# Dala's EVNX



## Dala (Jan 10, 2018)

Hi, I'm Dala, and I run a side business that focuses on battery replacements for the Nissan Leaf. This has led me to amass quite the amount of extra batteries and other EV parts, and I feel like the time is right to make an EV conversion.

I actually started this EV conversion back in 2017, but the project got put on hold due to me starting my nightly business. Now the business is chugging along quite good, and if I get enough Youtube subscribers, I can focus more on doing EV repairs/upgrades/conversions full time!

So that is the story, time to meet the vehicle. I'm putting a LEAF drivetrain into a 1991 Nissan NX. Here's what the vehicle looked like in 2013:









The first build video is going live next week, so I'll be putting that onto my channel (and here) when it drops: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCc3g-KhOBoicgOrB4KkMeew


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## Dala (Jan 10, 2018)

The first video is live!


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## Dala (Jan 10, 2018)

Second episode, cleaning up after the ICE and a bit of vehicle history


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## Emils_LV (Dec 1, 2020)

Hi, looking forward! Though have you thought about fast charging, is there any known way to utilize Leafs OEM charge controller?


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## Dala (Jan 10, 2018)

Emils_LV said:


> Hi, looking forward! Though have you thought about fast charging, is there any known way to utilize Leafs OEM charge controller?


Yes, there is an upcoming solution when using the 2014-2017 AZE0 setup, I am aiming to use just that to get chademo going!


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## Emils_LV (Dec 1, 2020)

Dala said:


> Yes, there is an upcoming solution when using the 2014-2017 AZE0 setup, I am aiming to use just that to get chademo going!


Great! Will it be available for purchase? Looking forward to do similar conversion.


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## Dala (Jan 10, 2018)

Yes it will be possible to purchase the controller from a Swedish startup!

In this episode, parts are being purchased! Here I show what my usual approach is when it comes to finding salvage yard bits and pieces!


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## EmilsLV (Jan 28, 2020)

Dala said:


> Yes it will be possible to purchase the controller from a Swedish startup!


Any hints or company to follow. Good luck with project, very much a lot, big time, super interested how this build turns out.


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## Dala (Jan 10, 2018)

EmilsLV said:


> Any hints or company to follow. Good luck with project, very much a lot, big time, super interested how this build turns out.


EV conversion with Leaf parts (used) | Resolve-EV I'll be posting some vids on this next week!


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## Dala (Jan 10, 2018)

So the motor that I ordered from Norway is finally here. In this short video, I proceed with tearing it down so that I can start to measure if it will be even possible to mate it with the SR6speed gearbox. Enjoy!


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## Dala (Jan 10, 2018)

Last weekend I got the pedal setup figured out on the EVNX, here's a video on how hard it was to fit the Volkswagen Touran drive-by-wire into the car


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## Dala (Jan 10, 2018)

Most of the adapter plate is now complete, check out how I managed with only hand tools


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## MattsAwesomeStuff (Aug 10, 2017)

Dala said:


> Most of the adapter plate is now complete, check out how I managed with only hand tools


0
Of the entire build, this is the one part that requires some actual precision. The motor must be apparently mounted within 0.004" of centre, and also with no angle (so motor and transmission shafts are parallel, not just their tips lined up).

How much, and how hard it is to do that, is up for some debate here. Some are just about adamant that it is impossible for an amateur without a machine shop to machine it accurately enough and you'd be doomed and a fool to even try it yourself. Others say no big deal, just bump it lightly until there's no vibration and you can feel it's perfectly centred. The trick is not whether it works the first time. It'll work, at first. The trick is whether it sheers the shaft off after a thousand km of being flexed just slightly, or attached slightly off-angle. 

I am mostly on the "it's fine, just take your time and be careful" camp, but it will be nice to see if someone using simple hand tools and documenting the entire process will get there.

This is the first half of your adapter plate, I'm quite interested in where you go from here and how you choose to have them aligned.


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## wjbitner (Apr 5, 2010)

MattsAwesomeStuff said:


> Of the entire build, this is the one part that requires some actual precision. The motor must be apparently mounted within 0.04" of centre, and also with no angle (so motor and transmission shafts are parallel, not just their tips lined up).
> 
> How much, and how hard it is to do that, is up for some debate here. Some are just about adamant that it is impossible for an amateur without a machine shop to machine it accurately enough and you'd be doomed and a fool to even try it yourself. Others say no big deal, just bump it lightly until there's no vibration and you can feel it's perfectly centred. The trick is not whether it works the first time. It'll work, at first. The trick is whether it sheers the shaft off after a thousand km of being flexed just slightly, or attached slightly off-angle.
> 
> ...





Dala said:


> Most of the adapter plate is now complete, check out how I managed with only hand tools


Another hand tool that may help with this process is called a 'transfer punch'. The are basically a set of center punches with different size shafts. You pick the shaft size the fits your hole, and get a perfect center mark. This is especially helpful after you have the first hole drilled and want everything else to line up. I enjoy your videos.. 

Bill


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## MattsAwesomeStuff (Aug 10, 2017)

wjbitner said:


> Another hand tool that may help with this process is called a 'transfer punch'.


I was ridiculed here before for suggesting even using transfer punches to mark bolt holes on said adapter plate, let alone final alignment.

I mean, don't let the naysayers and those who sell the services they insist you need to pay for, set the narrative for what has to be done, but, it certainly is important and while transfer punches will get you close, you'll need fine tuning.


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## wjbitner (Apr 5, 2010)

MattsAwesomeStuff said:


> I was ridiculed here before for suggesting even using transfer punches to mark bolt holes on said adapter plate, let alone final alignment.
> 
> I mean, don't let the naysayers and those who sell the services they insist you need to pay for, set the narrative for what has to be done, but, it certainly is important and while transfer punches will get you close, you'll need fine tuning.


Will a transfer punch get you 100% accuracy, no.. Will it _likely_ be better than spray paint and eye-balling the center, yes.. I'm commenting at what I saw. Yes, for those who have more resources, there are better ways.. I like that Dala is using what he has and learning, and unlikely to be deterred with a few failures. I think this is his personal car, so he'll experience the success/failure with regard to any possible longevity issues..


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## MattsAwesomeStuff (Aug 10, 2017)

wjbitner said:


> Yes, for those who have more resources, there are better ways.. I like that Dala is using what he has and learning, and unlikely to be deterred with a few failures.


Let me try that again...

On this specific issue and probably no other on the build, it's a bit of an all-or-nothing proposition. You either get it lined up within 4 thou, or it's going to fail very soon. This is not like, say, bodywork or other things where "it's the best I can do" and the consequences are just that your build is proportionately less nice in that aspect. You have to get this part lined up properly or it fails.

On that, those saying it can't be done are probably closest to the truth.

However, as I said, I'm in the camp of having seen many builds that did this, and heard back that they've never had a failure a decade later. So I think it's perfectly fine to do it yourself, as long as you take care that it's lined up accurately. I don't know that transfer punches are going to get you within 0.004". But if you pick up the slop by using a dial indicator or a vibration test, and drill the dowel pins last and only after it's perfect, I think it's doable.


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## Dala (Jan 10, 2018)

So here is the gameplan. Using 40mm thick rectangular pieces of steel as spacers:









Then we will clock the gearbox in X/Y positions. The end of the shaft coupler has 1.1mm of play in it









I'll post a video of the result at the end of the week


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## Dala (Jan 10, 2018)

Still not got it perfect, need to do some more adjustments with it rotating. But here is where we are at now


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## tylerwatts (Feb 9, 2012)

Hi Dala
Not sure if you have mentioned it, sorry. Why aren't you keeping the whole Leaf transmission rather than messing with the stock NX transmission? Lovely donor choice btw.

Cheers
Tyler


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## Dala (Jan 10, 2018)

tylerwatts said:


> Hi Dala
> Not sure if you have mentioned it, sorry. Why aren't you keeping the whole Leaf transmission rather than messing with the stock NX transmission? Lovely donor choice btw.
> 
> Cheers
> Tyler


Thanks! Cost mainly, but the SR6 gearbox can handle 750whp before shredding the 2nd gear stack, and I plan to run quite high power levels. The driveshafts are much thicker on this gearbox compared to the leaf ones, so I want to future proof on the power aspect of the build. We'll start at 80kW, then try the 110kW inverter, and most likely get a 160kW inverter too. But now I'm getting ahead of myself, I'll post the latest video within a few hours here


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## Dala (Jan 10, 2018)

Here it is!


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## Rusted B&B (Nov 6, 2020)

great job man!


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## Electric Land Cruiser (Dec 30, 2020)

Dala said:


> Thanks! Cost mainly, but the SR6 gearbox can handle 750whp before shredding the 2nd gear stack, and I plan to run quite high power levels. The driveshafts are much thicker on this gearbox compared to the leaf ones, so I want to future proof on the power aspect of the build. We'll start at 80kW, then try the 110kW inverter, and most likely get a 160kW inverter too. But now I'm getting ahead of myself, I'll post the latest video within a few hours here


Are these 110kw and 160kw inverters you speak of off the shelf?


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## Dala (Jan 10, 2018)

Electric Land Cruiser said:


> Are these 110kw and 160kw inverters you speak of off the shelf?


Yeah, standard Nissan LEAF ones! The 2013-2017 is 80kW, the 2018-2021 40kWh LEAF has a 110kW inverter, and the 2019-2021 62kWh has a 160kW inverter. Same motor (EM57), just the inverter that differs between the generations!


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## Electric Land Cruiser (Dec 30, 2020)

Dala said:


> Yeah, standard Nissan LEAF ones! The 2013-2017 is 80kW, the 2018-2021 40kWh LEAF has a 110kW inverter, and the 2019-2021 62kWh has a 160kW inverter. Same motor (EM57), just the inverter that differs between the generations!


Oh duh I guess I should have realized that. Does Thunderstruck or other controllers work with those inverters just the same? Or what is your plan? 160kw sounds mighty good to me!


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## Dala (Jan 10, 2018)

Electric Land Cruiser said:


> Oh duh I guess I should have realized that. Does Thunderstruck or other controllers work with those inverters just the same? Or what is your plan? 160kw sounds mighty good to me!


Thunderstruck feels irrelevant now that we have the Resolve-EV option that retains chademo/6.6kW charger and battery management. I'll be helping Resolve-EV verify their product with more inverters.


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## Electric Land Cruiser (Dec 30, 2020)

Dala said:


> Thunderstruck feels irrelevant now that we have the Resolve-EV option that retains chademo/6.6kW charger and battery management. I'll be helping Resolve-EV verify their product with more inverters.


Looking forward to seeing what you come up with! I love that you are amassing a small Leaf parts empire. I really didn't know about Resolve-EV until your post so you can tell them you've already earned them a new customer, I really do hope it will work with the higher power inverters.


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## Dala (Jan 10, 2018)

Sneak peak on the next episode, making motor mounts!


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## OR-Carl (Oct 6, 2018)

Dala said:


> Here it is!


Hey, nice job on the adapter plate, and thanks for documenting it. The 0.1mm of run-out is 3.9 thousandths of an inch in silly American units - the spec for my transmission is less than 4 thousandths, so I think you probably nailed it  It is nice to see that with a few basic tools, and some patience, you can achieve perfectly acceptable precision. I look forward to seeing it in action, and mark my wager down for 100 Finish Marks that your transmission shaft will go for at least 50,000km


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## Dala (Jan 10, 2018)

Thanks!

Still haven't finished the video, we are going to try and fit all fabrication needed to make the motor sit permanently in the engine bay. Another sneak peak on the axle carrier bracket fabrication progress:


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## Dala (Jan 10, 2018)

It is done! The motor is now finally installed! Took some effort to get the axle bracket figured out, but now we can move on!


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## Dala (Jan 10, 2018)

So now my focus has shifted towards getting the suspension sorted:









And also getting the battery mounted:









Videos on both these topics incoming soon!


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## Dala (Jan 10, 2018)

Suspension is stuck waiting on parts, so here's the progress we made on the battery pack!


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## Dala (Jan 10, 2018)

So I made some progress with the suspension, now we can focus 100% on the battery box!


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## matthew.stead (Jun 8, 2020)

@Dala the Leaf castings are made in Australia hence the Kangaroo


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## Dala (Jan 10, 2018)

We finally got most of the battery mounts figured out, was a bit busy at the shop and had to constantly roll out the NX to make room for customer projects. But now we are back working on this!


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## Dala (Jan 10, 2018)

The high voltage bits are now sorted! Check out the video for the end result. Now we can move on to mounting the VCU and maybe if we're lucky, the first startup will be within 1-2weeks! I am so excited I can hardly sleep at night!


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## matthew.stead (Jun 8, 2020)

Love it. Nice solution for stacked battery.


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## Dala (Jan 10, 2018)

We now have the Resolve EV controller mounted, and the first spin has been performed! Feels so good to see that all the parts are working together as intended!


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## Dala (Jan 10, 2018)

A massive milestone is reached, the car is now moving under its own power!


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## ricbarbour (Jul 28, 2021)

VERY NICE WORK! This is so typical of DIY EV conversions--nothing quite fits and you spend a lot of time making brackets and adapters and changing cabling. Still no "standards" for mechanical fit, and you need a special controller to feed the Leaf electronics what they want.

I saw that earlier discussion about connecting the motor and transmission shafts.
There are some (large) flexible shaft couplings available off-shelf. You don't have to haunt junkyards to find them.

Not "really meant for" EV use, but McMaster has two set-screw models that are rated for 1166 ft-lbs of torque.








McMaster-Carr


McMaster-Carr is the complete source for your plant with over 595,000 products. 98% of products ordered ship from stock and deliver same or next day.




www.mcmaster.com












McMaster-Carr


McMaster-Carr is the complete source for your plant with over 595,000 products. 98% of products ordered ship from stock and deliver same or next day.




www.mcmaster.com




Plus some models for SAE-standard spline shafts.








McMaster-Carr


McMaster-Carr is the complete source for your plant with over 595,000 products. 98% of products ordered ship from stock and deliver same or next day.




www.mcmaster.com




And splined-to-keyed couplings








McMaster-Carr


McMaster-Carr is the complete source for your plant with over 595,000 products. 98% of products ordered ship from stock and deliver same or next day.




www.mcmaster.com




And rigid shaft-to-shaft couplings for really high torque








McMaster-Carr


McMaster-Carr is the complete source for your plant with over 595,000 products. 98% of products ordered ship from stock and deliver same or next day.




www.mcmaster.com





If you don't have a machine shop or know a friendly machinist these could be useful for EV conversions.

Dala, if you were here in California, you would have all the Leafs you wanted for parts. Or even for battery upgrade. In the SF bay area, homeland of Tesla, Nissan dealers sold a LOT of Leafs to people who can't afford a Tesla. Gen-1 Leafs in excellent drivable condition sometimes sell for less than $6000 here because the battery pack is getting old and weak. Nissan charges about $15k for new gen-1 packs, and even more for larger packs (and putting them in a gen-1 Leaf is difficult, as you know, it requires special adapters). So people just get rid of the cars.


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## Dala (Jan 10, 2018)

Made a quick video on how to update the software on the Resolve EV controller


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## Dala (Jan 10, 2018)

I've been working a bit on the EVNX during my summer vacation. Getting closer and closer to getting it road-legal!


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