The Days Of Electric Vehicle Conversion

So you have no idea what to do with old Volkswagen Beetle you have sitting in your garage. Oh the body is still in decent shape, the transmission still works, but the engine is shot. How about an electric vehicle conversion? An electric vehicle conversion is when you take a standard gas powered vehicle, pull out the motor, and install batteries and an electric vehicle conversion kit to make it an electric powered vehicle. As with anything there is dos and don ts with electric vehicle conversion and some good and bad points. It ain t cheap but if it can save you from ever having to buy gas again then why not consider it?

Ideally the best vehicle to be powered by electricity is a motorcycle because of its low power consumption, relatively low weight, and the cool sound it makes when it is powered by electricity but there are certain types of vehicles that are great for an electric vehicle conversion. The best type of car to convert from gas to electricity is a low weight, low power, vehicle like the Beetle or the Geo Metro. These smaller vehicles do not require a lot of power and the necessary battery packs can fit conveniently within the frame of the car. There are some companies that specialize in converting these smaller vehicles and they can be found on the internet.

Bigger Is Not Necessarily Better

The prime consideration in an electric vehicle conversion is weight. The bigger the vehicle the more batteries it takes to run it and while all batteries in an electric vehicle conversion are rechargeable they still weigh a lot. Probably the largest size vehicle you will be able to successfully covert is a compact sedan or coupe. The batteries will bring the vehicle close to the weight limit but not over and the necessary changes in the vehicle s suspension will also add weight. Sports cars are probably the worst types of conversions because electric power limits a vehicles speed and range so people expecting to take their sports cars and drive them as they did when they ran on gas will be very disappointed.

Probably the least likely vehicles to accept an electric vehicle conversion are SUVs, pick up trucks, and mini vans. All of these vehicles are already close to the legal weight limits and adding batteries and necessary suspension to accommodate the new weight of the batteries, even after removing the engine, would more than likely put the vehicle over the legal limit.