6 - The Build (part 1)

Battery mock-ups

Since batteries are generally the last major component purchased, it's good to make mock-ups of the ones you're planning on using so you know where they will all fit.  I'm planning on using 8v Interstate batteries that are 10.125"w 7"d and 11" tall.  These mock-ups are ever so slightly larger than my batts should be, so if I can make these fit, there should be no problems with the real thing.

There are also some cleanup/leftover sort of things I need to do while I'm waiting for the aluminum for my adapter plate to come in.  I took out the clutch master cylinder today, along with the fuel pump driver module and inertia fuel shutoff switch.  I may see if there's some way to reuse that inertia switch to shut my 120v system down in case of a collision.

Adapter plate mock-ups

Since I haven't been able to find a machine shop that will make my adapter plates at what I consider a reasonable price, I've decided to go ahead and try it myself.  The battery mockups are always a good idea (and much lighter than a real battery!), so why not a fake adapter?  I've ordered two 1/2" pieces of aluminum plate.  One 14"x14" for my bellhousing adapter plate and one 8"x8" for my motor plate and spacer.  I need just over 1" between the edge of the bellhousing and the face of the motor.  There's a nice spacer that is approximately 2mm thick with all the bellhousing bolt holes already punched out.  It will make a perfect template.

Since I've never made an adapter plate before, I figure it wouldn't hurt to practice on a piece of 1/2" particle board.  I'll be able to make much more precise measurements and cuts on it than a piece of plywood.  I cut it out to match the profile of the bellhousing spacer and drilled out all the bolt holes.  When I placed it over the alignment pins on the bellhousing it was very snug and didn't wiggle at all.  All the bolt holes lined up nicely too.  I did some quick measuring and placed a hole right in the center for the motor shaft and coupler to fit through.  This hole doesn't need to be 100% exact just yet (more on that later when I make the real adpapter from aluminum).  All in all, a valuable exercise that gave me lots of confidence I can actually make this myself!

Making the REAL adapter plate and spacer

This is one of the most challenging parts for the Do-It-Yourself-er.  It's one thing to make a mock-up from wood, but quite another to get it right in aluminum plate!  So far so good though; I have all the holes drilled in the plate and spacer.  I have the spacer centered properly on the plate.  Everyting fits and looks pretty good, but when I hook the motor up to a 12v battery, I have a slight vibration  that needs to be sorted out before I try to put the motor and tranny back in the EV.  Once it's on the road, it'll be spinning at several thousand rpm's, so it needs to be perfect.  I feel confident that this is only a minor obstacle.  A video of the whole process will be posted as soon as success is achieved.  Hopefully soon!

I feel confident I've solved the slight vibration.  The adapter plate has been all trimmed of extra weight and motor has been mounted to tranny.  They're ready to be reinstalled in motor bay.

Motor and transmission installed

The eletric motor is about 200lbs lighter than the ICE, so we used an existing hoist hook in the garage rafters to lift the motor and tranny into the motor compartment.  It only took a few minutes and some gentle coercion.  I also got the 1/2 shafts reinstalled along with the wheel assemblies, crossmembers and shift linkage.  Just for the heck of it, I put the tranny in neutral and gave the motor 12v of juice again.  It spins very well and much, much quieter now that it is installed in the car and not sitting in a crate on the garage floor.  Next, I need to have a custom motor mount fabricated for the passenger side of the motor bay that will also hold the passenger 1/2 shaft in place.  Once that is completed, I can start laying out components and really get moving!

Passenger side motor mount

The ICE is out and two important things bolted to it.  The passenger side engine mount and the passenger side halfshaft.  I have to fabricate both of these as custom pieces to provide support for the motor/tranny combo and halfshaft.  Since the other mockups worked out so well for me, I'm attempting to do the same for this custom piece.  I'm trying to make it all one piece in wood, so that I can take it to a welder and have it make in one solide piece of steel.  Aluminum would be lighter, but I want to make sure this is very strong.  It's going slow, but steady!

Rear battery box

There has to be some way to hold the 15 8v batteries which will power my EV.  The engine compartment should be good for 8 of them in open racks.  The other 7 will go in an enclosed box in the trunk.  I started by cutting out the floor of the trunk.  Since this is just going to be a city commuter and I have roadside assistance on my insurance, I am dispensing with the spare tire (and it's weight).  A can of Fix-A-Flat should be a suitable substitute.  The aluminum for the battery box support (and adapter plates) has been coming from speedymetals.com.  They are far cheaper even with shipping than any local source.  All the metal pieces for the support I cut on a miter saw and then took to a local welder for assembly.  I also made a box to sit inside this frame and hold the batteries.  One of the nice things about this design is that it keeps the batteries low and will actually lower the cars center of gravity.  Some weight distribution issues are unavoidable with lead acid conversions however.  There will be more weight distributed to the back of the car than was originally, but again, this isn't intended as a racer or long distance carrier. 

The trunk battery box is made of treated plywood to repel moisture and is painted with an automotive satin black paint to help it blend in with the suspension components under the car.  It's important the batteries are secured properly in the box.  I put in some spacers to partially fill the space between the batteries, but I also want to leave some room for swelling that can take place as the batteries are repeatedly charged and discharged.  There are also tie downs made from threaded rod and leftover angled aluminum to keep the batteries from bouncing up and down on rough roads.

Front battery racks

Eight batteries can fit in the motor compartment.  I'd like to put more up front to keep the front/rear weight distribution as close to original as possible, but eight is the max.  With some creative placement, four will sit in front of the motor/tranny while four more will sit just over the motor.  These 8v batteries are tall at just over 11 inches.  The hood on the zx2 is pretty low, so this limits battery placement. 

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7 - The Build (part 2)

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