Have you seen electric cars covered with solar panels? If you were to convert a conventional automobile to run on electric power, should you include some Photovoltaic (PV) panels on the EV to charge the battery bank?

I’ve came across this question in a forum recently and I thought of doing some research on it.

Here’s the fact, a normal sedan homemade EV needs approximately 300 watt hour or Wh to move 1 mile on a flat surface. There are a few factors which will affect this figure such as tire pressure, road resistance, road gradient, wind drag etc. But let’s take that as an example for now.

In order for you to drive 1 mile on your electric car, it will use up 300 Wh of electricity from your battery bank.

Now, how much power can a solar panel generate? Let’s take one of those common 4 feet PV panels used for home solar system. 1 piece of the panel can pretty much cover the entire roof of your EV.

On a bright sunny day, the said solar panel is capable of generating 150 watt-hour of electricity. Meaning, if you were to park your EV under the sun, it will charge your battery bank with 150 Wh after 1 hour.

If you need 300 Wh, you have to install 2 pieces of 4 feet solar panel on your EV and leave it under the sun for 1 hour. After that, you would have top up the battery bank with enough power from the solar panels to travel 1 mile!

If you are planning to install solar panel on your DIY electric car, don’t bother. The power produced from the panel is too small for your EV, unless you are planning to park your electric car under the sun for days.

The fact is, an electric car is an efficient vehicle, but it does consume large amount of electricity. To replenish the battery bank, it is best to park your EV in the garage and recharge the batteries using the power outlet going through the charge controller.

Homemade Electric Car Guide

Do you want to know how to convert a conventional car to run on pure electricity? If you do, check out Peter Millward’s Electricity4Gas e-book.

Millward is an environmental activist and he has been teaching people step by step how to retrofit a car to use electricity for more than 10 years. Click on the link below for more information.

==> Click here to visit Electricity4Gas now!

One clear difference between a conventional car using an internal combustion engine versus a pure electric car is the range. A normal automobile can run indefinitely as long as there are gas stations for it to fuel up.

A pure electric car has a shorter range due to its limited charge in the battery bank. As of today, there are not a lot of facilities built to cater for the charging needs of pure electric vehicles.

If you own an electric car, here are 7 tips you can use to extend its mileage on the road:

1) Install a belly pan.

A belly pan beneath the car will allow air to rush straight past instead of getting caught around the gear box, electric motor, brake lines or any other pockets below the car which will create drag. Alternatively, a piece of thick plastic can also be used to cover the entire bottom carriage of the EV.

2) Streamline the front fender.

Make the front fender of your electric car streamline or as smooth as possible. Since the EV has no radiator, it does not need air holes at the front of the car for cooling. Use fiberglass or expanding foams to fill up any unnecessary holes.

3) Cover back wheel arches.

The rear wheel arches have a tendency to create drag on the EV. It is best to cover it with a removable piece of fiberglass that fits flush to the body of the car. The challenge is to make it look sleek and yet functional.

4) Install air guides for the tires.

By installing air guides or diffusers, it will assist in pushing the air around the tire thus reducing air drag. Air guides are small fiberglass triangular block shaped aerodynamically to sit in front of the tire on the body of the car.

5) Lowering your car.

By lowering the suspension of the car, it is capable of reducing air resistance as much as 3%. However, due to the extra weight of the deep cycle battery, you can’t lower your car too much or it will affect the safety of the EV. Lowering of the car will also cause a bumpier ride. Weigh the pros and cons before your do this.

6) Install wheel covers.

Get a wheel cover that is flat of slightly convex disc with no holes to cover the entire wheel of the electric car. It is best to get covers which match the color of the body. The monolithic color will give a “space age” look to your EV.

7) Use low rolling resistance tires.

Low rolling resistance tires have a harder rubber compound. The harder rubber has lower tire rolling resistance therefore increasing the driving mileage. As a cheap alternative, you can always slightly over inflate the tires to achieve the same result.

DIY Electric Car Conversion Guide

Looking for a good guide to convert your conventional car to EV? If you are, check out Gavin Shoebridge’s Electric Conversion Made Electric e-book. The guide comes with step by step instruction with High Definition (HD) videos. Click on the link below for more information.

==> Click here to visit Electric Conversion Made Easy now!

In this blog post, I am going to write about how to decide on your electric vehicle (EV) conversion needs and budgeting. Typically when it comes to converting a car to run on pure electricity, you have 3 main options:

1) A good range.

2) A high top speed.

3) A low conversion cost.

The fact is, you can only choose 2 of the 3 options above.

This means before selecting your parts or selecting a donor car, you need to decide what your goals are.

Let me elaborate further on the 3 points above.

A Good Range

The typical DIY electric car that runs on lead-acid batteries has an average driving range of approximately 40 – 50 miles before it has to be recharged. The mileage is due to a combination of multiple factors.

The biggest factors being the size & weight of the battery pack. Other contributing factors are the vehicle aerodynamics and your driving condition. Driving on hilly areas will definitely need more juice therefore reducing your net mileage.

To get a good or practical EV range, you need to understand your driving needs. Too much range, and it’ll cost you money because of the extra batteries needed. Too little range and your EV would not be practical.

A High Top Speed

How fast can an EV go? As fast as you want!

Unlike driving range, a high top speed for an electric car can be achieved without too much extra cost. It all depends on how much power is available from your car’s battery pack and how much power your car’s controller will allow through to the motor.

An EV with large enough power and current flow will out sprint a gasoline driven car. A Tesla Roadster will always beat a Ferrari Modena on a straight sprint!

Low Conversion Cost

The overall cost of the conversion of an EV will vary from car to car, and from country to country. Some of the costing factors are shipping and freight costs, the strength of your currency for buying parts from overseas sources, labor costs to fabricate battery racks and a motor-to-gearbox adapter plate etc.

There are many ways you can save on your DIY electric car conversion project. Some are straight forward while others require some creativity.

For more tips and strategies on how to save money for a DIY electric car conversion project, check out Les Oke’s Convert2EV e-book.

Les and his family have been living off the grid for more than 15 years. To live a green lifestyle, Les has been using a pure electric car for commuting purposes.

Throughout the years, Les has converted numerous automobile to EV. The Convert2EV manual is his years of EV experience penned down.

==> Click here to visit Convert2EV now!

Many people have heard of a pure electric vehicle (EV), but not a lot of people have driven one. Unless you are a golfer and you spend a lot of time on the green. Golf courses use a fleet of electric golf carts to ferry people around.

There are many benefits on driving an EV versus a car using an internal combustion engine. The following is 5 great reasons why you should own a pure EV.

1) Sever your dependency on gasoline.

This is one major factor why an EV is much better than a conventional automobile. Many car owners wish they didn’t have a car back in mid 2008.

That is when the world crude oil price reached a dizzy level of $150 per barrel. The effect has pushed local gasoline prices through the roof. People were having a very tough time refueling their cars and making ends meet.

A car using electric power is independent from the fluctuation of global crude oil prices. When there’s another energy price spike in the near future, at least you’ll know it won’t affect you and your family lifestyle too much.

2) Zero emission.

Since an electric car does not use an internal combustion engine (ICE) as its power source, there is no engine exhaust therefore zero emission.

Smog from car engine is one of the causes of “green house effect” which raises the planet temperature therefore melting the polar ice cap. It’s an issue many world leaders is trying to solve.

When you use an EV, you’ll know you are doing your part to help the environment. Instead of just “lip service”, you are actually taking proactive action to help the environment.

3) Save money.

Do you want to stop spending your hard earned money at the gas station? Would you rather spend it on your family on a holiday? When you use an electric vehicle, you can forget about stopping at the gas service station ever again. The only time you’ll go there is when you need to use the restroom.

Do some calculation. Figure out how much money are you and your family members are spending on gasoline a week. And then multiply it with 52 weeks. That is how much money your family will be saving in a year if everyone drives an electric car.

4) Reliability.

Compared to a conventional car, an EV has less moving parts. Let’s take the heart of the electric car which is the electric motor as an example.

The electric motor has only 1 moving parts, which is the rotating shaft. An internal combustion engine has more than 100 moving parts. All the parts in an engine have to be lubricated in order for them to function properly.

Which one do you think has a higher chance of failing? The electric motor or the internal combustion engine?

That being said, an EV is more reliable compared to a gas guzzler. That’s only one component of the car. How about other parts on a normal car that’s not required on an electric vehicle? Components such as exhaust pipe, radiator, spark plugs, timing belt, air filter, fuel filter etc. Every part has a chance of failing, but you do not have this issue with an EV.

5) Recharging at home.

With an EV, you have the option of recharging at home. No more trips to the local gas station. I don’t know about you, for me, going to the gas station is quite a hassle.

You have to queue to use the pump, get out of the car, go to the cashier, more queuing, wait for the cashier, wait for the gas to be pumped etc. A lot of none productive time spent.

With an electric car, all you have to do is drive to the garage at the end of the day, and then plug it into the charger. Leave it there overnight and by next morning, the batteries will be fully charged.

There are many more reasons why using an EV is much better compared to a normal car. What I’ve written down is only a small list.

Do It Yourself (DIY) Electric Car

Buying a brand new electric car from the dealership might be more expensive compared to a conventional car. There is a cheaper option though. You can convert your existing car into an EV. To do that, you will need an EV conversion guide.

One of the latest EV conversion manual on the internet is the Electric Conversion Made Easy e-book by Gavin Shoebridge. Gavin is from New Zealand and he has converted his old Mitsubishi Tredia into a pure electric vehicle.

In his manual, he’ll teach you step-by-step how to retrofit a car to run on electricity. Together with the manual, there is also a series of High Definition (HD) instructional videos. For more information, check out Gavin’s website at www.evsecrets.com

==> Click here to visit Electric Conversion Made Easy now!

Here’s the latest news on the maker of the super sexy electric vehicle (EV) Tesla Roadster. Tesla Motors has been sold to the German giant automaker Daimler. But not all over it…only 10%. How much is the Tesla-Daimler deal worth? About $50 million.

There is no denying that Tesla Motors is struggling right now. Even though their make clean electric cars, they still can’t get away from the clutches of the traditional motor industry.

Here are some of the news on the web about Tesla Motors and Daimler deal:

1) Tesla looks to future after selling stake to Daimler – Struggling electric vehicle pioneer Tesla has found a potential solution to its recent financial troubles – by turning to one of the giants of the car industry…

2) Daimler Partners with Tesla to Build Small Electric Car – German automotive giant Daimler has invested in electric-car company Tesla Motors and plans to use Tesla’s battery packs in its Smart electric car due later this year…

3) Trying to find the upside to Tesla-Daimler deal – Not everyone think the big Daimler-Tesla deal announced last week is a win-win. In fact, Jay Yarow over at Business Insider is trying to figure our how either side benefits from Daimler’s estimated $50+ million investment in Tesla…

4) Tesla, Daimler Team Up for Smart Batteries, Daimler Takes 10 Percent Stake – Daimler AG has invested a “double-digit million-dollar sum for about a 10 percent stake” in Tesla Motors as part of a new strategic partnership between the German automaker and the Silicon Valley electric sports car startup…

5) Tesla, Daimler Ink EV Deal – Daimler announced that as part of the agreement, it has acquired almost a 10 percent equity stake in Tesla Motors, giving the company a much needed cash infusion…

6) More Details on Tesla, Daimler EV Collaboration and the Future Roadster – Tesla Motors is collaborating with Daimler AG on two affordable EVs planned for production within the next few years…

7) Electric Connection: Tesla, Daimler – Electric car startup Tesla Motors has a new partner: German giant Daimler (DAI). On May 19, at the fashionable Hay-Adams Hotel in Washington, Daimler announced it has taken a 10% stake, worth about $50 million, in the San Carlos (Calif.) auto pioneer…

8) REPORT: Tesla Motors valued at $1 billion – Wondering how much Tesla Motors might be worth on the open market? It would seem the actual figure would depend you who you ask. Based on the assumption that Daimler paid $50 million for nine-percent of Tesla, the Silicon Valley automaker would theoretically be worth $550 million…

That’s the news so far on Tesla – Daimler deal. It makes you wander, makers of pure electric car are having a tough time surviving in the current market. It actually made DIY electric car conversion makes more sense.

If you are looking for electric car manufacturer, here’s another one, the Coda Automotive. To be honest, I have never heard of this company before up until recently. One thing is for sure, they are manufacturing their own version of pure electric car. I hope to see more of them in the news in the future.

In the mean time, what are other web sites writing about Coda Automotive? Here are a couple that I found.

Miles EV announces Coda Automotive full speed electric sedan

Miles EV announces that it will establish the new Coda Automotive brand for its full speed electric vehicles. The first product will be the Coda sedan. Coda plans direct sales of the $45000 four door battery powered car starting in the …

Start-up motor company, Coda Automotive unveils electric car for US

Pasadena, California (CaymanMama.com) –A start-up motor company based in Santa Monica, Calif., Coda Automotive, will reveal a new electric car on Thursday which it plans to begin selling in California in 2010, with plans to launch …

Coda Automotive presenting its electric vehicle, the EV Miles

A signature of Californian origin, called Coda Automotive, presented the first images of its fully electric sedan. In the development of Porsche Engineering and joined the Chinese manufacturer Tianjin Lisheen (for Lithium-Ion batteries) …

Heard of Coda Automotive?

Headquartered in Santa Monica, California., Coda Automotive is a manufacturer of all-electric, highway capable vehicles. For better or for worst, most of the blogging world has become very familiar with the Tesla and other EV companies …

Miles EV’s all-electric Coda Automotive defies Tesla’s dominance

Tesla’s Roadster costs you a gigantic $100000 and this is where Coda Automotive aims to strike on. Miles EV plans to unveil an all-electric sedan in the Californian market in 2010 to outclass others in the category. …

All-Electric Coda Automotive Sedan Launched (photos and video)

A California company Miles EV that is developing zero-emission, full electric vehicles, brand new all-electric car Coda Automotive. The Coda sedan will be assembled in China by Hafei under the direction of staff from Coda unknown …

Coda Automotive Unveils Mainstream All-Electric Sedan

Coda Automotive, formed and developed under the stewardship of entrepreneur Miles Rubin, announced that it will be introducing an affordable, full performance all-electric sedan to the mainstream California market in 2010.

Miles EV Launches The Anti-Tesla: Coda Automotive

Electric car startup Miles EV is launching a new electric brand called Coda Automotive. Miles EV sees the brand as a ‘coda’ to the industrial revolution which brought us the internal combustion engine. It’s time to move to an electric …

Benefits of Electric Cars

Firstly, EV produce zero tailpipe emission. This is great for the environment. Some people may be asking…If you are using pure electric cars, aren’t we transferring the carbon emission from the gas producers to the power stations?

The electricity used to charge EVs typically comes from coal-fired power plants. But even if that is the case, the emission from the power plants are lower compared to the carbon emitted from internal combustion engines (ICE).

Secondly, EV are much simpler compared to a gas driven car. There are thousand of moving parts in a ICE. When multiple parts are moving, rubbing against each other and producing heat, there are bound to be breakdowns. Electric car having less moving parts, chances are, it will break down less.

Thirdly, even with gas price at $1.50, it still cost less to fully charge an EV. With an equal drive mileage, the cost per mile for an electric car is definitely much cheaper compared to fossil fuel.

Why don’t we see many pure electric cars on the road?

The main drawbacks of EV is the cost of batteries. The best battery technology for electric vehicle is lithium-based. However, it is still being developed and the costs are high. As today’s prices, a lithium-based battery large enough to power a pure electric car will cost more than $10,000.

Electric car also has a limited driving range. The top end EV from the manufacturer would have a mileage of about 250 miles. That is half of the traditional gasoline powered car.

A more affordable EV model would offer about 40 miles. One option to extend the mileage is to install a small gasoline engine on the EV. However, doing that will increase the weight and cost.

Finally, an EV would need time to fully recharge its battery. Most DIY electric car will use deep cycle battery to save cost. This kind of battery will need a minimum of 8 hours to recharge.

A lithium-based battery may need only half an hour to recharge. But the cost to use them is too expensive.

Related blog posts:
1) GreenSmart Notebook – Tom Larsen: An All Electric Car Ahead of Everyone’s Time

2) Discovery News: Material World: Wide Angle: Electric Car Grid

3) Green Car Congress: Better Place Enters Electric Car Network Partnership with Ontario

4) Mitsubishi’s i MiEV electric car coming to Canada

5) Better Place to Offer Electric Car Subscription Service

1) Jinhua Golden Eagle Auto Accessories Manufacturing Co., Ltd
Established in 1967, Jinhua Golden Eagle Auto Accessories Manufacturing Co., Ltd., is a leading international trade enterprise which engaged in producing and researching series of hardware products. It lies in Flying Eagle Industrial Zone of West Yongkang city of Zhejiang.

2) Suzhou Eagle Electric Vehicle Manufacturing
Founded in 1998, Suzhou Eagle Electric Vehicle Manufacturing Co Ltd. is a leading manufacturer in China specializing in designing and manufacturing of 4 wheel electric vehicles.

3) CMEC Suzhou Co., Ltd.
CMEC Suzhou Co. Ltd. is established in 1987, also a member of CMEC Group, with headquarter in Beijing. CMEC Suzhou Co. Ltd. is the main exporter for various electric vehicles, vehicle related products and equipments and as a professional oversea project conductor. CMEC Suzhou also has business ventures in Parking System, Trains, etc.

4) Jiangmen Yetong Electric Vehicle Company Limited
Jiangmen Yetong Electric Vehicles Co., Ltd. is an overseas-funded enterprise established by Mr. Chan King Luen. Mr. Chan King Luen is the president of Hongkong Yetong Co., Ltd., former member of Guangdong Political Consultative Conference. He is now an honorary citizen of Beijing, Hangzhou, Nanxiong and Jiangmen City.

5) Interchina Industry Group Co., Ltd
Interchina Industry Group Co., Ltd. is a group specialized in manufacturing Electric Scooter, electric tricycle, electric car. Since 1999, the company has invested in some factories in Zhejiang, Jiangsu and Hebei with headquarter in Jiangsu and exporting office in Shanghai.

6) Liuzhou Wuling Motors Co., Ltd.
Established in 1996, Liuzhou Wuling Motors Co. Ltd. is a state-owned enterprise group and one of the largest 500 machinery enterprises of China authorized for running under the government of Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region.

7) Wuxi Celimo Vehicle Manufacturing Co. Ltd.
Wuxi Celimo Vehicle Manufacturing Co., Ltd. has become one of the largest motorcycle manufacturers in China. The company has the capacity to produce 300,000 motorcycles and 500,000 e-bikes annually. Apart from the e-bikes, the company also manufacture electric vehicle.

8) BYD Auto
BYD Auto is a Chinese automobile manufacturer based in Shenzhen, Guangdong Province, People’s Republic of China. The firm was founded in 2003 and it is a part of the BYD Company Limited. The BYD company, established in 1995, makes 65% of the world’s nickel-cadmium batteries and 30% of the world’s lithium-ion mobile phone batteries.

9) Jiangxi Hongdu Voyage Industry Group Changzhou Hongdu E-Bicycle Co., Ltd.
Established in 2001, Jiangxi Hongdu Voyage Industry Group Changzhou Hongdu E-bicycle Co., Ltd. Is an enterprise under Jiangxi Hongdu Aviation Group and Changzhou Yucheng Ele. Co., Ltd.

10) China Peace Group Co., Ltd.
China Peace Group specializes in designing, producing, and selling ATVs, Motorcycles, Scooters, Go Karts, Dirt Bikes, Electric-powered Bicycles, RC CARS and Generators

Related web sites:

Back when it was launched, the EV1 was revolutionary. It had a host of innovative features like regenerative braking and light-weight construction. Unfortunately, GM pulled the plug on the EV1 program just a few years ago. Why did they canceled the EV1 electric car project? Maybe at that time, it was more profitable to sell the high margin but gas guzzling SUVs. If GM were to put the EV1 back in the market, I believe the demand would be substantially higher today.

Take a look at this GM corporate video from the Autoline archives which highlights many of the EV1’s features and shows how relevant the car is today.

The been a lot of excitement lately in the electric car industry. Tesla Motors has unveiled their new sedan electric car, the Model S. Check out the video below:

Here are some facts about the Model S:
1) Weight: 4000 pounds
2) Top speed: 120 mph
3) 0 – 60 in less than 5.6 seconds. The Tesla Roadster 0 – 60 is less than 4 secs
4): Mileage per charge: There are actually 3 types of Model S. Each has different mileage per battery charge. The ranges are 160 miles, 230 miles and 300 miles.
5) Battery charging time: 45 minutes
6) Seating Capacity: 5 adults and 2 children
7) Electric Car Cost: The basic model is selling at $49,000.00
8) Delivery date: Some time in 2011. All depend whether Tesla Motors can secure funding for the production.