Self designed EV trike-real world experience.
Posted: Sun Jul 11, 2010 3:31 pm
I said I'd keep you abreast of my experience with my EV trike. I've covered 527 miles so far.
My trikes information is best accwssed on "EV albums" where it is described as a Kirk EV or "Sparky".
Briefly it is a 2F1R trike with a Mars ME0709 motor, Alltrax 7234 controller and 6 Elecsol 12V 110Ah batteries.
The Wh/mile figure is considerably higher than I had anticipated, with an obvious effect on range. Driving carefully I can get 115Wh/mile but this is tedious. Driving more spiritedly I acheive 130-150 Wh/mile. This means that after less than 20 miles the controller is intervening due to voltage sag to <60V. The most I have acheived is 26.16 miles where the lowest voltage I saw was 63V. The best way to drive it is to only do about 10 miles. Then it's quite nippy and you are not going to see <67V.
One thing that has suprised me is that it climbs hills better than calculations would have suggested. I can stop on a 10% gradient and accelerate to 24mph before it's had enough with the controller set to a max. output of only 180A. With a 405Kg weight including my self this should not be possible! I should only reach 14mph-good news then.
I am currently using my chargers profile and 14A capacity to calculate the Wh/mile figures, so there may be some error butapart from the range being less than I'd hoped (due to the electron consumption being higher than my best estimate) all is going well.
It's just a shame that I never need to drive 10 miles but need to do 25 miles 12 times a week!
I suppose I could alway spend thousands on Li ion for them to mysteriously catch fire whilst charging one day, or get some expensive Trojans which will give me 200 journeys to work for £1200. (Though with their weight I wouldn't actually make it)
Electric vehicles have there limitations, as some Nissan owners will find next year when 100 miles range turns out to be 45 miles of normal driving....................BUT DON'T YOU JUST LOVE THEM!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Andrew.
My trikes information is best accwssed on "EV albums" where it is described as a Kirk EV or "Sparky".
Briefly it is a 2F1R trike with a Mars ME0709 motor, Alltrax 7234 controller and 6 Elecsol 12V 110Ah batteries.
The Wh/mile figure is considerably higher than I had anticipated, with an obvious effect on range. Driving carefully I can get 115Wh/mile but this is tedious. Driving more spiritedly I acheive 130-150 Wh/mile. This means that after less than 20 miles the controller is intervening due to voltage sag to <60V. The most I have acheived is 26.16 miles where the lowest voltage I saw was 63V. The best way to drive it is to only do about 10 miles. Then it's quite nippy and you are not going to see <67V.
One thing that has suprised me is that it climbs hills better than calculations would have suggested. I can stop on a 10% gradient and accelerate to 24mph before it's had enough with the controller set to a max. output of only 180A. With a 405Kg weight including my self this should not be possible! I should only reach 14mph-good news then.
I am currently using my chargers profile and 14A capacity to calculate the Wh/mile figures, so there may be some error butapart from the range being less than I'd hoped (due to the electron consumption being higher than my best estimate) all is going well.
It's just a shame that I never need to drive 10 miles but need to do 25 miles 12 times a week!
I suppose I could alway spend thousands on Li ion for them to mysteriously catch fire whilst charging one day, or get some expensive Trojans which will give me 200 journeys to work for £1200. (Though with their weight I wouldn't actually make it)
Electric vehicles have there limitations, as some Nissan owners will find next year when 100 miles range turns out to be 45 miles of normal driving....................BUT DON'T YOU JUST LOVE THEM!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Andrew.