# what's the best electric motor to race with?



## Duncan (Dec 8, 2008)

How long is a piece of string?

Need more data - 

Depends on budget but cheapest lots of go would be a big DC motor, ADC or Warp or Kostov

Or cheapest of all ex-fork lift


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## Bowser330 (Jun 15, 2008)

Duncan said:


> How long is a piece of string?
> 
> Need more data -
> 
> ...


+1, Need more information...

Kostov 11 or Warp11HV would be my choice... (w/forced air cooling)

Then get 300V and 1000A(peak) of lightweight lithium (Headway or A123 cells)

Then get a 1000A+ capable controller (water cooling if racing)

Have a fun race-


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## The Toecutter (May 30, 2010)

What kind of racing are you going to be doing, what kind of vehicle do you intend to race, and how much are you willing to spend?


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## TX_Dj (Jul 25, 2008)

> what's the best electric motor to race with?


The short answer? The one that fits your application and design criteria.


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## TomA (Mar 26, 2009)

leadpe said:


> ...what are the best motors to use for a daily driver/dragster...


Hey leadpe:

You might be thinking seriously about this question, but it doesn't really land like a serious question the way you asked it. 

I know a couple of guys who have driven serious street/strip machines as often as they could, almost every day even, and an EV in that configuration surely is _far_ more practical on the street than a similar ICEV, but the question is still pretty oxymoronic:

"Daily Driver/Dragster" doesn't suggest a very good set of compromises...

TomA


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## EVfun (Mar 14, 2010)

I suggest using what a couple of fastest streetable race EVs are running...

The White Zombie runs a pair of ADC 8 inch motors and a Zilla Z1K-EHV
Crazy Horse Pinto runs a pair of WarP 9 inch motors and a Zilla Z1K-EHV

If I wanted to go real fast I would want a pair of 100 to 150 lb. motors and a monster Zilla.


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## Qer (May 7, 2008)

EVfun said:


> The White Zombie runs a pair of ADC 8 inch motors and a Zilla Z1K-EHV
> Crazy Horse Pinto runs a pair of WarP 9 inch motors and a Zilla Z1K-EHV


Um. Don't you mean Z2K?


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## Bowser330 (Jun 15, 2008)

Qer said:


> Um. Don't you mean Z2K?


Yep you are correct Qer.

Johns really pushing the envelope with daily driver and dragster...with his new 25kwh pack of kokam lithium polymer batteries, he will be getting 100+ mile range while being able to pull 2.7 sec 0-60's and 1/4 mile in the 10's(projected)...Headways could be subbed for kokams and could deliver comparable performance (as he is only expected to dial in the kokams @ 50%)


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## EVfun (Mar 14, 2010)

Qer said:


> Um. Don't you mean Z2K?


Of course  After all, the only substitute for power is MORE power!


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## toddshotrods (Feb 10, 2009)

TomA said:


> ..."Daily Driver/Dragster" doesn't suggest a very good set of compromises...
> 
> TomA


Compromise is relative though. I regularly drive vehicles (including my current daily driver) with 3-inches of ground clearance. I've been doing it for so long (couple decades) that it's normal to me now. I rode street-legal dragbikes (stretched 6-8 inches, sometimes with a "hardtail" rear end) for many years daily.

I can understand why a lot of people would consider a "dragster" to be intolerable for a daily driver, but also get why many people like me might enjoy it. We're all so spoiled. I'll bet the White Zombie rides like a Cadillac compared to an original Model T!  You don't have to risk breaking your arm to start it either.


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## ewdysar (Jun 15, 2010)

toddshotrods said:


> .... I'll bet the White Zombie rides like a Cadillac compared to an original Model T!  You don't have to risk breaking your arm to start it either.


While this response is off-topic, I can't resist.

It turns out that Model T's have a surprisingly soft ride, albeit a pretty loose one. With no shock absorbers, they're a little bouncy. And the trick to not breaking your arm when starting one is to always move the spark advance lever on the steering wheel, the one opposite of the throttle lever, to full retard before cranking the engine. Also, don't wrap your thumb around the crank handle so that it can kick free, just in case you forgot the first step. My 1915 Model T Touring hasn't broken my arm or thumb..... yet. I'm actually thinking of retrofitting the late (mid to late 1920's) Model T electric starter for cold starts, warm starts are typically only one pull.

I now return you to your regularly scheduled conversation. 

Eric


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## toddshotrods (Feb 10, 2009)

ewdysar said:


> ...It turns out that Model T's have a surprisingly soft ride...


I would have bet $100 that someone was going to say something about that. I started to use a horse and buggy instead but didn't want to wake some old settler up from their grave to dispute me. 

I thought since I was building a thoroughly modern representation of a Model T that I might get away with it - guess not! 




ewdysar said:


> ...the spark advance lever on the steering wheel, the one opposite of the throttle lever, to full retard before cranking the engine...


If you have any good pictures of that, could you PM me? I have an idea of how I want to capture the essence of that in my CAD/CNC steering "masterpiece", but haven't found any pictures that give me a good enough idea of what the stock setup looked like.





ewdysar said:


> While this response is off-topic... I now return you to your regularly scheduled conversation...


^^^What he said, and sorry for the hijack.


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## specialprojectengineer (May 31, 2010)

You might try the nedra website (nedra=national electric drag racing association)


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## ewdysar (Jun 15, 2010)

ewdysar said:


> While this response is off-topic, I can't resist.
> 
> It turns out that Model T's have a surprisingly soft ride, albeit a pretty loose one. With no shock absorbers, they're a little bouncy. And the trick to not breaking your arm when starting one is to always move the spark advance lever on the steering wheel, the one opposite of the throttle lever, to full retard before cranking the engine....
> 
> Eric





findcarparts said:


> Without shock absorbers, are a bit unstable. And what is not broken his arm when you start is always a shift lever spark advance on the wheel at the opposite ends of the throttle to slow its entirety before starting the engine.


"Imitation is the sincerest form of flattery." (Charles Caleb Colton,1820). I guess I should be flattered... again  

Eric


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