# Classic Mini EV Conversion (Theoretical)



## Kureigu (May 29, 2009)

Hello all.

I'm new here, but have been looking over many posts for the past couple months.
One in particular caught my eye http://www.diyelectriccar.com/forums/showthread.php/planning-old-70s-mini-conversion-19308.html.

My father jokingly said about a year ago that he wouldn't mind making an electric mini, and i thought that wouldn't be a bad idea.

If I were to go ahead with the build, I wouldn't be as ambitious as Behn "behen".
Due to where I currently reside, I would only need a range of around 20miles. As for the max speed, although there are a number of roads that permit 60mph, and one allowing 70, I believe I could comfortably live with 50mph, or maybe even 40...

Obviously I would love to bomb it down a country lane at 100mph, but that's just not practical with this build.

So on with some details;
Kerb weight: 617 to 686 kg
Range: 20 miles
Top Speed: 50mph

Later I'll try to work out the weight with the removal of all unnecessary parts.
Also I was thinking of shortening the mini, removing the rear seats and shortening it by that length. A few people have done this before. The reason for me wanting to do this is two fold, one; a slight weight reduction, and two; I believe a shortened electric mini would be a world first.

As for the transmission I was thinking of something like a Peugeot 106 4 gear system. I have no idea if it'll work, I'll need to do some research.

For such a vehicle I think that a 144v system would be more than adequate, however this is one of the areas I need your input on.

Between my dad, my brother, and myself, we could do the vast majority, if not all of the fabrication and electronics.

So really what I'm asking for is your thoughts, and suggestions

Thanks for reading,
Craig (Kureigu)


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## Guest (May 29, 2009)

The mini would be fine but you will find that the engine/transmission setup is unique. It will not be your normal adaptor to engine. The other thing is DO NOT shorten the little beast. The original Mini's are so damn short as it is you will be taking battery room that you will need. The Mini is also a very light weight vehicle from the start and you will not find much use in removing items. You might get one or two batteries worth of weight out maybe. It would help but not by much. Weight reduction is not as much of an issue as is wind resistance and tire resistance. 

Pete 

For a first EV I'd start with something easier. My opinion. If your set on the Mini then go for it. Convert something you want to drive. Ever driven a Mini? I have. My opinion, they are best left as an ICE powered vehicle. I owned a 62 Mini Cooper with the 850 cc engine side mounted front wheel drive with dual SU carbs. Damn thing was quick and fast and agile as all get out. Go Cart for the Street. Best mileage was 52 mpg and best top speed was 95 mph with two big guys in it.


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## Kureigu (May 29, 2009)

Hi.

I'm looking at the Mini at the moment mainly because I have one almost completely stripped out sat on my drive collecting dust, or is it rust...

I do really like the Mini, but what would you suggest for a newbie? What is a small, light, easy to convert, and cheap car that can be bought in the UK?

Cheers,
Craig (Kureigu).


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## Guest (May 29, 2009)

Kureigu said:


> Hi.
> 
> I'm looking at the Mini at the moment mainly because I have one almost completely stripped out sat on my drive collecting dust, or is it rust...
> 
> ...



Well heck, you already have one ready to go. I'd then use that since it looks like it will not be use with an ICE anytime soon. Did you have a look at some photos of how someone did the motror/trans setup? It is unique but not an impossible feat. More like you need to work with what you have type of issue. You may not have range but you sure could get the speed using 12 batteries rather than 6 volt batteries. Do some looking around at previous Mini conversions and get your thinking cap on and go for it. Since you already have a vehicle there is no need to spend more on another one cheap or not. I was thinking old VW like mine but since you have yours the go for it. I thought of the mini myself but decided not to go that route as I'd have to buy one and out here they are very hard to find. So I chose the VW which was an easy thing to do. 

http://greenev.zapto.org/electricvw

Pete


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## Guest (May 29, 2009)

Here are some links just so you know you are not alone converting a MINI. 


http://www.killawatt-electric-car-conversions.com/electric-mini.html

http://www.evalbum.com/2407

http://www.evalbum.com/1715

http://www.evalbum.com/254


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## MalcolmB (Jun 10, 2008)

Hi Craig
Good to see someone else considering a mini conversion. It's not the easiest car to convert, just because of the lack of space, but despite that I think the result will be well worth it if you can pull it off. The Killawatt conversion that Gottdi linked to is probably the most straightforward approach. The site hasn't been updated for a while but you could always email him to find out how things are going.

The Peugeot 106 box looks similar in size to the Suzuki Swift box, but I've no idea how suitable it is for adapting. Four gears is certainly ample though.

I'd also advise against shortening the mini, it may look cute, but I can't see it doing anything for the handling, and the weight saving would be minimal.

My own mini conversion is on hold at the moment as I got sidetracked by upgrading my motorbike from lead acid to lithium. I've also decided to save up for decent-sized battery pack for the mini rather than the short-range pack I originally intended. No point in half measures


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## Kureigu (May 29, 2009)

Thank you all for your advice and information so far.

I wanted to shorten to make it unique, but under advisment I will not shorten it, it'll make things easier at the very least.

As for the trans, i only said the 106 as an idea, because I thought it would be about the right size. There are always swifts in my local breakers, so i'll most likey use that as its proven to work.

One of the links provided show a conversion using a 6.7" dia motor (at least thats how i read it), and even that produces my desired speed. But what would you guys suggest?

Craig (Kureigu).


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## Guest (May 30, 2009)

We have started a conversion of a 2009 Mini Cooper Clubman. As this is a newer model, we're finding it pretty complex. We just removed the fuel system and there must have been a dozen connections to the fuel tank. Apparently they don't want any of those nasty vapors to escape.

We are filming the process and that slows things down quite a bit.

Jack Rickard
http://evtv.me


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## sherry1 (Apr 22, 2010)

An electric vehicle conversion is the modification of a conventional internal combustion engine vehicle to electric propulsion, creating an all-electric or plug-in hybrid electric vehicle. Solar cells could be used to power a vehicle converted to electric. However, currently the relatively small power generated by solar cells means that the other components in the system must be special to compensate for this. For example, the body of even a small conventional car converted to electric is still rather too heavy to be able to be matched with an electric system that is solely or primarily charged by solar power. Thus, it is usually more practical to create a solar-powered electric vehicle from scratch or specially made parts.


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## linz (May 18, 2008)

Have a look at this one too-
http://carrott.org/cgi-bin/twiki/view/ElectricMini/WebHome

"I've now got an old stock reconditioned Mitsubishi Mirage gearbox from the early 80's. It's got 4 gears plus overdrive and input shaft doesn't need to be supported by the motor. The box & motor just fit with no modifications to the subframe."


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