# ford puma conversion help



## dtbaker (Jan 5, 2008)

tomcameron said:


> i want the car to go around 80mph and with a 50 to 60 mile range.


very doable... you'll need at least 120v worth (38) of 100ah LiFePO4 like CALB or Winston cells, and be more comfortable with range if you can bump that up to 144v x 160ah. You'll probably want to look closely at 9" DC motor like the Warp9, and stout controller like the Soliton Jr if you intend extended highway miles.




tomcameron said:


> im thinking of going AC because i only have an automatic licence because i have a disabilty. so im looking for a one speed with no cluch


you don't really NEED a clutch to use a transmission in an EV. from a stop you can just put it in gear since nothing is turning... between gears you CAN shift without a clutch if you rely on the syncro, and it is made easier if you lighten the flywheel and/or go with a clutchless design adaptor. Going AC is certainly an option, but will still require a transmission to work well from 0-80mph. You CAN use an automatic transmission, but it is a little more complex to get it to shift correctly after conversion, and you need a controller that can provide an 'idle' at stop (like the soliton) unless you modify the transmission guts.






tomcameron said:


> i think having a kit would help me alot because i could save some money by buying it as a set, as im going to buy all the components eventually.
> 
> thanks


if you buy at least the 'big stuff' (motor, controller, charger) all at once from a single vendor you probably can get a discount, and save on shipping... the other misc pieces may or may not all be available from the same vendor.


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## tomcameron (Sep 24, 2011)

I would like to go AC because they have a higher RPM to allow me to have a single speed gear. I know AC is more expensive than DC, but it’s more efficient with energy so I can expect to get more range per charge.
The batteries are heavy and the most expensive part of the project and have to be replaced when they are used up. 
For me it would be better to have a more efficient system, and maybe lose a battery or two that would equal the same performance than a DC system? 
So now I need to know, what AC motor is best for my ford puma?
Thank you for the help


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## tomofreno (Mar 3, 2009)

Do you want 50 to 60 mile range at 80 mph? If so it will require a fairly large battery pack, maybe 30kWh or larger. Even with AC you will require at least 2 speeds to get to 80 mph unless you are satisfied with using a higher gear ratio and having slower acceleration. In my car I would have to use third gear, which would make for very slow acceleration. If I used second gear it would be at about 9000 rpm at 80 mph, which I think most transmissions aren't designed to handle regularly. Most motors don't have much torque at that rpm either.


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## dtbaker (Jan 5, 2008)

exactly... you are going to need AT LEAST 2 gears to get decent accel and highway speed. you can go clutchless.... or consider a 'tiptronic' version of shifting.... perhaps with a motorcycle transmission! I hve been thinking about learning more about some of the larger motorcycles like a Honda goldwing or something that can handle the torque, but basically could have a custom tiptronic transmission linkage.....


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## tomcameron (Sep 24, 2011)

im planing to look into more adaptive driving lever controls that could allow me to use different gears 

http://www.autochair.co.uk/store/hand-controls-and-driving-aids/push-pull-hand-controls

thanks for the help but I mite have to come back to this thread for later. you see i cant use my right hand when driving because im disabled so i use one of these (picture attachment). any ideas for solutions would be great, thanks.


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## gwvanduin68 (Jun 8, 2013)

Nice project I've seen it at Project Puma, would love to electric Power my own Puma 2


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## tomcameron (Sep 24, 2011)

almost forgot about this thread, about the time when i bought the car

yea thats me on project puma. i like to get all the advise i can get. from both forms 

for those who hasnt seen it yet
http://www.projectpuma.com/viewtopic.php?f=64&t=16931&start=25


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