# 1968 VW Single Cab truck...initial suggestions



## onegreenev (May 18, 2012)

Welcome. Being that you have Single Cab the transmission is geared low so can haul heavy loads with no problem. The need for a 4X4 is not likely unless you really do some real serious off road driving. I am a huge fan of the VW Bus but prefer the older Split window bus. I have taken my Bus into areas where you'd normally take a 4x4 with no problems. The Bus is up off the ground with excellent clearance and has gearing to pull the load and weight over the wheels to keep power to the wheels with out slipping. They are excellent off road and on road vehicles. I currently have a 67 Panel and I am also going to be using it for business for our organic produce. It is not yet ready for the road but we will be converting it to electric. 

The 68 is a heavier Bus than the earlier ones but it is still an excellent choice. Yes, utilize the treasure chest for keeping your batteries. It will keep them low and forward of the transmission and will keep the center of gravity real low for excellent handling. You should be able to stuff enough in there for a range you are looking to get. I'd shoot for around 34kWh sized pack for the distances you are looking to get. Get at least a 9" motor for your ride. If you use the Warp9 motor you may need to cut the apron to clear the motor. No real big deal because it will be hidden anyway. Get a controller that will give you at least 156 volts and 700 amps or more. Synkromotive, Soliton1 and Warp Drive come to mind. 

All for 12K. Not likely but you could do pretty good. The largest cost will be the batteries. Don't go with lead acid if you want the distance your looking to get. You must use Lithium. They will live long. 

Here is a cool old Bus.










 http://rebbl.nl


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## bhayman (Feb 17, 2011)

Cool! Another VW. I converted my 71 Bus back in November and I am thrilled with the results. It was in the garage for most of the winter, but now that the snows are gone, it's my daily driver. My pre-converted bus was always quite peppy (except for hills), but now it is outright zippy. I kept the original transmission and clutch, which for me lets me retain my normal driving habits. The only gear I rarely use is 1st gear, but for all other gears I still shift at the same speed/rpm as before.

As a point of reference...
- my bus now weighs ~3100lbs (which is still less than a stock campmobile).
- 52 Calb 100ah cells (166v).
- Soliton 1 controller.
- Warp 9 motor.

I have the Soliton tuned with some fairly conservative settings. 400 amps max from pack, 600 amps max to motor, 144v max to motor. Even with those settings the bus moves at much better clip than pre-conversion. Using an 80% depth of discharge, I get ~46 miles. I haven't taken it on the highway (still need to install my vacuum pump for braking), but it easily does 50 mph on local roads with little effort. I dont see 65mph being an issue (at least with my setup).

While, I like my setup, if the new HPEVS AC-75/76 and new curtis controller had been available, I might have taken a serious look at the AC motor instead of the DC motor. Being in Boulder, CO there are quite a few hills (well mountains, too) and it would have been nice to have regen available to effectively act like classic engine braking when going down steep hills.

Take your time on component selection and enjoy the conversion process. It is well worth it.

-Bryan.


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## marklaken (Jan 26, 2012)

I'm converting a vw beetle and based on my limited understanding, I think you will need lots of lithium batteries to carry a loaded single cab to markets more than a few miles away - especially if there are hills and high speeds involved. Not impossible, but not gonna be cheap. Battery weight is also going to cut into your payload capacity as well.

Some basic calc's:

'68 VW single cab truck (from owners manual): unladen weight: 2425 lbs; laden weight: 2370 lbs.; Total weight: 4800 lbs

Assuming 500w/mi to haul 4800 lbs in a truck (maybe slightly conservative?)

52 cells x 3.2v x 200aH = 33,280w

Any chance the farmers amrket has electricity for you to recharge?

33,280w / 500 w/mile x 80% (you can't use 100% of the battery) = 53 miles/charge

You'd need to double the cell count (104) to get to 100 mile range. 200 aH cells weigh about 13 lbs each.

Your payload with 50 mile range would be: 4800-2425+350 (old engine and gas tank) - 13*52 (batteries) - 250 (motor and speed controller and charger) = 1800 lbs for driver, passenger, and produce. doubling the battery pack to 104 cells for 100 mile range reduces your payload to 1124 lbs. 

I think you are looking at about $14,000 for batteries to get you 50 miles, and $28,000 for batteries to get to 100 miles. You'd have an additional $5k of drive train to purchase as well...


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## marklaken (Jan 26, 2012)

I'm converting a vw beetle and based on my limited understanding, I think you will need lots of lithium batteries to carry a loaded single cab to markets more than a few miles away - especially if there are hills and high speeds involved. Not impossible, but not gonna be cheap. Battery weight is also going to cut into your payload capacity as well.

Some basic calc's:

'68 VW single cab truck (from owners manual): unladen weight: 2425 lbs; laden weight: 2370 lbs.; Total weight: 4800 lbs

Assuming 500w/mi to haul 4800 lbs in a truck (maybe slightly conservative?)

52 cells x 3.2v x 200aH = 33,280w

33,280w / 500 w/mile x 80% (you can't use 100% of the battery) = 53 miles/charge

You'd need to double the cell count (104) to get to 100 mile range. 200 aH cells weigh about 13 lbs each.

Your payload with 50 mile range would be: 4800-2425+350 (old engine and gas tank) - 13*52 (batteries) - 250 (motor and speed controller and charger) = 1800 lbs for driver, passenger, and produce. doubling the battery pack to 104 cells for 100 mile range reduces your payload to 1124 lbs. 

I think you are looking at about $14,000 for batteries to get you 50 miles, and $28,000 for batteries to get to 100 miles. You'd have an additional $5k of drive train to purchase as well...


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## marklaken (Jan 26, 2012)

Any chance the farmers market has electricity for you to recharge? - You will also get better efficiency driving home if you sell all your tomatoes


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## brothabran (Feb 21, 2009)

Thanks for the replies. It's much appreciated and has given me a bit of a reality check as to what I *want* out of a conversion might look like versus what I could* afford.

*That being said, if I kept it in a tighter budget as I previously stated, 10-12k or so...I'd probably be looking at a reduced range (more of an in-town vehicle), correct? That would generally be fine, as the only markets we'll ever be attending will be in town, or within 30-50 miles round trip max. I just figured if I could get away with a higher range, it'd be more ideal as an all around vehicle for other errands.

Is it feasible to say I could get a range of 30-50 miles, with a top speed of 45-50 mph, while keeping it under $12k?


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## onegreenev (May 18, 2012)

Is that budget including the restoration of the Bus?


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## EVfun (Mar 14, 2010)

That old Bus has a nice farmers patina to it. Provided there is no structural rust I don't see any hurry to do body and paint work. 

Range comes down to battery pack. I would guess at about 400 watt hours per mile but surely someone would know better for a VW Bus. A single 100 amp hour LiFePO4 cell packs about 320 watt hours (100 amp hours at 3.2 volts.) You want a little cushion in your range so the pack isn't always seeing full discharges. So guess at about 0.7 safe miles for each 100 amp hour LiFePO4 cell. The LiFePO4 cells we use cost about $1.25 per amp hour. 

For 50 miles you are looking at about $8900 in cells. I wouldn't recommend that in the form of 72, 100 amp hour cells, but instead 40, 180 amp hour cells. Perhaps a VW Bus needs less than 400 watt hours per mile so you don't need that large of a pack. My Beetle based beach buggy only used about 200 watt hours per mile (only 1200 lb. but probably less aerodynamic than your Bus.)


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