EV Instruments
OwnerSteve Condie
LocationDanville, California United States map
Vehicle1976 Ford Courier
MotorPrestolite 4001 Series Wound DC
Drivetrain4 speed manual
ControllerCafe Electric Zilla Z1K-LV
Batteries13 Universal Batteries 121100, 12.00 Volt, Lead-Acid, AGM
System Voltage156 Volts
Charger
Custom variable voltage bulk charger with a timer controlled step down to 13.5 volts per battery float setting.
HeaterNone installed yet.
DC/DC Converter
None - Uses a Hawker auxiliary battery
InstrumentationBattery pack volts, motor volts, amp draw from battery pack, and auxilliary battery volts. See picture. Speedo and engine temp light came with the truck.
Top Speed85 MPH (136 KPH)
I haven't taken it over 80 yet, but there's still room on the topside. 85 is calculated by max RPM and gearing.
AccelerationDepends on the Zilla setting. Average around town accelleration at 250-300 amps on a fresh pack is just like an average gas car. When the Zilla is set for maximum perfomance the acceleration is surprising.
Range30 Miles (48 Kilometers)
30+, actually, based on actual experience on multiple runs at different speeds and road conditions. After about 20 miles acceleration becomes somewhat leisurely. At 30 miles the pack voltage rebounds to 12.5 per battey after a few minutes rest, indicating that there's still more capacity left in the batteries. I haven't taken it further to find out how much more.
Watt Hours/Mile350 Wh/Mile
350 is the average based on miles per run divided by w/hr out of the socket to refill.
EV Miles
Start:13,055 Miles (21,005 Kilometers)
Current:13,655 Miles (21,970 Kilometers)
Total:600 Miles (965 Kilometers)
 
    As of 10/21/2006
Seating Capacity2
Curb Weight3,320 Pounds (1,509 Kilograms)
Measured weight at truck scale including charger but subtracting driver's weight.
Tires14" pickup tires
Conversion Time6 months worth of very part time weekends
Conversion CostThe Courier was originally converted to run with a 96V Curtis controller and golf cart batteries. I upgraded it to a 156V Zilla/AGM system for about $4,000.
Sold to make room for my Tropica revival project September 2006.

code by jerry