) electric car conversion cost? If you are planning to start your own electric vehicle (EV) conversion project, most probably you will be asking this question.

In actual fact, there is no fixed figure for a homemade electric car. Your conversion cost can be as low as $1000 and as high as $20,000! Your EV conversion cost will depend on what you want from your electric car.

If you want a super fast EV, you may want to install a high torque electric motor with the latest light weight lithium ion batteries. These types of components will cost a lot of money.

If you are on a shoestring budget, you have to be very creative to come out with cheap solution for your EV. You may have to use old or refurbished components on your electric car. One good example is sourcing old deep cycle batteries and reconditioning them back to life.

Another way to save cost is to look for good bargains on donor car for your EV project. Source around various newspapers and internet classified sites in your area for used car. Here’s a tip, there are a lot of cheap cars from repossessed vehicle auction sites.

If you are looking for a cheap electric motor, why not consider using the electric motor from a forklift. I’ve actually written an article on using forklift electric motor, check it out.

If you are planning to recondition used batteries, make sure you get it done properly. Do not cut corners on this part, or it will come back to haunt you later.

The battery bank is basically is only power source for your DIY electric car. Any malfunction in the battery system will leave you stranded on the middle of the road. If you are not sure how battery reconditioning process is done, get a professional to do it for you. The investment will be money well spent.

Homemade Electric Car Guide

Are you keen to find out what’s involved in a DIY electric car conversion project? If you are, check out Les Oke’s Convert2EV e-book.

Les and his family live a green lifestyle in Canada. He has been converting and using pure plug-in electric cars for many years. The Convert2EV manual was written for complete beginners teaching them the science behind a homemade electric car. Click on the link below for more information.

==> Click here to visit Convert2EV now!