I have cut away the bad rust patch on the rear wheel well

This is the other side and it is in good condition.

I have to match the other side to this. I will use sheet metal

and build up a base and then use bondo to get the details.

Soldering the wires for the new radio.

soldering wires

This is satisfying and quite easy to do.

This is the finished radio adaptor now ready for installation.

This is the transmission with the other half of the lovejoy coupler.

The spider is also shown (the white thing)

I used some old pieces of aluminum as braces for the new ceramic heaters

the two are joined together

I have them all wired up with #12 wire which will handle the 144 volts system

installing the new core.

I made a sheet metal cover and routed the wires where

the old pipes used to run. It is now ready to be put back in the car.

This is quite a puzzle. I have to remember how it all goes back.

There is still some engine coolant left in the heater core.

This is the core box with all the baffles for directing the air

to the different areas of the cabin

The open heater core box

I had to remove most of the Dashboard to get to the old Heater core

This was the hardest part of the whole job so far.

This is the evaporator core which had to be removed first to get to the heater.

Finally I can at least see what I am trying to get to.

Giving the rear drum brakes a revamp.

Trying to make sense of all this existing wiring.

Most of it will remain untouched but I need to find ways to activate

some of the new components.

The other half of the coupling is on the motor.

I need to take these parts to a machinist to create the coupling

The first Lovejoy Coupler was too small.

It failed on me in the first 2 weeks and had

me off the road for over a week.

This shows the shattered coupling.
This is a later blog entry and happened in the first 200 miles of driving

It is removed

I need to remove the center splined piece from the clutch plate.

The Transmission is out and being cleaned

Removal of the right transaxle

Transaxle is out

Battery box mockup

The transmission needs to be removed too

A lot has happened since the last post.

My friend and master mechanic, Emilio Zullo, removed the engine and all that goes with it. I dragged it home on a trailer and rolled it into my workshop (garage), just before the 4th largest snow storm since the 1860's hit us.

I have managed to remove the transaxels and the transmission.

All the struts and shocks have been replaced. I also removed the coil springs and sent a sample of the front and back to 'Coil Spring Specialties' a company in Kansas.

Here is their website.

http://www.coilsprings.com/electric.aspx

I have also made cardboard battery mockup's so that I can plan the battery placement.

Most of the parts have arrived. This means that there should be no delays on that front.

I have been getting the garage cleared out so that I can fit the car in once the engine has been removed. This engines days are numbered.

This past week I have managed to upgrade the tires and wheel rims. I have also ordered new struts all around as they are all shot and need to be good to handle the extra weight of the batteries. I have also found a great company that custom make coil springs which will be engineered for the new weight. I have to send the old springs so that they can copy the shape and get the fit right.

Here is the link to that company
http://www.coilsprings.com/

It does take a long time so put your order in as soon as you can (about 3 months).

Why am I converting a car to all electric?

I have a Chevy suburban and I use it a lot. I pull trailers with it and carry my family and pets on weekend trips of about 200 miles. I also use it as a daily run around during the week where I just have to go distances of less than 10 miles to drop my kids at one thing or another. I rack up about 50+ miles a day. It's a lot of gas, which I am unhappy about. So I was looking for a way to change, and Ben, my son got a remote controlled electric car which is so impressive and fast, we just had to see if anything like it came in a larger size. This is where Youtube stepped in and has become a valuable source of information. And so the journey has begun.

It has been a long road deciding which make and model car I should use as a donor vehicle. At first I was all set on a modern VW beetle, as I wanted the car to be noticeable and have a modern and appealing line. The disadvantage seemed to be that I would lose the rear seats to battery space. I binned that idea and started the long process of research again. Many hours spent looking through the classified lists and craigslist. I finally spotted something that I liked and tried to find other EV converters who had done the similar make and model. Bingo! I found two others who have made theirs work. It is a 1994 Toyota Celica ST.

I am at the stage where the car is sitting outside in the drive and the major parts have been ordered. I expect them to be here in about 3 weeks. In the meantime I am getting the tires, brakes and suspension figured out. The car is in great shape. The engine has 188,000 miles on it and seems like it is brand new. Very powerful with no problems, so I am looking for a buyer. They can come and see it running in the car before I remove it. Yes, it's gas guzzling days are numbered.