# [EVDL] Donor truck questions



## EVDL List (Jul 27, 2007)

What are the Pros and Cons of using a 4x4 for a conversion? and
ditto on the S-10 Blazer vs S-10 pickup? Ideally what I'd like to
find is an extended cab or a crew cab even better - but I suspect
that those might work, they would be as good as something with less
cab and more bed for battery placement etc.
I'm finding some interesting S-10s (fairly recent years, 1995- 2003
or so) that I'm thinking of acquiring as a replacement donor to the
'86 I bought and abused and is not longer appropriate for the task.
Among the prospective donors are some nice looking 4x4s which I'm
thinking are less that perfect for what I'm planning. I thought
mehbeh a 4x4 would lend itself to a 4 motor (motor / wheel) strategy,
but on thinking this thru further, probably a two motor set up (one
motor for front wheels and one for rear wheels, might be more
realistic.)

Another quandry is in looking for a donor with a weak, or dead engine,
I find more people that claim to have just spent a bundle on new parts
to the ICE lolz
I will try and be patient about this, as this time I want to get it
right.... anybody in the market for a cheap 86 S-10 with cracked
windshield, a few minor dents etc??

TIA 

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## EVDL List (Jul 27, 2007)

Back in 1990 when I began my EV conversion fact finding quest, it was a
different time and the components available were of an older generation,
but if I were to get a used or have built for me another conversion, I
would have the same close the same EV driving needs. These needs vary
with each driver and you need to know what yours will be for the next 5
to 10 years of driving your EV conversion. Then your baby will suit your
driving needs most of the time.

In my case, I physically needed a larger donor vehicle because of the
body God gave me (my 17EEEE shoe can cover all three pedals on a VW
Rabbit). So, I was looking at either a light truck or Blazer/Bronco type
of donor (a smallish big vehicle). If I got a sedan, I would need to
beef up the suspension and brakes, whereas a truck or Blazer built on a
truck chassis would already have that.

Back then, a standard S-10 cab was a tight fit for my long lanky legs
(imagine my knees up in the air on either side of my face while
driving). There were few king cabs that did not offer much more room.
But a Blazer did. Also, my EV driving needs was to promote EVs, so I
needed the additional passenger space to give rides at EVents/shows.

Today, light trucks have much more leg room, and I do not have that same
need to promote EVs as in the 1990's, because 2010+ Production EVs can
easily be bought (all us EVangels did so good a job, I am not needed to
run around banging the EV-gong anymore. Good job everyone!).

So, today I might choose a truck instead of a Blazer. Along with enough
leg room, I would want to have a long-bed, so I could put a shell on it.
That would allow me to not only carry and secure items in the back, but
if on a long trip, & only had slow level-1 charging was available, I
could crawl in the back and take a nap to kill some time. That last bit
would have been nice on the many long trips I took in my S-10 Blazer
conversion (trying to sleep in the seat was not fun).

The truck allows you to place your racks below the bed, and put a
tilt-bed mechanism on it so you will have easy access for pack
maintenance. 

The Blazer was heavier than the truck (more metal), so that was a
disadvantage for being able to carry more people.

A friend gave me the good idea to go to an auto dismantler rather than
buying a donor with a weak/dead engine. It was a very sound idea, as I
got exactly what I wanted for much less than a used vehicle.

Then and now, I still have no need for a 4x4. For me, a 4x4 drive train
wastes too much range, when a 2wd fits my driving needs fine.

I had them make (out of 5 vehicles) an ice-less 1985 2wd 2 door Blazer,
4 speed manual transmission, and manual steering (& of the other junk
that would have had to be removed). Later, I found I had too high a
differential gear-ratio and had that changed out.

Today, I would have chosen a 2wd light truck leg bed, 5 speed manual
transmission, power steering, and I would have asked for the second to
the lowest differential gear-ratio because no matter what I drive (EV or
not) my normal cruising speed is 55 mph (yea that is me you are flipping
the bird to in the far right lane).

So you need to decide how many passengers you need to haul around most
of the time, and all your other EV driving needs before deciding. 
I hope the above helps.


{brucedp.150m.com}



-


> Stand Culp wrote:
> > What are the Pros and Cons of using a 4x4 for a conversion? and
> > ditto on the S-10 Blazer vs S-10 pickup? Ideally what I'd like to
> > find is an extended cab or a crew cab even better - but I suspect
> ...


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## EVDL List (Jul 27, 2007)

Bruce offers good advice. Think about what you really need. Passengers vs
no passengers? Cargo bed flexibility vs covered carrying capacity?
Regular roads vs. off-road?

Like Bruce I'm not sure about the 4 X 4 issue other than it seems too
complicated for my taste. I've never owned one and I have no aspirations
for off road use. The extra battery weight from lead helps a lot with
traction here in Idaho in winter. If you're going with lithium that
advantage will be lost.

I do drive an S-10 conversion and it is a decent platform. Like most trucks
out there it has the aerodynamics of a brick and with lead it has the
acceleration of a garbage truck but it gets the job done. I doubt the
Blazer offers any advantage in either of those - in fact Bruce makes a good
point about the extra weight of the Blazer that I had not considered.

I chose the truck over the Blazer because I wanted the cargo flexibility
(i.e., being able to carry big things like a couch or building supplies
from the home center). Being able to bury the batteries under the bed
allows you to have full bed capacity - I may yet do that. For now I have
installed a "bed extender".

The one thing I would do differently is (if you choose the truck) get an
extended cab version. Having that extra space behind the seat would be
really handy. It's not a big deal for me though, as I drive solo most of
the time.

btw - if you go with an S-10 be careful about the motor mounts. Talk to
the guys at CAN-EV about "torque straps".

- Peter Flipsen Jr
http://www.evalbum.com/3739





On Sun, Jul 8, 2012 at 10:22 PM, Bruce EVangel Parmenter <


> [email protected]> wrote:
> 
> > Back in 1990 when I began my EV conversion fact finding quest, it was a
> > different time and the components available were of an older generation,
> ...


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## EVDL List (Jul 27, 2007)

Bruce and slpinfoprof:

Thanks to both of you on your input 
Before I get started on that though, I'd like to underscore the info
in the discussion list help page: I couldn't see my post, and after
waiting awhile I checked out the help page and logged into the site
and went to the Archive, and then could see it !! So, anyone having
that problem, the Archive is yer solution.

Now, on the S-10 thingz: I've pretty much decided on a fairly recent
year S-10 pickup, extended cab 2 wheel drive.
The factors I take into consideration to reach that conclusion are: I
want the batteries under the bed (and the idea of the tilt bed for
easy service access to the battery packs is awesome kewel, and clever
as sliced bread. I can put a guitar in the extra room inside the cab
and even a small amplifier. The bed will be handy for those trips to
the small box supply stores, plumbing electrical outfit. I try to
avoid the big box places like home depot and lowes, as everything in
there is made in China  whereas Grover's stocks a lot of legacy
things made in the good old USA! (excuse the soapbox on buying
domestic: jobs here etc., as important to me as going green and
boycotting the oil companies lol
Another thing I thought of in regards to the 4x4 issue, aside from the
complexity the added weight of those extra linkages, gears, etc., as
well as the loss of efficiency with all those parts between the motor
and the wheels. I'm not big on offroad fun these days anyway.
The one thing that Bruce mentioned that I am really liking and will
have to do some research on, is NOT buying a running used donor, but
seeing what I can find at the salvage places on something newer, but
without the pieces I'd need to remove anyway, and then a way to get
rid of that ICE metal.

On the batteries, I decided to go AGMs in my new Elec-Trak mower, as
the die hard deep cycles are gettin pretty anemic. But, though I was
thinking of going similarly in the S-10 conversion - we seldom get
snow in town here, and the added traction weight with Lead Acid, isn't
really an advantage for my situation, and more range is something I'd
like to maximize, so, I need to do some heavy research in lighter
battery tech like Lith-Ion or similar battery packs.
Even though it will add a bit more weight, I really want the luxury
things like power windows/locks. On passengers, one is enuf !!
I really am serious about gettin a low profile canopy (same height as
the cab) or a tonneau cover.
I may go so far as to take the bed off and make something lighter, to
also try and increase that range factor as much as possible. But,
that's for the fine-tuning dept., after I have everything else running
and charging smoothly....
The sound system in one of my cars now is a radio/CD player, which
has to suck a lotta juice, and thinkin MP3 would be a better way to
go. Good speakers etc. are also a weight issue though. So, I'm gonna
need to do some research in that area too. Some of this seems kinda
nitpicking and superficial in a sense, but it's part of the big
picture. Luxury, but practicality too. Range is a big deal, but
fortunately, across the river (in Portland, Ore) they're putting in
more recharging stations for electric vehicles, and there's quite a
few of them already.

Oh, another option, but with the same prefered parameters: finding
someone fairly local that has this already converted that would give
it to me, lol. Well, I could buy it too I guess. Or if I can find
someone that likes tinkerin with this stuff, have them make it for
me.... I'd rather be playing rock n roll  and last but not
least, I'll need a new bumper sticker: my other vehicle is an
electric guitar 

Thanks again for the help and guidance, and "may the 4th be with you"

S-10cerely, Stand
________________________________________________________________________



> SLPinfo.org <[email protected]> wrote:
> > Bruce offers good advice. Think about what you really need. Passengers vs
> > no passengers? Cargo bed flexibility vs covered carrying capacity?
> > Regular roads vs. off-road?
> ...


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## EVDL List (Jul 27, 2007)

A couple of additional comments

Unless you have a sizeable budget lead may be your only choice. And unless
you're planning on a high. Voltage system such as.above.300 volts I would
avoid.AGMs. Floodeds need more.maintenance but are better for this
application.

Wayne Anderson in Twin Falls, ID tried.the "lighten the box" thing on an
S10 and didn't think.it.was.worth the effort. Check.out his evalbum page.

Peter Flipsen


> "Stand Culp" <[email protected]> wrote:
> 
> > Bruce and slpinfoprof:
> >
> ...


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## EVDL List (Jul 27, 2007)

Peter,
Actually, I was thinking along the lines of the non Lead Acid
batteries for the conversion... there's been quite a bit of chatter
on here about the 123s whatchacallemz. I haven't even skimmed the
surface of that area yet.... and no next to nuthin, but depending,
that seemed a good alternative to the flooded/AGM quandry.
valid points, all. wait for it -
but, when I was doing some reading on pros and cons of floodeds/AGMs
one factoid that I had no inkling of: floodeds leak energy
overnite, where AGMs maintain nearly full level also maintain charge
level better in cold temps (and tho it doesn't snow much in town, it
does get down there in the mercury dept. This would come under
maintenance as you said....
slightly off topicness: for the replacements of the three 12V deep
cycles in the E-8 mower, the AGMs are less sensitive to being jolted
shaken and stirred. Until I get the yard rototilled and evened out
more, it's a bumpy damned ride on that lil tractor. It only needs 3
batts so the expense is worth it for that application, as I'm gettin
very low AHs outta those old Die Hards (saddest thing is, they were
damned near bone dry when I picked the machine up from someone that's
expert in these things, and should be ashamed he never checked the
water level ARGGGG)
I still have some research to do on prices for Deep Cycles, so the
cautions in that regard are very timely, and will be taken into
account. I don't really WANT to double the budget just on batteries.
Yeah on the replacing the bed with something homemade to save some
weight, seems like a hella lotta work for probably little actual
effect.
thanks again for the input

Stand
__________________________________________________________________________



> SLPinfo.org <[email protected]> wrote:
> > A couple of additional comments
> >
> > Unless you have a sizeable budget lead may be your only choice. And unless
> ...


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## EVDL List (Jul 27, 2007)

> On 9 Jul 2012 at 12:55, Stand Culp wrote:
> 
> > floodeds leak energy overnite, where AGMs maintain nearly full level
> 
> ...


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## EVDL List (Jul 27, 2007)

AGMs will be more expensive than flooded and will be more difficult to find
in 8v or 6v (don't even consider using 12v of either kind).

AGMs won't last nearly as long cycle-wise as floodeds.

Lithium will be 3-4 times as expensive as lead though they'll last 4-5
times as long. They have very little Peukert effect so you can make.much
better use of.the.stored.energy. If you can handle the up front cost (I
couldn't) you get much better cost per mile than lead.

Peter


> "Stand Culp" <[email protected]> wrote:
> 
> > Peter,
> > Actually, I was thinking along the lines of the non Lead Acid
> ...


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## EVDL List (Jul 27, 2007)

Over the 15+ year life of my S-10 Blazer EV conversion (before, due to
no fault of being an EV, being in the wrong place at the wrong time and
being turned into a crushed soda can ::sniff:: ), I had performed many
a PbSO4 pack change.

Today's pack chemistries were not an option back then because of price
and availability. As evdl members have posted, that is not the status
today.

If I were doing a S-10 Truck conversion today, I would save my cookies
until I had the ca$h to go with today's use of a Li-ion pack. My past
experience tells me it is well worth the additional co$t to go Li-ion.

But perhaps Stand is more familiar or used to PbSO4 lead-acid thus
making him hesitant about some unknown battery type that seems to cost
more. 

?What if Stand just went with PbSO4, and later once he felt more
familiar with Li-ion, at a pack change, he could do an upgrade to
Li-ion?

The concern some evdl members might have would be that a
better-bang-for-the-buck would be to make the Li-ion decision now, and
not have to pay later for the other changes needed to switch from PbSO4
to Li-ion: adding a BMS (battery management system), tweaking or
replacing the charger(s), +more.

So, I ask the experienced evdl members: is there a way for Stand to try
out the cheaper but shorter lived PbSO4 design, and then later switch to
Li-ion in a less co$tly/painful way? 

My thinking is that Stand's conversion would likely be of a 144+VDC
system-design/performance with at least a 50+mi range @55mph
constant-speed during the warmer months.

...
Sidebar
Though it sounds like Stand is not interested in spending even more
money, the other advantage with a Li-ion pack is not being locked in how
many large heavy 6V wet-cell batteries will fit. The ability to spend
more on an AC motor/controller thus having regen, and the ability to
double+ your pack voltage to reduce IR loss are succinct advantages over
the ol' low voltage DC motor/controller designs of the past.


{brucedp.150m.com}




-


> Martin WINLOW wrote:
> > Peter said "Lithium will be 3-4 times as expensive as lead..."
> >
> > Sorry, but <really> this is complete twaddle...
> ...


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## EVDL List (Jul 27, 2007)

I am going to do what Bruce has proposed. I just bought $2k worth of Pb-acid batteries and hope to save up for Li-batteries for the next pack replacement. I am hoping that a reprogrammed charger, new connectors, and a BMS is all the re-fit will require. Besides the cost, my other problem with Li batteries is that they all seem to be made in China. I'm loathe to buy anything from China unless it is unavoidable/ I heard there was a new battery plant in Holland, MI making Li batteries, but only for the big companies. With the Li change over I should be able to lighten my car and/or put some batteries in parallel to increase the range on my 120V system. Time will tell...

-Ken Overway

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## EVDL List (Jul 27, 2007)

Kevin,
No offense but when doing a lead conversion the LAST thing you do is buy the
batteries. You think you will be done soon. Turns out I am a year into mine
and probably a year to go. A lot of the guys, me included, use cardboard and
a glue gun for batteries. 

If I were you I would be on the phone cancelling the order. There are a lot
of more important things to buy and do before the batteries will be needed.


Sincerely,
Mark Grasser


-----Original Message-----
From: [email protected] [mailto:[email protected]] On Behalf
Of Ken Overway
Sent: Tuesday, July 10, 2012 3:31 PM
To: Electric Vehicle Discussion List
Subject: Re: [EVDL] Donor truck questions

I am going to do what Bruce has proposed. I just bought $2k worth of Pb-acid
batteries and hope to save up for Li-batteries for the next pack
replacement. I am hoping that a reprogrammed charger, new connectors, and a
BMS is all the re-fit will require. Besides the cost, my other problem with
Li batteries is that they all seem to be made in China. I'm loathe to buy
anything from China unless it is unavoidable/ I heard there was a new
battery plant in Holland, MI making Li batteries, but only for the big
companies. With the Li change over I should be able to lighten my car and/or
put some batteries in parallel to increase the range on my 120V system. Time
will tell...

-Ken Overway

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## EVDL List (Jul 27, 2007)

on the donor truck issue: I"ve been very patient, and workin on my
Elec-Trak tractor/mower, while waiting for exactly what I want in an
S-10 for my conversion. I think I've found it !! nice crew cab with
power windows/locks etc with a matchin shell, in excellent condition
for a pretty damned good price. I'll wind up gettin a toneau cover
for it for everyday use, but the shell will be nice to do some close
by camping etc. I'll keep you posted on developments, but for now I'd
underscore: being patient and determined to wait for what you really
want... I'll probably use the truck as is for this year so I'll have
the money to get the conversion done quickly once I start.
Thanks again for all the great advice and benefits of your experience
!! I am gonna love this as much as my electric tractor, only moreso
 Great group here, I can't express how much I value your wisdom
and input - have a great day 

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