This afternoon, all of center console gauge wiring was completed and the center dash console was installed. There is still a rat's nest of wires but everything is labeled and should connect back up easily. Once the heater controls are installed and connected, I will put in the new meter in the center dash and hook up all of the instrument wiring. The last piece will be cutting the hole in the panel for the JLD404 and hooking it up. If everything checks out, I will be able to put on the center console cover and finally finish up the interior. That will be a great relief as I actually started the interior last spring. There is a new headliner, recovered sun visors, repainted panels, cleaned carpets, new covering on the panel behind the seats, and new seats. The interior should pretty much look like a showroom Fiero back in 1985.

CENTER PANEL INSTALLED

Thanks for visiting,

Randy

EVTV BUILD DATABASE

Not much going on with the Fiero EV build last week but did decide to post the build on the EVTV Database. The pictures I have are not that great so I went back through my picture archives and finally found a few that will work for now.

1985 FIERO GT EV CONVERSION

This weekend all of my time was spent cleaning carpets and finishing up all of my Christmas shopping, so nothing new on the build. Looking forward to a new year and finally finishing up the conversion.

Thanks for visiting,

Randy

WHAT HOURS?

After weighing the Fiero yesterday, I decided to take if for a test drive to see if my watt hours decreased. As  274 pounds of batteries were taken out of the front of the car, I was expecting the watt hours per mile to decrease around 27.4 from the 288 to around 261 watt hours per mile. To my surprise, the watt hours per mile came down to 228, using 120 volts as the average. 

When I removed the batteries, not only was the weight reduced but the front of the car came up a couple of inches, possibly changing the aerodynamics of the car. Additionally, the belly pan was removed. The other issue is what do you use as voltage when figuring how many watts you used? Before I started the drive, the voltage was around 135 volts and as the drive progressed, the voltage was slowly declining. Below is a graph that illustrates the difference in watt hours depending on what you use as the voltage.

TEST DRIVE WATT HOUR TABLE

Another factor is that the entire test drive today was in forth gear, as the shift cables are out of adjustment again. As stated above, I was expecting the watt hours per mile to decrease by around 27 watt hours but it dropped anywhere from 31 to 60, depending on the voltage I plugged in. I can see a real need for a good watt hour meter that counts up and down and gives an average watt hour reading based on samples of current and voltage.

I thought I had a log file of the drive but when I opened it, there was nothing but zeros in the accelerator voltages, so I must have actually turned it when I was sitting in the driveway.

The garage is cleared out and ready to pull the car in when the weather turns cold this weekend and I have started getting contactors and wiring ready to bottom balance the other two packs.

Thanks for dripping by,

Randy

TWEAKING IN THE ZIVAN CHARGER

This morning I drove the Fiero another five miles around the neighborhood, to drain the pack down  before charging again. While still not perfect, the gears can be shifted reasonably well now and I was able to go through all four gears without any hang ups. The amp hour reading was down to around 14.5 and the voltage was at 120 volts before starting out.  During the drive the voltage did not dip below 98 volts, under light acceleration and stabilized around 113 volts, when cruising at 40 mph in fourth gear. The car had been driven 19 miles since the last charge and had used 45 amp hours, so it used around 2.4 amp hours per mile or using 120 volts as an average, 284 watt hours per mile. 

When I got back from driving the car, the charger was hooked up and the fourth charge of the Better Place module was started. The voltage had come back to 120 volts and I took readings after charging for one minute, and then every half hour, until the end of the charge, where I tried to document when the charger started cutting back the amperage.

CHARGE GRAPH

This time the module was charged to 136.9 volts or 4.27 volts per cell. The amperage cut back to 2 amps but the voltage did not hold steady and kept climbing. Even after adjusting down the voltage and current pots, the charger still did not shut off so had to be manually shut off again. The pack took 47.71 amp hours and had 14.7 amp hours left in it from the previous charge, so should have 62.41 amp hours or 7489 watt hours in it. Tomorrow I am going to take the Fiero out on the interstate again and have a route that should give me about a 18 mile drive.

PLANNED INTERSTATE 70 - 18 MILE TEST DRIVE

While the module was charging I rearranged the air compressor, shelves, and table, in the front of the garage, so the Fiero can be moved back in. The other two modules will be moved to the front of the garage to bottom balance but there should be room now for the car to be pulled in if the weather turns cold. I moved some items that were on the shelves into a plastic storage box and put it all in the Better Place shipping crate. It has proven to be quite handy to store the unused components from the Better Place packs, like the contactors, cell measuring connections, and BMS. The new location for the table will be much bette, as their is an electric outlet close by and it will be more out of the way now.

My focus is going to turn back to getting the meters, tablet, and interior installed in the car, so I can get the passenger seat back in. The car runs so much better with just one of the three modules, I am excited to take my wife, son and his fiance for a ride. I also have some co-workers asking me about the build, so would like to be able to drive it to work sometime soon.

Until next time,

Randy

FABRICATING BATTERY MODULE HOLD DOWN CLIPS

The pack is going through the final bottom balance with the JLD404 set up to turn on a small flash light bulb at 2.7 volts and then discharge until the battery reaches 2.5 volts. The cells all seem to have pretty much settled out at just under 2.7 volts.

While bottom balancing the cells, I am fabricating steel end plates and have welded clips on the plate to hold down the module. On the inside plate, the angle is long enough that holes will be drilled and the plate bolted down to the support angles. I wrote about them it the last post but here is the completed inboard end plate.

INBOARD MODULE END PLATE

On the outboard side of the module, the end of the angle used to make the rack is not long enough to bolt the clips, so the clips will be turned around and will hook under the rack angle. Below is a rough diagram and a picture of the cell in place to confirm that the clips will hook the end of the angle.

OUTBOARD HOLD DOWN CLIP DIAGRAM

CELL WITH CLIPS UNDER RACK ANGLE

With any luck I will be able to start mounting the module tomorrow, if I can find a metric tap to thread the holes for the tie bars.

Thanks for visiting,

Randy

BATTERY RACK

This morning the Fiero was taken to Gary's Place, a local mechanic in Kirkersville, but not before having to mess with the controller. The laptop had to be hooked up so the pot box could be re-calibrated. Once that was done the car ran flawlessly the 3 miles to the shop. The HiPower cells seem to be sagging less and as soon as I let my foot off the accelerator, the voltage came right back up to 124 volts.

The car was driven up on the lift and once off the ground, we started measuring and figuring where to place the angle. Once under the car, it became apparent we could mount the rack to the cradle without having to weld anything to the firewall or sides of the engine compartment. The front angle was placed completely across from the drivers side to the passenger side.of the cradle and the rear angle was run about 25 inches and terminated just before it came in contact with the motor adapter. The module is 23 inches long, with the existing end plates, so with the new thinner steel end plates I am making, will be less..

BATTERY RACK

CELL PLACEMENT TEST

Angle clips will be made and welded to the bottom of the new steel plates and will bolt to the angles, to hold the pack in place. There will be four, 3/8 inch bolts and fender nuts will be used so the bolts will be able to just be screwed in, without having to put a wrench on the bottom.

HOLD DOWN ATTACHMENTS

HOLD DOWN ATTACHMENT DETAIL

BATTERY RAIL ATTACHMENT

Thanks for visiting,

Randy

STEERING WHEEL, SEATS, AND CONSOLE - INTERIOR NEARING COMPLETION

Work is continuing on getting the USB charging set up to power the Dell Venue 8 Pro and a button has been located that will short the data leads until the charger starts on the tablet. The tablet did start charging when the cable went only to the charge port, but when a Y was connected with a mouse, the tablet did not start charging, so still working on the details.

USB CHARGE ENHANCER

A Panel has been fabricated to mount the JLD404 and the USB button but I am still working on a way to properly mount the button. Once the meter and button are mounted, the center console will be able to go back in the car. Also, I found a volt, amp, amp hour and watt hour meter on EBAY, so it may be used instead of the JLD404, as tracking watt hours would be a little more accurate way of measuring the charge than amp hours.

VOLT, AMP, AMP HOUR, WATT HOUR METER

The steering wheel cover has been sown on and the wheel mounted back in the car, so no more vice grips to steer the car when having to move it.

STEERING WHEEL COVER INSTALLED

The new seats that came with the car were removed from storage and cleaned. a bolt was missing from one of the brackets, so one was robbed from the original seats. Upon closer inspection, the seats were in much better condition that I remembered and the solid charcoal gray will look good in the Fiero.

BETTER SEATS

The Better Place Module that is being bottom balanced is getting close to being finished and once the individual cells have all settled under 2.7 volts, will be charged to about 2.75. This will require manually stopping the charger at 2.75 volts as the lowest setting on the Powerlab 6 is 3 volts. The Powerlabs are good but could be so much better if Revolectrix would offer a different firmware package for EV use than is currently available for the RC crowd.

POWERLAB 6

I have decided to take a week off work next week to fix the back porch steps, install a new front storm door, and try to make some progress on the Fiero. I have an offer to tow the Fiero to EVCCON and I am really close to having it ready in time, so will try to find a way to get one of the Better Place modules mounted. I sent an email about a towing dolly on Craigslist but have not heard back from the seller, so it may already have been sold.

NEW STEPS FINISHED

FINDING A SPACE FOR A MODULE

Tomorrow I am going to paint the new steps and back porch floor, then start on the new storm door. It is supposed to get up in the 90's in Ohio, so I am planning on starting early and finishing up in the evening when it starts cooling down a little. Hopefully there will be some time in there to start fabricating the angle iron to hold the Better Place Module. I may check with a local mechanic, who has a lift and is a pretty good welder, to see how busy he is. If he doesn't have much going on, he may be able to help get the Better Place Modules mounted.

Until next time,

Randy

WIRING COMPLETION IS LOOMING AHEAD!

Saturday the MC4 Cable Connectors arrived, so the connection was made through the fuse to the positive side of the battery pack for the heater. The diodes for 12 volt positive power, that I had originally thought were needed, arrived also but upon closer inspection of the correct schematic, found that there is a relay that puts power to the fan switch when the heater button is in any position but off. This circuit will make sure the fan is always running when the heater is turned on.

HEATER SCHEMATIC

After the MC4 connectors were made up and the fuse installed in the circuit, the final connection to the traction pack was made.  Then work moved to the inside of the car to make up the control wiring to 12 volts. All of the circuit is completed and ready to connect to the heater control unit when the center console goes back in.

FUSE INSTALLED HEATER CONNECTED

12 VOLT HEATER CONTROL CONNECTIONS

Earlier Saturday morning, I made a trip to Jo Ann fabric and picked up some grained vinyl to cover the top plate on the center console, where the Dell Venue 8 will be mounted. The vinyl was cut and adhesive was used to attach it to the wooden top cover plate. Part of the vinyl was clamped in place and while the adhisive was drying, work was done on other projects. Getting the vinyl attached was a little bit of a challenge, but it ended up working out nicely.

CENTER CONSOLE TOP COVER CLAMPED

TOP COVER AND VENUE 8 MOUNTED

CONSOLE COVER BACK VIEW

Then to the motor compartment, where the wiring was run around the firewall, to determine how much wire will remain inside the car. The project was started on Saturday, so Sunday Morning, I continued by getting out my box of loom and installing it over the new wiring harness run. After the loom was installed, I made up the speedometer plug and started fastening the loom to the firewall. The run from the controller and pot box have not been fastened down yet, so now that all of the wiring is complete, can be attached.

WIRING HARNESS LOOMED

SPEEDOMETER CONNECTION 

The Better Place module was connected to a 40 watt light bulb and readings were taken on each cell to determine the lowest one. As expected, the voltages went down as measurements were taken from the first cells bottom balanced to the last ones. The first few cells were back up to over 2.9 volts and tapered down to the 2.7 range on the other end of the module. The JLD404 is connected to the lowest cell and will be drained down until it reaches 2.5 volts, which is actually around 2.595 volts when measured with the volt meter. Then the pack be allowed to sit for a week or so and try and the low cells will be charged back up to 2.7 volts with the Powerlab 6. I am not sure this will work but it is worth a try, as trying to bottom balance all of them to 2.7 volts through discharging is not working.   

BOTTOM BALANCING CONTINUES

I needed to get a piece of aluminum bar, more loom clamps, and some screws to mount the clamps, so it was time to make a run to Millersport Hardware. Do It Best Hardware seems to be a bit less expensive than the Ace Hardware in Baltimore, OH but the Ace has a better selection of stainless steel fasteners. When I left the hardware store is was just about Beer:30, so I stopped at Valero and picked up a 6 pack of Sam Adams  Rebel IPA. After enjoying a couple if them, it was time for a little NAPcar along with the EVTV Weekley Show. It was getting rather warm outside, so thought it was a good time to take a break before continuing work on the Fiero this evening.

So entertained and refreshed, I went back out and made brackets for the wiring harness runs, while continuing to monitor the Better Place battery module discharge. When I came in around dark, the lowest cell was at 2.58 volts and the highest cell was around 2.75. I am hoping to bring the pack down enough that the highest cell is around 2.7 volts. I have a small night light hooked up and I am hoping that by discharging at a low amp level, the cells will not drift back up as much.

Anyway, that's it for this week, 

Randy 

SLOW GOING BUT HEADLINER IS OUT

Even though it's officially spring, winter just seems to want to linger around. Last night we got another half inch of snow and it was cold and windy in Columbus, OH. I was hoping to have the interior back together by the middle of April but that is only a couple of weeks away, so it looks like it may be the end of April before it is back together. My garage is small, so I need to be able to work on the car outside to have room go get in and out of it easily until some of the interior parts are put back into the car. To compound problems, I have had trouble finding volt and current meters that will mount back into the existing holes in the dash and am now waiting on  another set I ordered a couple of weeks ago to arrive. 

REMAINS OF LAST NIGHTS SNOWFALL

On Sunday, I started removing the trim so the head liner can be removed. Everything went well and the headliner was out in about an hour.

BARE ROOF EXPOSED

HEADLINER REMOVED

The sun visors will also need to be re-done, so I am going to need to see if I have enough headliner material to do everything and if not, will need to order some more. 

SUN VISORS

Also, I am going to need to find some LED lamps for the dome light. Blue LED lamps were ordered for the instrument lights but the dome lights need to be white. They seem to be readily available on EBAY, so I will start searching for some.

DOME LIGHT ASSEMBLY

Progress is slow but it is still progress, so I will keep plugging along.

Thanks for visiting,

Randy