In this blog post, I wanted to write about electric motor. To be more specific, how to find cheap electric motor. If you are doing your own Do It Yourself (DIY) electric car conversion, the electric motor is one of the key component of the project. When the [tag-tec]internal combustion engine[/tag-tec] (ICE) is removed, the motor will be the primary torque generator for your electric car.
There are many places where you can get an electric motor for your EV. If you have the budget, it is best to buy a brand new one. If you do not have the budget, then it is time to be creative in order to find inexpensive motor.
In my last couple of blog posts, I mentioned the electric car conversion guide by Les Oke, Convert 2 EV. From his e-book, Les showed how to find cheap electric motor at eBay. I decided to do a quick search at eBay to see if I can locate some cheap motors.
It took me only a couple of minutes and I managed to find 5 great deals on electric motor. You can see the screen shots on top. How did I do it? It’s easy.
First, go to eBay main site at www.ebay.com. If possible, choose a local eBay site closest to you. By doing that, you will saving on shipping and transport charges.
When you are at the web site, you should see a search bar on the top left. Type in the phrase “electric car motor” and then press the “Search” button on the far right.
When you do that, eBay’s search engine will display all the listings with the key phrase “electric motor” in them. The last time I did the search (July 24th 2009), there was a total of 64 results.
Now we have to find the right electric motor for your electric car. From the book Convert 2 EV, Les suggested to look for a motor with voltage between 50 to 80 volts. That was the criteria I used to locate the 5 offers above. Most of the motors were rated 48 volts and I think that’s close enough.
When you have located the best deal, you can now start bidding for it. Remember, to be a legit bidder, you have to sign up as a user with eBay. User registration is very easy.
Here’s a tip you can use. When purchasing the electric motor from eBay, it is a good idea to ask for a 60 days guarantee from the seller. Because you are not physically inspecting the motor, you do not know its true condition. If the seller is sincere, he will comply with your request. If he declines, just walk away and look for another offer.
If you want to know other tips and tricks on how to find cheap parts for an EV conversion project at home, be sure to check out Les Oke’s Convert 2 EV. His ideas will save you thousands of dollar.