# Classic Mini A.C. Electric Conversion



## bigmotherwhale (Apr 15, 2011)

I am going to convert my beloved mini to electric. Its something i have always wanted to do.

Im on a tight budget and i will be using mainly re-cycled hybrid parts or what i can find for cheap.

This started when i found a lovely Remy HVH250 for peanuts and had to have it. 

I have since got together most of the goodies that i need, it really is amazing what is on offer now car manufacturers are finally making cars with electric drive components, i am very pleased with what i have, even tho its unlikely to have an impressive range or acceleration but as the cost of batteries goes down there will be opportunities to upgrade if i succeed.

I will post some pictures of what i have got so far and tell you what i am intending to do with it.


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## bigmotherwhale (Apr 15, 2011)

the battery pack, its a prius PIP 4.4kwh 207v 20ah. (li-ion)
its likely to be temporary because of of its small size unless i can find another one or two to wire in series. i payed £400gbp at the breakers.

http://i936.photobucket.com/albums/... charger and battery/DSC02608_zpsofo0xdmm.jpg

this is the motor and gearbox i am going to use, the gearbox is out of my old K11 micra, im not sure its up to the job but i have a few of them kicking about. Im going to couple the shaft with a spline cut from a clutch and a drivelock bush clamped around the gear of the motor. 

The motor is a remy hvh 250 and needs a cooling housing, i have made a mold out of wax that i will be trimming down on a mill to size and getting sand cast at a local foundry in aluminium, I will then die grind some oil coolant passages into the casing.


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## Studebaker (Jan 22, 2012)

Any pics of the mini?


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## bigmotherwhale (Apr 15, 2011)

I have not at the moment, what do you want to see? its pretty much stock 98 mpi with rose bottom arms.


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## 67BGTEV (Nov 1, 2013)

Why are you saying it may not have good acceleration? With hvh250, this is going to fly. Yes, with small pack you may not have the range. Have you decided on controller? 

Sent from my SM-N900T using Tapatalk


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## bigmotherwhale (Apr 15, 2011)

its not going to be breathtaking because i am only running a 200volt pack so i will only be getting 40Kw peak.

I had in there before, a set of high compression pistons, a decked block, reworked con rods, ported head, alloy throttle body, high lift rockers, belt drive kit double valve springs swiftune camshaft, maniflow stage 2 manifold, and a abingdon st ratio strait cut gearbox with a final drive ratio of 2.76 pushing out around 100bhp in a car that weighed about 450kg, if you dont know minis then i can tell you it was fast, it would cause confusion and dismay to people with very expensive cars 

this will feel quite tame i can assure you. 

Im using a Lexus 450h IGBT block coupled to an eldis UMC drive, the good thing about these is they are rated to 650v+ so headroom is not a problem, if I ever get a better battery pack.


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## bigmotherwhale (Apr 15, 2011)

removed a snapped off bolt end in the gearbox and cleaned the inside of the housing with oven cleaner, quick and effective.


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## Studebaker (Jan 22, 2012)

bigmotherwhale said:


> I have not at the moment, what do you want to see? its pretty much stock 98 mpi with rose bottom arms.



Ya, kid. You’ve been posting in my thread lately. Couldn’t quite figure what you at (don’t do it anymore, BTW), hence I‘m not a native english speaker. That’s clear now, thou. Who the hell describes his car as one with “ rose bottom arms” ? Turn 18 kid. Buy a car. Start conversion. Then, post on this forum.


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## bigmotherwhale (Apr 15, 2011)

I missed out "jointed" so terribly sorry.... 

I already have a car and im doing a a conversion.... whats your problem? 

I would also like to say that your a hypocrite... essentially insulting someone for what exactly? sounds petty and childish to me.


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## Duncan (Dec 8, 2008)

Good luck with the Mini - 
Don't worry about Studebaker - he is making a lovely looking mini 
Can't fault his workmanship
But his selection of parts for things like suspension means that it is going to drive terribly

You may be pleasantly surprised about just how well your mini goes with the electric drive compared to the IC

- Was the IC a 998 or a 1275??


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## bigmotherwhale (Apr 15, 2011)

I hope so.

The IC was 1275 bored to 1293.

It may be nippy but i think top end it will be quite restricted. The Pack is fused at 150A and 200v is the lowest specified voltage for these motors. 

The gears will help somewhat, im not using a clutch so im not entirely sure how easy shifting will be, the rotor is a hefty chunk, im not sure if its been done but is it possible to match gear speed with the motor speed using an electronic control system?


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## Duncan (Dec 8, 2008)

Mine was a 1275 bored and stroked to 1425, - it will be interesting to see how well your electric goes

My mini actually ended up with a two liter Fiat/Lancia twin cam - 175Hp - that did go rather well!


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## bigmotherwhale (Apr 15, 2011)

Wow that must have been quite a beast.

Those fiat engines make unbelievable power, ive seen them dropped in moris minor but never a mini, how did you squeeze it in?


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## dcb (Dec 5, 2009)

bigmotherwhale said:


> but is it possible to match gear speed with the motor speed using an electronic control system?


OF course it is possible, though there is little information about the internals of the lebowski that I can tell, it would be best to integrate w/controller.

but with a small upshift and downshift button on the shifter (or combination of clutch pedal in and gas down vs up, or ???)... whatever the user interface is... the basic idea is pre-program the shift controller with all the gear ratios, give it a motor rpm and a wheel rpm signal, and tell it if you want the next higher or lower gear, or a specific gear. plus you have to slip it into neutral.

A simple joystick interface on the shifter might be perfect, i.e. an x and y (linear) pot on the shifter (the ends of the shifter cables are pretty linear), and map out a range of x/y for neutral and for each gate, and cut the power when the stick moves towards neutral, and speed match when the stick moves towards a particular gear. a bit fiddley to get it right, but it would be fairly straightforward after that.


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## Duncan (Dec 8, 2008)

Squeeze it in?
I cheated - effectively cut the nose off the mini and substituted a Lancia front end
That was not as effective as I hoped so I designed my own front suspension using the Lancia hubs

The extra wide wheel arch extensions were only used when I had the slicks on at an event,
I used to take the slicks off put the road tires on and remove the extensions then put the slicks into a small trailer and drive home towing the trailer with the mini


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## bigmotherwhale (Apr 15, 2011)

Wow that really is a beast, looks absolutely fantastic. fully road legal as well! what happened to it, do you still own it? and what sort of competitions did you enter?

love the webbers at the front...


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## bigmotherwhale (Apr 15, 2011)

dcb said:


> OF course it is possible, though there is little information about the internals of the lebowski that I can tell, it would be best to integrate w/controller.
> 
> but with a small upshift and downshift button on the shifter (or combination of clutch pedal in and gas down vs up, or ???)... whatever the user interface is... the basic idea is pre-program the shift controller with all the gear ratios, give it a motor rpm and a wheel rpm signal, and tell it if you want the next higher or lower gear, or a specific gear. plus you have to slip it into neutral.
> 
> A simple joystick interface on the shifter might be perfect, i.e. an x and y (linear) pot on the shifter (the ends of the shifter cables are pretty linear), and map out a range of x/y for neutral and for each gate, and cut the power when the stick moves towards neutral, and speed match when the stick moves towards a particular gear. a bit fiddley to get it right, but it would be fairly straightforward after that.


I am using the UMC drive from eldis, not the lebowski,as it supports a resolver, theoretically i should be able to blip the throttle to match the speed, but it will be cumbersome, do you know of anyone who has made an automatic system like this work? Cheers


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## dcb (Dec 5, 2009)

bigmotherwhale said:


> do you know of anyone who has made an automatic system like this work?


bits here and there:
http://www.diyelectriccar.com/forums/showthread.php/electronic-synchromesh-shifting-37764.html


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## bigmotherwhale (Apr 15, 2011)

I might consider a system like this later on, but it sounds difficult to implement. there are no sensors on this gearbox as standard to tell which gear is selected, and i was planning on using a mechanical speedo, i would have to ask eldis for programming advice for his controller, not to mention if i get it wrong the car could develop a mind of its own... 

I think i can live with single speed for now, if i ever get a gearbox that i care about i might rethink the idea.
cheers for the links


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## dcb (Dec 5, 2009)

no sweat, just answering the "is it possible" question, you didn't ask if it was easy


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## Duncan (Dec 8, 2008)

bigmotherwhale said:


> Wow that really is a beast, looks absolutely fantastic. fully road legal as well! what happened to it, do you still own it? and what sort of competitions did you enter?
> 
> love the webbers at the front...


That was nearly 12,000 miles and 30 years ago!
So the mini is long long gone -

I may still be the registered owner of 3552PF .. I wonder if I still have the "log book"?

I used to do Hillclimbs and sprints - got a couple of seconds and thirds but I was competing against dedicated track machines (not road legal) and I'm at best an average driver


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## Tomdb (Jan 28, 2013)

Speed matching in a gearbox is not to hard to realize. However, implementing this with an manual box might not be the way to go. 

If you know your output shaft speed (or in this case diff speed), then the ratios are set, then just adjust the motor accordingly. However it being electric and with a theoretical no load situation setting up a PID controller to rev match might lead to blown bearings or worse. 

With a manual the control of the clutch will be done by a person, so the engagement will not be precise and might cause an overshoot in your rev matching.


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## bigmotherwhale (Apr 15, 2011)

My car!


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## tylerwatts (Feb 9, 2012)

Excellent colour


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## bigmotherwhale (Apr 15, 2011)

Drive lock bush for coupling the motor shaft to the gearbox arrived, I ordered a DL13/50 but a KLAA 50x80 arrived. I presume they were out of stock


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## Studebaker (Jan 22, 2012)

Ain’t it pathetic? Thanks Ducan for having my back BTW. Didn’t realize you such an ambassador of dreamers. Shouldn’t we rather encourage kids to study harder, do better in school, instead of daydreaming?


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## bigmotherwhale (Apr 15, 2011)

Studebaker said:


> Ain’t it pathetic? Thanks Ducan for having my back BTW. Didn’t realize you such an ambassador of dreamers. Shouldn’t we rather encourage kids to study harder, do better in school, instead of daydreaming?


Welcome back studebaker, great to hear your opinions on child encouragement.


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## bigmotherwhale (Apr 15, 2011)

The drive lock bush is 50mm ID but the motor shaft is 50.5mm OD
Im machining off the excess on the lathe.


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## bigmotherwhale (Apr 15, 2011)

finished machining the drivelock, next i have to consider how to attach the clutch spline,
I think i will make a plate that bolts onto the drivelock and drill a hole in situ to eliminate any run out, should be easy to center by spinning the motor, 

and braze in the spline, i considered MIG but im worried about distortion.


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## tylerwatts (Feb 9, 2012)

If you do it correctly the brazing will be stronger.


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## Yabert (Feb 7, 2010)

Be sure to properly install the keyless bushing.
Without good installation the torque rating on those mechanical devices can drop significatively.

I suggest you: fenner drive B-LOC installation instructions


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## bigmotherwhale (Apr 15, 2011)

thanks for the advice, i will be sure to follow the instructions, I was thinking of also using a thread locking compound on bolts but i am not sure if that is necessary.

I have just been making up the plate that will carry the spline, The metal was very hard to machine and it had ducati etched onto it which i presume is a foundry not the motorcycle company!


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## bigmotherwhale (Apr 15, 2011)

Ran out of stuff to machine untill i get the front plat or casting, so I cleaned up the outside of the gearbox, and fitted the gear linkage, it will need shortening, to fit in the mini.


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## Duncan (Dec 8, 2008)

Hi
Brazing (bronze welding) is a very forgiving process - but I'm a bit worried that you don't know anything about the metal bits that you are brazing together

I don't think it should be a problem as long as you are making sure that you are not stressing that much


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## bigmotherwhale (Apr 15, 2011)

yes this is true, the spline has obviously had a heat treatment process, the plate seems harder than mild but its certainly not been hardened.

there is a spline on the outside as well as the inside that engages with the plate, that will be pressed into the hole, there is also a lip so it will sit in the plate like a top hat, im hoping that should increase the strength.

I am actually more concerned with run out, rather than strength, if i don't get the spline perfectly in the middle it will fail sooner or later.


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## bigmotherwhale (Apr 15, 2011)

Lexus IGBT block and Eltek 3kw charger, I have another 3 of these for a combined maximum charging power of 12kw, 

IGBT block will be controlled by A UMC drive as its probably out of my capability to build one myself. 

I will need to make a controller for the eltek chargers as they are canbus controlled, Took me quite a while to figure out how to turn them on, i don't want to see anymore HEX for quite a while. 

4S4P LiFePO4 80Ah pack for running the ancillaries, I only have a small traction pack so wont be running a DC-DC converter.


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## bigmotherwhale (Apr 15, 2011)

I started work on the cooling system while i was waiting for the aluminium plates for the gearbox mount and IGBT and charger heatsink to arrive. 

I took apart an old liquid to air heat exchanger i had from a room heater, and cut off the aluminium fins, i am going the press the copper into channels in an aluminium plate. 

I bought an electric auxiliary coolant pump and an oil scavenger pump from ebay on the cheap, both fantastic little units.

I have also welded some tubes onto a plate heat exchanger that came out of my boiler, to transfer the heat of the oil into the glycol water cooling loop.

I have also made some reducing fittings out of copper plumbing hardware to connect the smaller sized coolant tubing to the large size front mounted rad that's already in the car.


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## bigmotherwhale (Apr 15, 2011)

The aluminium cutting bits for my jigsaw arrived today so i have cut out most of the gearbox bell housing front plate, I have drilled the holes for the gearbox studs and bolt holes, and tapped the ones that needed to be. 

The motor casing cast is at the foundry and should be cast within the next week or so. 

I found a gauze with coarse mesh on one side an fine on the other that looked perfect as an oil pickup for the gearbox, I also found a brass dish that was from an aromatherapy candle diffuser that was a perfect fit for the gauze.


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## bigmotherwhale (Apr 15, 2011)

Just a quick update, Not much progress has been made to the drive, I am still waiting for the foundry to cast my part, they keep telling me it will be done next week, I'm going to give them one last chance before i cast the thing myself. (and probably mess it up) I have also been quite busy making some funds that i need to complete this. 

I wanted to get the get the casting done because i am at a stage where if i need to change how i'm mounting it to the gearbox I still can. 

I have however sorted out a few issues with the MINI, took the drums off and cleaned out the rust, and un stuck the handbrake, and cleaned some gunk out from around the swingarms, found a small hole that needs to be patched on the rear arch, i also started the engine up and took a video as i am planning on selling the whole system with ECU fuel tank loom immobiliser etc to anyone who want to convert their car to MPi to make some extra cash, if i cant sell it as one or don't get the money i want, i will sell all the perfomance parts separately, i have a belt drive and a stage 2 head that should get some good money, and a gearbox that has only done a few thousand miles from new.


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