Revenge of the Electric Car

JULY 9, 2012

As Portland, OR gears up for yet another screening of Revenge, local EV'er and filmmaker J Bills recounts the scene at the Portland premiere back in November: Here in Portland, we still talk about the last time Chris Paine rolled through town with a movie; an early screening of 2006’s seminal “Who Killed the Electric Car?”

Portland 100

Portland Oregon San Francisco Conversion 100

Porsche 914 EV Conversion

JULY 1, 2007

The instructions for the AC kit tell you to slide the motor speed control box through the two-inch hole that was cut in the wall between the engine compartment and the rear luggage compartment. In my haste, I added a computer grommet to the hole which made it just a bit too small to slide the motor control box through. It did not.

Motor 100

Motor Motors Motoring Mariner 100

Porsche 914 EV Conversion

OCTOBER 12, 2006

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). After doing some research, I found Electro Automotive out of Felton, CA and put down the $13,000 for one of their latest AC motor conversion kits for the Porsche 914.

2007 100

2007 NMG Kits Oregon 100

Porsche 914 EV Conversion

AUGUST 10, 2007

I took the flywheel and clutch pressure plate to Portland Engine Rebuilders. Many thanks to Alan at A&P Specialties (Audi and Porsche repair) for lending me a 1.7Liter 914 crankshaft so I could provide something for P.E.R. Back at home, I purchased new 10-24 x 1" allen head bolts to re-attach the adapter hub to the AC motor shaft.

Portland 100

Portland Porsche Audi Motor 100

Open Source Civic EV Kit

JUNE 4, 2008

I ordered a Warp9 motor from Carlo at EV-supply in Seattle. I had the privilege of showing off the Porsche 914 at the kick-off meeting for the EV club in Longview, Washington. I've started to order parts over the past few days since lead times are getting larger these days with the demand.

Portland 100

Portland Seattle Oregon DC 100

Porsche 914 EV Conversion

SEPTEMBER 13, 2007

Apparently, the AC motor feels like it has more torque at non-zero RPMs (perhaps just a false perception). However, if I start from a stoplight in the same way as a gasoline vehicle (rev the engine and slowly let out the clutch), I can start much more quickly than if I just leave the clutch out and floor the accelerator from a stopped motor.

Portland 100

Portland Plugin DC Gasoline-Electric 100

Porsche 914 EV Conversion

AUGUST 12, 2007

I took the day off to walk around Portland to the farmers market and EV awareness day with Krista. This was originally just a human powered vehicle made in Belgium, but the owner added an electric motor to power the rear third wheel to get up the hills in Portland (of which there aren't many in Belgium).

Portland 100

Portland Belgium Kits Neighborhood 100