Comments on: Texas Man Builds Electric Car for $6,456.92 (updated)

By: Klintron

Klintron — Thu, 22 May 2008 05:00:58 +0000

I found the guy’s own web site: http://galaxy22.dyndns.org/ev-talon/

Lots more info there. It uses 9 Trojan T875 Golf cart batteries. From his FAQ: “with this particular kind of setup, I won’t be saving a fortune in gas because once you calculate in the battery replacements every 3 to 4 years and the electricity, it about evens out.”

Also:

More info on DIY EV conversion: http://www.texomaev.com/

EV album: http://www.evalbum.com/

By: Honky-Tonk Dragon

Honky-Tonk Dragon — Thu, 22 May 2008 02:50:46 +0000

I have fantasized for years about running a custom car company, that converted classic lead-sleds to electric power plants.
There is some truth the snarkier comments here, but everyone is missing the big drawback to converting the old dinosaurs: weight.
Modern electric vehicles are MUCH lighter than older cars, because all that poundage requires more energy to move around, decreasing range and top speed, and increasing the size of the battery packs needed, which in turn again ups the total weight of the vehicle.
Still, at some point I believe the wholesale conversion of old cars to electric or fuel cell will be feasible.
Plus, think about a fuel cell Model T. How Steampunk would that be?

By: Klintron

Klintron — Thu, 22 May 2008 02:37:03 +0000

I just watched the video (didn’t watch it before because I was at work) and it looks like he’s using several regular car batteries to power the electric motor. I don’t know how long they last or what they cost.

There was a big draw back in the video that wasn’t mentioned in the text: a single charge (which takes about 3 hours) only gets the car 20 miles.

By: Thomas C Gray

Thomas C Gray — Thu, 22 May 2008 02:30:20 +0000

I wonder if this amateur automaker is still smiling when it’s 100 degrees and he has no AC or when it’s freezing and he has no heat.
And those things drain the batteries. How about power steering and power brakes? How is he powering those things? What junk batteries can he find for less than $4000? GM’s battery pack for the VOLT costs over $15,000. The Tesla battery pack costs over $25,000 and even the EV-1 with its horrible batteries cost over $20,000.

By: kent beuchert

kent beuchert — Thu, 22 May 2008 02:20:25 +0000

This moron doesn’t realize that the batteries will cost him a WHOLE lot more than any gasoline he might be saving. I love the fraudulent way these people pitch their stories.
Actually, a supercapacitor from EEStor in Austin MAY be the answer to conversions that make sense – not the amateur crap this guy did with a junkyard car. They and ZENN Motors are collaborating to do just these types of conversions – but they know what they are doing, and the capacitors, if they work, will be practical, unlike the enormous amount of cash
this yokel is going to end up paying for batteries for his crap car.

By: rawdawgbuffalo

rawdawgbuffalo — Thu, 22 May 2008 01:48:48 +0000

Holy Cow copper, oil and wheat