# Planning Mazda B2000 Conversion



## thetod (Oct 27, 2008)

Hey Everyone,
I'm new to the forum and the EV world. I have been talking about doing a conversion for a while now and I am just getting it off the ground (or I guess onto the ground). I have bought a donor truck (1986 Mazda B2000) with a blown engine (manual transmission, extra cab, decent shape for the year). 
I am good with mechanics and being a mechanical engineer I plan on designing and fabricating (luckily I have access to a machine shop and some machinist friends that like to work for beer) as many parts as I can. 
I've done some reading and I am hoping to do a conversion that gets rid of some of the stereotypes of electric vehicles. I want something with reasonable range (50-70 km or 40 miles), reasonable acceleration (I don't need a rocket but something that will keep up with traffic) and a top speed of about 100 km/hr (65 miles/hr).

From the bit of reading I've done it sounds like DC is the way to go but it also sounded like AC was better and the book was a few years old so I'm wondering if this is still the case. How much more money would I be looking at to go with AC? My budget is flexible but I want to keep it reasonable (between 5-10k). If I am going to spend extra money on something I want it to be worth it, I don't want to spend more just to say I've got a sweeter part if it isn't worth it (want to keep it practical). 

In conclusion I am looking for any good advice when starting out, good sources for information (this forum seems like it will be an excellent one) and good sources for parts. I don't mind doing a little extra work cleaning up used parts or doing modifications. 

Oh yeah, I am located in Nanaimo, British Columbia (on Vancouver Island) in Canada. 

Thanks in advance for anyone willing to offer up some suggestions and advice!


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## ZenDaddy (Jul 22, 2008)

Welcome fellow Mazda man! You are in the right place to learn from some of the best diy ev'ers out there!

I love my B120v! (formerly B2200)

I think they are ideal for conversion.

Good Luck!


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## thetod (Oct 27, 2008)

What setup are you using in the B120V? (great name by the way)

It is looking like a 144V DC setup with a 9" motor is the standard for small pickups. Is this what you have?

Is there anything you would do differently on your Mazda if starting again (anything I should look out for)?

Cheers!


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## ZenDaddy (Jul 22, 2008)

I've got 20 6v flooded lead acid batteries for 120v, a 600 amp Kelly controller and an adc 8" series wound motor. The performance is better than I had hoped!

The biggest problems I ran into were fairly fundamental, I fried a controller by having a battery box that allowed a battery to come into contact with the steel frame of the battery rack when the batteries gassed and expanded during a charge cycle (stupid) and then I fried another controller by not completely understanding the function and importance of a precharge circuit. Fortunately, the manufacturer was great and backed me completely. Look at this thread if you don't completely understand.
http://www.diyelectriccar.com/forum...ctacular-kelly-controller-failures-23184.html

The space provided by the truck was ideal for my configuration of batteries. I did move one rear shock behind the axle to make it work.

My motor and pack voltage are a bit smaller than 144 and 9", but again, I love the performance!

If you need a heater, the heater core is a little hard to get to. I actually installed my ceramic element into the ac evaporator because it is easily accessable. It works great. I did have to turn the red/blue indicator on the dash around to reflect actual hot/cold.

Check it out!

http://www.diyelectriccar.com/garage/cars/93

Good luck! You are in the best forum out there! The folks here are wonderful!

Ask lots of questions, they will steer you right!

Michael


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## thetod (Oct 27, 2008)

Nice looking conversion! It is funny it was you replied as I had found pictures of your truck online before I bought my donor vehicle when searching for Mazda's. 
What was the reason you went with the Kelly controller?


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## ZenDaddy (Jul 22, 2008)

The first reason was price, after I messed a couple of controllers up the second reason would be customer service, the third reason would be performance. The 600 amp setup is sweet.

Go with what you like, there are alot of controllers out there. I believe that if you set it up correctly it really doesnt make alot of difference. (I am no expert)

Michael


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