# Think about EV Conversion BMW 2002 1972



## Moltenmetal (Mar 20, 2014)

My suggestion: unless you really don't care about money, forget about the CALB batteries. You can get crashed Leaf or Volt cells most places for much cheaper.

The AC50/51 is a good choice to duplicate what you had- peak torque is only 120 ft-lbs so you'll still need your transmission. If you really intend to drive your car, AC is great- power brakes basically for free, and a 10-15% range boost vs DC. If you just want a performance toy, a DC motor will give you more power and way more torque for the same money. You can also save even more money with DC by buying a kit to build a controller rather than a finished controller. 

Otherwise, just read up on various threads here. I have no specific advice for a BMW- too expensive for my tastes.


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## nucleus (May 18, 2012)

For a simple project I don't think you could go wrong with a AC35X2. It is a bit heavy at 150 pounds, but 180 ft-lbs of torque starting at 0 RPM, 100 HP at 3000 RPM peaking topping off with 165 HP at 5000 RPM, it would scoot pretty well.

It is pretty much plug and play with dual Curtis controllers...

A Leaf motor could be a great fit, but will require some engineering to adapt and a custom controller if you want to decent power.


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## nucleus (May 18, 2012)

*i3*

Or, you could keep it in the family, grab a wrecked i3 and use that motor... 178 HP, would require some CANBUS work.


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## zippy500 (Apr 3, 2017)

thanks for the comments,

I would love to get the 2XAC35 setup but wow at the price.

Leaf battery packs are few here in the UK and are fetching in the region of £4000 which would easily cover the new battery price.

I quite like the torque graph of the AC-51 at 96V, would anyone know what difference it would make if the system was run at 120V . would there be more power at the motor or just give better range?


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## madderscience (Jun 28, 2008)

Go for highest voltage battery you can get. I think the HPEV / curtis AC systems are available up to 144V. don't go less than that if you want decent highway speeds. +1 on leaf or volt battery pack. If leaf, reconfigured for 144v at 120ah would give 60-70 mile range in a 2200-2300lb total weight car.

as already suggested, keep the tranny. However run full synthetic oil in it and the diff, and if you are adventurous you might be able to make internal mods to it to reduce friction. But if its a standard 4spd, probably best to just put new seals and syncros in it and run it as is. get the alignment done and all the ball joints and suspension redone and put good LRR tires on it. You can also mess with gear ratios by adjusting the rear axle ratio. IIRC there are several swap options available for the 02's. Due to the comparatively rev happy electric motor you might want to spec a higher ratio rear end than the stock one.

I had a '71 BMW 1600 for a few years. Neat little car. I sort of wish I had kept it but I sold it when I had to move, before I caught the EV bug.


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