1522 Clinton Place
River Forest, IL 60305-1208
1522 Clinton Place
River Forest, IL 60305-1208
The purpose of the FVEAA is to assist members who are interested in building an electric car, and to inform the public about EV issues and the realistic capabilities of these vehicles. The FVEAA was formed in 1975 following the first oil embargo crisis. It was chartered as an Illinois Not-For-Profit Corporation the following year.
Many of our members own and use cars that have been recycled and converted to electric power. Most of our members live in the Chicago area, but we have members from all parts of the country. Members have widely varying backgrounds.
The FVEAA offers members an opportunity to exchange information about EV construction and operation. Our monthly meeting features a variety of subjects related to EV construction and policy. Members receive a monthly Newsletter and our offered an opportunity to obtain EV equipment for their projects at concession prices.
Most of all, our members enjoy using the cars they have recycled and converted to electric power. They have learned these vehicles can reduce their annual transportation costs.
We have declared our energy independence by building and using electric cars. We cannot be held hostage to interruptions of imported oil supplies which today account for over half of America's daily use of petroleum and are a part of trade deficits.
Our converted cars also contribute to the improvement of the environment. They can use any source of electricity, including - solar, wind, biomass, natural gas, as well as commercial sources, including nuclear.
Our electric cars have a range of about 25 miles before recharging. We have learned to use them within this limitation. Over 70% of each driving trip are less than the EV limit. Electric cars can be considered a transportation tool, used where possible.
Our electric cars are simple. A motor, controller and batteries make up the drivetrain. this simplicity contributes to a 15-year life for an electric car.
Our operating experience has shown that using an electric car for short trips saves money. It costs about $1,300 a year to own and operate an electric car. The annual cost for a regular car is 3 times this.
Converting a car costs about $6,000. We anticipate a time when auto companies will offer electric cars, but we are unwilling to wait. Our conversions are a fraction of the probable cost for a commercial EV.
Meetings The FVEAA meets the third Friday of each month in Room 161, Building K-305 at the College of DuPage, southwest corner of 22nd Street and Lambert Road in Glen Ellyn. They start at 7:30 P.M. |
The transformation of a conventional car to a battery powered vehicle is a straightforward process that can be accomplished by anyone reasonably adept at using hand tools found in a homeowner's collection. It helps if you are mechanically inclined, but, with assistance, a conversion can be made with the aid of others. This is one FVEAA purpose.
An electric car is simple. The electric drivetrain has just four major components; batteries, a motor, a controller, and a battery charger. These substitute for the engine of a regular car.
The first step is the purchase and reading of a conversion manual. These give a procedure for a project and sources for conversion material. Once you become familiar with the scope of the work you can seek a car for conversion. The best candidates are manual-transmission cars. (Automatic transmissions will not work as well). Cars should weigh about 2,000 ponds before conversion. Costs are reduced if you can buy a car with a blown engine but otherwise in good shape. The engine of a regular car may give out after a lot of short-range driving. The owner is usually unwilling to replace the engine of a vehicle over 5 years old. Select a car with a body in good shape. RUST is one condition that will send a car to the crusher.
Conversion begins with removal of the engine. The motor must have the same direction of rotation as the engine it will replace and have a speed rating (at rated voltage) equivalent to the engine rated rpm. The motor is coupled to the existing transmission. This will require machine shop services to fabricate an adaptor plate and coupling, or the purchase of existing plates already available for some vehicles.
Motor speed is regulated by an electronic controller that is commercially available. The controller varies the effective voltage applied to the motor.
Deep-discharge, batteries, commercially available at a reasonable price, are used because they are designed for vehicle service. These come in 6, 8, and 12-volt modules; 8-16 modules are usually used for conversion projects. You will have to custom-design the battery racks for your project that can be fabricated by a local welding shop.
Minor components such as power cables, connectors, power relays, control wiring, meters, and other needed miscellaneous items can be purchased from commercial sources.
About 4-5 months of evening and weekend work will be required for a project.
After conversion it will be necessary to retitle and license the car as an electric. Liability insurance should cost about $250 annually. You are now ready to use your new electric car.
The cost of material, including the basic car for conversion, and contract labor will be $6-8,000, depending on the project complexity.
Declaration
of Energy
Independence
A Declaration by the Fox valley Electric Auto Association
The freedom of any United States citizen for unrestricted travel anywhere within the USA is an essential part of our liberties. With this freedom comes the obligation of each citizen to act in a responsible manner during his journeys. Laws establishing vehicle construction and performance have been adopted, together with standards and regulations governing vehicle orderly operation, by the States.
External events and technological developments make necessary a review of our personal transportation. The universal ownership of affordable cars has caused us to become ever more dependent on the personal vehicle. With it, the driver can go anywhere he desires, be accompanied by anyone he chooses, feel secure, and travel at any time. Suburban development has been based on the travel freedom provided by the personal auto.
For six decades the availability of reasonably priced petroleum fuels has been a vital part of this transportation. Gasoline supply has been interrupted only three times during this period, in 1941-44 during wartime rationing, in 1973 in the first OPEC embargo, and in 1978 in the second OPEC embargo. Each of these events restricted our travel freedom.
We are becoming more aware that use of personal cars for travel has exacted an environmental price. The pollution associated with growing automobile use in urban areas is becoming more acute, despite advances in ant-pollution technology. The larger effects of burning the worlds accumulated store of fossil fuels becomes more evident with each new investigation. The future supply of petroleum based fuels obtained from foreign sources is a matter of both supply and economic concerns.
We the members of the FVEAA do therefore today declare our energy independence from petroleum use for urban personal transportation. The vehicles we construct utilize the electrical energy that, in the Chicago Area, is 85% obtained from nuclear sources and 15% from low-sulfur coal. Nuclear fuel adds nothing to air pollution, and low-sulfur coal does not contribute to acid rain.
We invite our fellow citizens to join us and build their own electrically powered cars, and to support our call for an accelerated development of mass produced cars using electricity as their power source.
Presented this 22nd Day of April, 1990
on the 20th Anniversary of Earth Day
This page was created by George Hamstra (hostage).
The last update to the page was on Monday, April 19, 1999.
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