Getting Good Console

Here is the Samsung Galaxy Tab 2 seven inch tablet that I picked up from Best Buy at a $20 discount. It was a backlogged holiday husband gift that I finally redeemed after 3 months. As you can see above, I am setting up the Android Torque app per the instructions on the Ewert Energy […]

Torque My Console

I’m having lots of fun driving the little electric 914 around town – to work, to the store, to meetings, to visit friends, to movies and to restaurants. I always daydreamed about converting a gas vehicle to electric, but I never thought it would actually come to pass. I’m growing accustomed to the novelty, but […]

In the CAN

CAN stands for Controller Area Network, which is a protocol adopted by the auto industry to allow micro-controllers and other devices in a vehicle to communicate with each other. Shown above is a CAN adapter sold by Ewert Energy Systems that lets the Orion BMS communicate with a computer. Data flows from the Orion’s CAN […]

Battery Management Rethunk

With the batteries less than fully charged, my lovely wife and I headed toward Pasadena to visit friends. Even though the pack was not full, it had spent the entire previous night soaking up electrons, so I wasn’t particularly worried. The drive is only about 25 percent of my projected range, and the needle on […]

In the Balance

Battery chemistry is a mysterious and arcane science that dates back to ancient Iraq, where theory holds that the Baghdad Battery was used to electroplate gold onto silver and possibly used to power ancient light bulbs. Of all the subject matter I’ve grappled with during this EV conversion project, battery technology has been the most […]

Balancing Act

Having a well-balanced pack has a direct bearing on how much range and longevity is possible from your batteries. Out of the box, all cells should theoretically have the same factory charge, but that is usually the exception. The end user should always insure a good initial state of balance before putting the pack into […]

Baby’s First Charge

Most people generally assume an EV charging station is a battery charger, when in reality, the charger is located inside the car. The charging station at your local mall simply delivers 240 volts to your car through a standard J1772 plug, and the battery charger in your EV does the hard work. It’s great for […]

What Goes Around

At 90 years old, Penny’s dad Ralph is a genius inventor, thinker, tinkerer, and problem-solver. One of many lasting impressions Ralph made on me was an unforgettable Thanksgiving at Michael and Penny’s. My motorized couch had been stored in their garage after that year’s Burning Man. When we arrived, Ralph greeted me with a twinkle […]

Play It Cool

These brackets on the driver side of the engine bay played an important role in their previous life by supporting the relay board. The board will no longer be needed, but the brackets are perfectly suited to support the liquid cooling system for the Curtis controller. Another bonus is that the original engine electrical harness […]

Battery Brains

The battery management system (BMS) is an apparatus designed to prevent cells from overcharging, and to ensure all cells in the pack are charged evenly. It also protects cells from over-discharging, which directly effects their long term health. One BMS setup that appealed to me as the simplest and most economical was the MiniBMS from […]