Open Source Civic EV Kit

APRIL 7, 2008

After spending the past year and a half converting a Porsche 914 to an electric vehicle, I decided to expand my horizons by designing an open-source electric vehicle (EV) conversion kit for a commonly used car. This project started about a month ago when I became co-chair of the Oregon Electric Vehicles Association.

Kits 185

Kits Conversion Golf Cart Saturn 185

Porsche 914 EV Conversion

OCTOBER 12, 2006

After seeing the movie Who Killed The Electric Car , I got the nutty idea earlier this year to purchase an all-electric vehicle to commute to work. I was going to purchase an NmG from Myers Motors , but found the driver compartment a bit crowded and the driving range limited (only about 40 miles).

2007 100

2007 NMG Kits Oregon 100

Porsche 914 EV Conversion

FEBRUARY 9, 2008

Here goes (in no particular order): Things That Went Well During the Conversion The 914 AC kit from Electro Automotive is a good one. I modified the wiring in the original 914 AC kit (as suggested by Paul Jorg) to turn on the regen when the brake lights came on instead of controlling regen by releasing the accelerator pedal.

Convert 100

Convert Kits Conversion DC 100

Porsche 914 EV Conversion

AUGUST 1, 2007

In the original kit instructions, the regen relay turns on the brake lights when the AC controller is in regen mode. Again, this involves purchasing a normally closed relay so that when the brake lights come on, it opens up and lets the regen circuit activate on the AC controller. I recommend this alteration to anyone using this kit!

Kits 100

Kits Volt Light Plug-in 100