# Re: [EVDL] Happiness is... Locost 7 ?



## EVDL List (Jul 27, 2007)

*Re: [EVDL] Happiness is... Locost 7 ?*


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## EVDL List (Jul 27, 2007)

*Re: [EVDL] Happiness is... Locost 7 ?*

Lotus 7 replicas (Locost, Clubman, Caterham, whatever) make very cool
electric cars.
Things to consider:
+ very light weight - you don't need big EV gear to make them go
- very small - you can't fit big EV gear in them anyway
- you can't securely lock them
- they aren't very weather-proof (though slightly more than a motorcycle 
+ they are incredibly cool

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## EVDL List (Jul 27, 2007)

*Re: [EVDL] Happiness is... Locost 7 ?*



> Mark Fowler <[email protected]> wrote:
> 
> > + they are incredibly cool
> 
> ...


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## EVDL List (Jul 27, 2007)

*Re: [EVDL] Happiness is... Locost 7 ?*

There are many clubs and parts builders, parts are on ebay all the time.
I have a 300zx tranny and IRS read end I am saving for mine.
They can even be made hybrids with both front and rear wheel drives.
some use cycle motors
so it is a very flexible design
it can be enclosed like any rag top



> Zeke Yewdall <[email protected]> wrote:
> 
> > On Fri, Apr 25, 2008 at 5:44 PM, Mark Fowler <[email protected]>
> > wrote:
> ...


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## EVDL List (Jul 27, 2007)

*Re: [EVDL] Happiness is... Locost 7 ?*

Mark,

Is your Birkin website still active? Sure I've seen it in the past, but
can't find it now. 

How is your performance and range?

Does anyone know how Electric7 performed?

Would PriusII battery pack(s) work for an electric locost, using the PriusII
main AC motor? Could it handle direct drive to a conventional diff?

Bryan.
Auckland NZ




> Mark Fowler-3 wrote:
> >
> > Lotus 7 replicas (Locost, Clubman, Caterham, whatever) make very cool
> > electric cars.
> ...


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## EVDL List (Jul 27, 2007)

*Re: [EVDL] Happiness is... Locost 7 ?*

Hi Bryan,

Is my Birkin website still active?
Not really.

How is my performance and range?
Rather dismal at the moment. My Thundersky LCP batts are on their last
legs and I am currently investigating replacements.
I'm looking for something around 150V, 100AH capable of a 10C
discharge with minimal voltage sag.

Electric7 - no idea.

Using Prius bits for a locost?
I think you'd need to do a fair bit of re-engineering.
The batteries would need to be paralleled to supply enough current,
but split into individual strings to charge (NiMH actually drops V at
the end of charge)
The motor would be tricky - in a Prius it connects to a funky load
sharing differential thingy with the ICE - mounting it and connecting
it to a RWD driveline will be interesting.

Mark

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## EVDL List (Jul 27, 2007)

*Re: [EVDL] Happiness is... Locost 7 ?*

Shame about your website not being active - iirc it had a lot of interesting
background information.

I think www.electric7.com had made their own battery packs from junked Prius
battery packs - 3 packs in the engine bay and two behind the driver.

I was trying to find a relatively simple and affordable solution, that
wouldn't require spending $US10,000 ($NZ13,000) 8-O on a Hymotion battery
pack or require an electrical engineering degree! %-|

Good condition PriusII are available in NZ ex-Japan for about the price of
the Hymotion Prius kit, so I could look for a damaged one for half that
price and build a mid-engined hybrid B-).

Bryan.


Hi Bryan,

Is my Birkin website still active?
Not really.

How is my performance and range?
Rather dismal at the moment. My Thundersky LCP batts are on their last
legs and I am currently investigating replacements.
I'm looking for something around 150V, 100AH capable of a 10C
discharge with minimal voltage sag.

Electric7 - no idea.

Using Prius bits for a locost?
I think you'd need to do a fair bit of re-engineering.
The batteries would need to be paralleled to supply enough current,
but split into individual strings to charge (NiMH actually drops V at
the end of charge)
The motor would be tricky - in a Prius it connects to a funky load
sharing differential thingy with the ICE - mounting it and connecting
it to a RWD driveline will be interesting.

Mark

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