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I know there are some cmpg members who will get a kick out of this, and I suspect there are some who already know about it (from the EVDL and other EV related forums/sites)...

May I present my new car: the ForkenSwift

http://www.evconvert.com/images/625t.jpg (http://xs216.xs.to/xs216/07226/beaty-shot-2.jpg)
(click to zoom)

It's a 100% electric runabout, built using parts from a matching pair of junk cars, a forklift and a golf cart, for the princely sum of $672 (Canadian).

As of about a week ago, it is legally registered as an EV, inspected, insured and on the road.

A friend and I hatched the idea to do this EV conversion about a year and a half ago, and dove in not really knowing the first thing about it. But there are so many online resources, anyone with a computer can find all the information & assistance they would ever need to undertake a project like this. All you need is some mechanical aptitude.

http://images6.theimagehosting.com/albums/6909/motor-compartment-all.th.jpg (http://server6.theimagehosting.com/image.php?img=motor-compartment-all.jpg&album=6909)
Under the hood. (click to zoom in)

The goal was to make, as inexpensively as possible (since this was more or less a science experiment), a LSV/NEV comparable vehicle, something like the ZENN (http://zenncars.com) (but without the 25 mph top speed restriction). The car would be used exclusively in sub/urban driving on the quiet streets of the small city we live in.

Range: we ended up with a car that will go - in warm weather - 20-25 km on a charge to 50% depth of discharge, driven gently. This is on a set of used batteries donated by a EV owner in Ottawa - a new set would likely double those figures.

Top speed seen to date is about 60 km/h (40 mph). Given more road & patience, it would undoubtedly go faster. That said, the car's acceleration is glacial (this is a limit of the motor controller - from a golf cart. We're shopping for a higher power unit :)).

How efficient is it? I haven't gotten into a regular charge/drive cycle yet, but the Kill-a-watt measured 5,100 watt hours to recharge the car after 24.8 km, which works out to 331 watt hours per mile. Compare to Tesla's official energy consumption figures (per EPA methods) for the Roadster of 310 wh/mi (http://www.teslamotors.com/blog4/) (also at the charger). :) Of course that's their official EPA figure, and we know all about those. The Tesla would undoubtedly spank the ForkenSwift (or just about any other owner-converted EV) in a head-to-head hypermiling competition.

YouTube: I've posted a series of videos of the car. The latest, made to celebrate the car's transition to legal EV status, shows the car in action -

http://img.youtube.com/vi/RBQWXyxSTyU/3.jpg (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RBQWXyxSTyU)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RBQWXyxSTyU

The electric umbrella: is another nickname I've given the car. I tend to do nearly all of my local trips by bicycle, except in crummy weather, or when I'm taking passengers or bulky cargo. The ForkenSwift is such a treat to drive, lately I've been looking forward to the rainy days! :D

Darin

Forgot to add:


For technical details, see the car's EV Album entry: http://www.austinev.org/evalbum/1146

I've set up http://forkenswift.com, but have yet to completely flesh it out. It'll be fully developed over the winter.

Good job, Darin! That's the cheapest EV conversion I have ever seen, even if it is just an NEV.

Neat stuff. :)

We were trying to beat this Yugo conversion (also a 48v NEV type car), which was originally done for $800: :D

http://www.evconvert.com/images/14.jpg

http://www.evconvert.com/article/yugo-greg

Also, I should add that $672 is our net cost. We actually spent more than that, but recouped money various ways: selling left over ICE parts from the donor cars; the scrap refund for the forklift chassis was a healthy $364 from a metal recycler; plus we sold one of the extra motors stripped from the forklift (it came with four - a traction motor and 3 hydraulic pump motors).

Excellent Video, very well done. Great job on the Geo!

Mighty fine work. I have followed your progress on GasSavers. Glad to see the finished project. Well done on a shoe-string budget. You've got me wanting one.

Hi Darin:

___That was a wonderfully great way to tell OPEC to shove it! Nice job and congrats on the EV conversion. Knowing your talents, I doubt this is the last we will be hearing about the Forkenswift ;)
“We are extremely pleased this morning to be able to introduce to you a project that keeps GM on the cutting edge of technology. We’ve taken a big step. A very big step. And it’s an exciting new electric car and it has all the comforts and convenience of a modern automobile.
___The only thing you could have done better is to have Roger Smith announce Forkenswift himself! :D

___Good Luck

___Wayne

Ding! Ding!

Give that man a prize for being the first to identify the mystery voice. :)

What a fantastic vehicle! Great job guys! :)

I love the way it sounds. The shot pulling out of the driveway is my favorite.

Very cool :)

Thanks.

It's particularly enjoyable that this "psuedo NEV" is legally on the road in the same month that the **** has hit the fan because Transport Canada is blocking the sale of *actual* NEVs here - including vehicles manufactured by two Canadian companies!

See:

Canada is killing the electric car
http://www.autobloggreen.com/2007/10/28/canada-is-killing-the-electric-car/

Correction/update: Transport Canada hasn't blocked all NEV's. They've blocked one company, for reasons not yet mentioned in the media reports. The media has misleadingly spun this as a "general" NEV prohibition, which is not true, but it's been picked up by sites like ABG, which are just adding sensationalistic fuel to the non-fire.

That car is worht driving just for the name. Who can't help but smile when you hear Forkenswift.

Yep - get together with Wally-World and mass-market them!!! :)

OK how does one get one of these forklift motors cheap? I want to put together a poor mans manual hybrid :-)

Do what we did: go to your local forklift service company and ask :)

Your VW Thing would make an ideal low/mid speed EV conversion. Plus there are kits available for the adapter plate and coupler. I know someone who's planning one.

I was also thinking an EV THING would be wicked but its an awful heavy car at just over a ton. IE there are lighter cars a Beetle I think is a lot lighter. If NIMH packs get going I will definitely convert it eventually.

Plus with no heat and no air its a spring / fall fun car :-) I drove it to work once in the winter. Froze my fraking arse of !! will never do that again :-) (is was the 73 and older that had the gasoline powered heater that would roast you if you wanted it to)

Nice... hmm I want one.

Justy?? (yes I have brand loyalty)
(but Zuki is my number two brand pick , so this would work too)

excellent work!

The heck kinda name is ForkenSwift?

it's not a franken swift
or a fu*kin' swift...

(und forken lifter moter)

kinda like farfugnyugen....

I REALLY love the car, Ive been lurking for a while, and want to build a 150 mpg, diesel / electric hybrid using a 1994 metro xfi as a base.

Ill pull the motor, trans, front suspension, wiring, steering, pedals, and perhaps the air freshener (for nostalgias sake) :-) out of the metro, and build a three wheeler (2 in the front, one in the back) with staggered side by side seating for 2. (1" steel frame, I beleive I can get the frame, engines and new body in at 700 lb not counting batteries

So heres the idea:

I bought a 10hp diesel, and am about to buy a 72v advanced dc motor (open to suggestions), curtis controller and about 40 12lb sla batteries (got a good deal on new ones salvaged from a bankrupt scooter manufacturer)

Ill mount the diesel to the geos transaxle, and run the emectric motor on a sprocket in the rear.

There are some REALLY smart people around here, I would love some input and ideas for this, beginning with where can I find an adapter plate to mate the diesels 1" shaft to the geos clutch housing? (If anyone wants to make one for a fee, I am all for that :-)

Here is the project were just finishing
tshtrikes.com

Any plans to Solarize the Forkenswift? Might extend the max range a bit.

Todayican, PLEASE keep us updated on your project as it progresses. Sounds like a cool one.

How much does your 10hp diesel weigh? I once looked at diesel generators that size for a possible series-hybrid (pipe dream) project, and discovered that even the small ones were insanely heavy.

Not too much 10hp is only 102 ready to run with an electric start.

Any plans to Solarize the Forkenswift? Might extend the max range a bit.

In fact, I did buy an 80w panel with that thought in mind, but haven't done anything with it yet (aside from use it to recharge extra batteries in my ICE car that support its alternator delete mod).

The truth is the ForkenSwift's range is adequate for where it's used. And I haven't even been driving it much lately - I tend to ride my bicycle in nice weather.

It's conceivable that for how little the car is actually used (once or 2x a week on average through the year?), a significant portion of its power needs could come from a couple of pv panels.