# Off road buggy to EV



## brian_ (Feb 7, 2017)

Madmart132 said:


> It will be used on a farm in Spain there is no mains electric so recharging will be by solar panels hence the lead acid batteries


I don't understand the logic - why does the use of solar panels mean that lead-acid batteries must be used?


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## Madmart132 (Nov 10, 2019)

I also want to keep things simple , I don't need anything with fancy charge cycles expensive cost or anything like that . I can also purchase truck batteries for 150 euros .


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## brian_ (Feb 7, 2017)

Madmart132 said:


> I also want to keep things simple , I don't need anything with fancy charge cycles expensive cost or anything like that . I can also purchase truck batteries for 150 euros .


Those goals and limitations make sense - they just have nothing to do with the solar power source.

The charging profile of a lithium-ion battery is simpler than that of a lead-acid battery, but chargers for lead-acid are readily available.


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## Madmart132 (Nov 10, 2019)

Thanks Brian do you have any advice on the conversion ?


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## tylerwatts (Feb 9, 2012)

Hi Madmart
How will you keep differential of your kart? Or does it have a solid axle? Photos will help. I've looked at these before and the motor mounting can be simple if it's just a solid axle but you might need a new axle. 

Go kart parts are ideal for this but not cheap. Maybe you could salvage a small Quad axle and mount the motor to the swingarm. Look at Firehunter quad on here, I'll try find his build thread. Search electric quad.

Truck batteries might work but I doubt you will achieve your range off road with them. Salvage batteries are best value, maybe buy some Leaf modules as these are very robust and easy to package, plus used by many so charging should be easy.

Good luck with it.

Sent from my moto g(7) plus using Tapatalk


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## tylerwatts (Feb 9, 2012)

Hello again Madmart, didn't realise I replied to your other thread, sorry.

Any pics or progress?

Cheers
Tyler


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## Madmart132 (Nov 10, 2019)

Hi Tyler I will try to post photos tomorrow there is plenty of space for 2 batteries I will take some photos tomorrow and workout how to upload them to the thread


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## tylerwatts (Feb 9, 2012)

Did you manage to get the photos then?

Cheers
Tyler


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## Madmart132 (Nov 10, 2019)

Hi Tyler thanks for getting back to me , due to weather work and kids took a while to get the photos 
The photos are a bit rubbish but the basics are there , I want to remove engine and transmission and fuel tank , and make a base for batteries where petrol tank is


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## brian_ (Feb 7, 2017)

tylerwatts said:


> How will you keep differential of your kart? Or does it have a solid axle? Photos will help. I've looked at these before and the motor mounting can be simple if it's just a solid axle but you might need a new axle.


It appears that this kart has independent rear suspension by trailing arms, with drive chains running the hubs from a jackshaft on the suspension pivot axis... and no differential. The motor can chain-drive the jackshaft, mounted parallel to the jackshaft anywhere along its length.



Madmart132 said:


> ... I want to remove engine and transmission and fuel tank , and make a base for batteries where petrol tank is


The petrol tank is above the engine. Presumably you intend to mount the motor in roughly the engine location, and the battery above that. That's really high for the mass of the battery, especially with lead. Can you mount the motor above the jackshaft and the battery as low as possible, behind instead of on top of the motor?

The plan is apparently for two 12 V, 200+ Ah lead acid batteries - that would typically mean two 4D-size batteries, which will weigh 60 kg each.



tylerwatts said:


> Look at Firehunter quad on here, I'll try find his build thread.


The format of vehicle is closer to _electro bom_'s _DC powered mini buggy_, now for sale by _adriftatsea_, but using the passenger seat space for battery (a great idea for keeping the mass low and providing lots of battery room) might not work for others.

I assume that this is the quad:
_Road Legal StreetQuad conversion_
The images in that thread are no longer properly visible due to changes by the Photobucket image hosting service... which is why build threads should post their images directly to DIYElectricCar, not link to external hosting services.


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## Madmart132 (Nov 10, 2019)

I have not got to the nitty gritty of where to fit batteries yet just thinking aloud !!
Do you think a Forklift motor would do the trick ? Plenty of Forklift repair shops near to me in UK they see to be in the 8-10 KW power bracket as well not sure if I can get away with any less power as loaded the buggy will be around 500kgs


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## tylerwatts (Feb 9, 2012)

Hi Madmart

Ok I recognise this buggy design. In your last image I see the motor drive shaft entering the separate differential housing. I would cut this off and fit a coupler to your electric motor here. Fortunately the chain final drive means you can change ratios easily to suit your motor. Personally I'd try to change to belt drive for cleanliness, maintenance and noise but that might be costly to start with.

Mount batteries where the engine is, not the tank. Keep weight low but also not too far back.

A forklift motor will be fine, I'd estimate something 10-15kw rated then follow the thread to upgrade it for ev use.

Depending on the rest of the layout and the types of batteries you use, I'd try out some of the battery further forward, under front seats or even in the front if there is a reasonable amount of space.

When you get chance to take more pictures we can talk you through this further.

Thanks @brian_ for posting the Firehuntah thread, that's the one. Though it won't help slot now I see this design.

Cheers
Tyler


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## brian_ (Feb 7, 2017)

tylerwatts said:


> Ok I recognise this buggy design. In your last image I see the motor drive shaft entering the separate differential housing.


Good catch - I didn't realize that the drop box contained a differential - that's better. 



tylerwatts said:


> Depending on the rest of the layout and the types of batteries you use, I'd try out some of the battery further forward, under front seats or even in the front if there is a reasonable amount of space.


I agree, but it seems unlikely that there will be enough space in those places if the configuration of two 12V/200+Ah batteries is used. A 4D, for example, is about 20-3/4" (527 mm) long by 8-3/4" (222 mm) wide by 9-7/8" (251 mm) tall. Perhaps - assuming the same 24 V (nominal) lead-acid choice - four 6V/200 Ah (e.g. GC2 size) batteries would allow more mounting flexibility, with one of them up front.


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## heggzzz (May 11, 2021)

Hello, I have only just joined this forum. 

I am planning on doing the exact same build, I'm pretty sure my buggy is the exact same! (Mine is a lot rustier haha) I'll be using 4 120ah deep cycles (I already have them from another project).

How did everything go with your build? 

I'm curious to know what motor I could get away with using from ebay? the application I'm using the buggy for needs only to go at walking speed or even a slow jog at max, I'll just need more torque than anything else.

Any help is appreciated.


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