# I want to build an 100 mile range EV



## Bowser330 (Jun 15, 2008)

medubose said:


> I have a 45 mile one way to work every day. I must be able to do interstate hwy speeds.
> 
> I am looking for a frame to start with because I want to create the body myself. Something light with good handing and easy to find parts for. Any suggestions?
> 
> ...


For frames you could look at hotrod/racecar shops or even kit car builders, some that build their own frames, e.g. locostusa.com, etc.

Think about your wh/mile the same as you would think about your "mpg", the average EV (average weight, average aero) probably uses about 300wh/mile on average, with aerodynamic improvements you could possibly keep it at 300wh/mile when traveling up to highway speeds...

so if you consume 300wh/mile then for 100mile range +20% buffer = 120mile range = 36,000wh or 36kwh.

Possible setups:
*DC*
Motor: Warp11HV ($3500)
Controller: Zilla2KEHV (400Vmax) ($5,000)
Batteries: CalbCA 100AH (10C max = 1000A)
109cells in series = 360Vnom * 100AH = 36kwh (818lbs)~$14,000


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## jeremyjs (Sep 22, 2010)

medubose said:


> I have a 45 mile one way to work every day. I must be able to do interstate hwy speeds.
> 
> I am looking for a frame to start with because I want to create the body myself. Something light with good handing and easy to find parts for. Any suggestions?
> 
> ...


I'd either look for a kit car or a descent economy car for the roller. The bigger you go the more everything is going to cost. 

You could do a hybrid, but the cost and engineering of all the components and fitting them in the car is going to make it prohibitively expensive. Not impossible mind you. Just much more difficult and expensive.

I would forget about designing a pack using the batteries Tesla uses. They spent a *lot* of money engineering a pack to take advantage of the lithium cobalt cells. Lithium cobalt batteries are very finicky. Basically they're prone to thermal runaway and NEED to have their temps carefully controlled, they have a much shorter lifespan than LiFePO4, and if you don't engineer the pack well enough it will burn your car and anything else around it to the ground. You can do the same with lifepo4 if you don't treat them right, but it's much harder.

100 miles is very doable with lithium iron phosphate cells. 150 has been done, but the vehicle starts getting portly.

Generally take the approximate finished weight of the vehicle and divide it by 10x to get your w/h per mile and multiply that by the desired number of miles between charges. Build a pack 20% larger than this for some cushion so you're not always running them near flat, which isn't terribly good for the cells, and potentially ruining them if you run a cell into reversal.

That's all I got. Others are much more knowledgeable and experienced than me, but this should help you get started.


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## dtbaker (Jan 5, 2008)

medubose said:


> I have a 45 mile one way to work every day. I must be able to do interstate hwy speeds.
> 
> I am looking for a frame to start with because I want to create the body myself. Something light with good handing and easy to find parts for. Any suggestions?
> 
> ...



wow.. lots going on here.

first, DIY hybrid is crazy complicated, give that up and simplify. second, why start with a JEEP frame if you want something aero, and tie yourself in to a TON of custom work for a body? Pick something already aero, and fill it up w/ 156v worth of 200 ah cells! Or, consider ac-50 buid if yo have that much highway.

Why pick high end batteries? why not go with large format LiFePO4 prismatics?


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## evmetro (Apr 9, 2012)

Yea, I would look towards a lightweight commuter. Weight is critical when going for range. Load as much lithium as you can pack into it... I am converting a metro right now for the same reason. Not sure if I will make the 100one miles, but I was able to pack in 21kwh without having any evidence on the interior that it is an ev. The other thing you may want to do is spend all your free time studying these forums and the wiki here. No kidding... I spent months, and I still have a lot of questions. As for the hybrid thing, I won't get into it here, but I invite you to check out my thoughts on hybrids on the alternators and perpetual motion thread. I think i left my two cents somewhere around page 60.


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## medubose (Jul 13, 2010)

Thanks.......WOW A lot to digest.

I was looking at the jeep frame because I want to build something that looks different than anything else on the road.

Now I am looking at a VW pan or sand rail. I just purchased a welder and some other equipment. 

I don't want to spend 20K to build it......I may as well buy a new one. 

I enough background in computers, electronics, electrical and fabrication hopefully to put to good use I hope…….

Thanks again for the great feedback ……I think need to do a lot more reading before I go much farther.


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## cts_casemod (Aug 23, 2012)

You haven’t specified if you can or not charge at work. If you cant a 100 miles range EV wont be enough to do 45Miles (90!) each way.
You need to add at least 50% more capacity, so if you need 90 you HAVE to account for 140, reason being you will have extra loads on the car such as power steering, vacuum, lights on the night, heating and some reserve just in case a road is cut or something abnormal happens and you need to change your route.
Also, keep in mind that batteries have a reduced capacity in cold weather. Considering you take 1 hour each way on your journey adds up to maybe 4 to 6KW on heating and lights, so your capacity is reduced even further.
As someone said this would have quite a high cost. You could use an on-board generator to assist the electric motor on highway or recharge the batteries when stationary if you have an AC motor.
20k USD seems like a good deal for what you want to do. Your batteries alone will be about 10k and don’t forget to account for the BMS as they are quite expensive.
I am converting a car and can tell you its not that straightforward. Once you start converting you realise all the stuff that needs to be done and the time involved on the project. Most important safety. I have seen conversions that look terrible. They do work, but are they safe if something goes wrong? 8 out of 10 A DC Motor IS way more powerful than your brakes.
All the extra details cost you money and time. Allow plenty f it. Think and re-thing again.
If you wish to buy stuff already made like adapter plates you can save some time, but that comes with a price to add up.


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