Project Electric 106

[Eeyore]

Ok people Ive kept these thoughts to myself for long enough and I think its time to open it up and get more thoughts and opinions. Basically what I really want is a 1.8 turbo with gti head and manifolds etc but that costs money and everyone is messing around with that kind of thing. My idea is to make an electric 106 that will be a bit of fun and a challenge to build and then can be used as a short range daily. However it also needs to be able to make it up the hillclimb at pugfest! So here goes...

History#

Peugeot did actually make a 106 'electrique' and it had a top speed of about 60mph and had 43hp. Doesnt sound like a lot but remember peak torque is as soon as the motor starts turning! There were a few electric saxos as well I have read. Needless to say they didnt sell many and they didnt make them for long. The french government bought most of them.

How many left?




The Car

My plan is to get a phase 2 106 gti (preferably white) with a blown engine. Reason for this is it should weigh about 800kg which is less than the 306 or 206. Remove and sell the engine, exhaust and all the other fuel related parts to try and make up the cost of the car so I have it as cheap as possible. Parts to sell are fuel tank, exhaust, engine, radiator, fuel lines etc. I want it to be white so it ties in with the whole eco and clean thing. I really like the gti body kit so want that too. I want it to look like this.



Some 106s came with electric power steering so I need to find an electric power steering pump and use that so I have power steering. Ive been informed that the brakes need a vacuum from the engine too so I will need a vacuum pump to make sure they work as well. Any electric windows will be swapped to winders in order to save weight and use less electricity. Of course lowered 60mm with strippage and bucket seats.

Lots of info about weight saving here.

Adapter Plate

In order to mount a motor to the gear box I need to design and manufacture an adapter plate to mount the motor to the gear box. Although I don't need the gears the idea would be that you could use different ratios and most importantly it makes it super easy as there is no messing around with drive-shafts etc. For reverse some extra wiring would be needed. The plate should be made out of some half inch aluminium and should have holes to line up with the gearbox and the motor. Places will make custom plates for about £800 but Jonny can apparently do it too. Anyway I'm sure it will be cheaper than that. Also a 1.5 NAD 106 gearbox may offer better ratios!

Coupler

I need a coupler to connect the motor shaft to the gearbox shaft. The gearbox has splines and the motor may have splines too. This is probably the hardest bit to make as the two need to be aligned perfectly or the coupler will vibrate and shear. May be able to make this up on the cheap as well although I may need to make a few spares as well.

Motor

This is the important bit really. I need a motor from a forklift or a milk-float. Something really beefy but not weighing a million tonnes. Its almost certainly going to be second hand and needs rebuilding. Really needs to have some kind of mounting face on it as well in order to bolt onto the mounting plate.

Mounting

Id aim to be reusing the exisiting engine mounts with a custom welded frame to support the motor end of the motor/gearbox drive.

Batteries

Time for some numbers. I want to be running 144V as 72V is lame. That means I need 12 12V batteries. Lead-Acid ones are really heavy and charge a limited number of times before they are ruined. LiPo batteries can be charged thousands of times and weigh 1/3rd of the normal batteries. They are more often than not smaller as well. 12 batteries should see a range of around 50 miles and if i put another 12 in parallel then that could be increased to about 90 miles. Top speed should be about 70mph. Pretty good im thinking but also rather expensive as they are £200 a battery new. To distribute weight some would be in the boot, some in the floor pan (low as possible becauseracecar) and maybe 2 in the front to balance it out. Id fabricate some kind of cover for the batteries and carpet over the top so it was all nice and OEM. I also need to find a 144V charger to charge the beast.

An additional 12V battery is used to power the normal lights and electrics.

Controller

Another important bit going on here. Probably going to need some help from Cully and Wingnutz and his mate. The controller controls the speed of the motor. The higher amperage the controller is the better the acceleration. The higher the voltage the better the top speed and efficiency of the car. So... I want acceleration but in reality range is the one to have. Seeing as its one or the other im wondering if it would be possible to have two controllers in parallel and switch between the two meaning that effectively there could be a sports mode and an eco mode. Controlling the speed of the car should be as easy as connecting a 0-5Kohm potentiometer to the end of the throttle cable.

More Fun

To get it on the road it will need to be MOTd, i presume it would need a tax disc but it wouldnt actually cost much as its electric and it would have to undergo one of those vehicle tests they always did in scrapheap challenge. Then it would just need lots of charging so Id put the charger in the fuel cap.

Unless I buy a trailer to get it to shows maybe I need some kind of alternate fuel. Maybe I could throw a generator in the back and that would be enough to sustain long distance drives.

If anyone has any thoughts or suggestions please let me know. This is by no means a project ready to go but I have been thinking about it for a while now and reckon it would be possible with time, space and money.

[Ricky]

Sounds interesting, also sounds mega expensive!

Good luck with it, be one of a kind if you can get it together and working.

[Piggy]

I been looking into this too...but with an ax as they a good 150kg lighter than a 106.
also the only way Im guna do this is by having an independent diesel/petrol generator to charge batteries and increase distance per charge.

the biggest expense is the batteries and motor.
and just getting a forklift motor is not quite as easy as it sounds

but pleased you going to use a gearbox...thats my plan too...you guna use a clutch or go clutchless?

[tenwierdufos]

Love it, i shall be watching.

[Eeyore]

I been looking into this too...but with an ax as they a good 150kg lighter than a 106.
also the only way Im guna do this is by having an independent diesel/petrol generator to charge batteries and increase distance per charge.

the biggest expense is the batteries and motor.
and just getting a forklift motor is not quite as easy as it sounds

but pleased you going to use a gearbox...thats my plan too...you guna use a clutch or go clutchless?

Plan is to go clutchless. When the gearbox isnt under stress it should be possible to change gears. Never going to go into reverse easily though so definitely need some wiring to reverse the motor.

Finding a motor is difficult. You can get kits which have everything you need for about £3000! It should be possible to do everything for under £2000 though which is my plan.

[Piggy]

yeah silly money...need to know people in finding one really.

yeah clutchless does make it simpler...its more due to the way the motor supplies power rather than the inertia of a engine that helps sooo much.

[Tom]

Sounds heroic and insane and expensive and weird and all sorts of other cool shit!

[Piggy]

all the best by the way!

[lolsteve]

Will you put solar panels on the roof? extra charge as you drive

Also why go to the expense of buying those batteries? why not a 1.5d and see if you can further improve the mpg from it, lighten the engine components/gear ratios etc?

Interesting idea though and do look forward to what comes of it

[Eeyore]

Will you put solar panels on the roof? extra charge as you drive

Also why go to the expense of buying those batteries? why not a 1.5d and see if you can further improve the mpg from it, lighten the engine components/gear ratios etc?

Interesting idea though and do look forward to what comes of it

Yeh solar panels on the roof is extra charge but only a bit extra. It could be used to charge the auxiliary batter for radio and lights etc but wouldn't really have any charging capability for the 144V system. Using a 1.5 NAD would just defeat the point of the project really. Ive got a HDi which is some of the cheapest motoring ever so im not really interested in another derv project right now. This is meant to be something awesome and different. Something that isnt just another high power derv or racing gti6.

[Dum-Dum]

If you want lead acid batteries I've got one or 2 that work OK in the garage that were only going to go for scrap but id mount them on a frame under the boot.

I would mount a flywheel and clutch on the engine to make it easier to control the speed and economy.

This will never be cheap or light. If you are looking for something top do just because you can then fine but if you want to save money think of how far you could drive a 106nad on the £2k that will cost to do your conversion.

You could run the vac pump and alternator off a toothed gear off the fly wheel.

[Eeyore]

If you want lead acid batteries I've got one or 2 that work OK in the garage that were only going to go for scrap but id mount them on a frame under the boot.

I would mount a flywheel and clutch on the engine to make it easier to control the speed and economy.

This will never be cheap or light. If you are looking for something top do just because you can then fine but if you want to save money think of how far you could drive a 106nad on the £2k that will cost to do your conversion.

You could run the vac pump and alternator off a toothed gear off the fly wheel.

Its basically an idea to do just to do it. Not because I want cheap motoring. Ill have to look into a flywheel and clutch but tbh just a solid drive to the motor should be okay. Having a flywheel would improve economy but also increase wear on brakes etc having to stop that weight every time. I think :S. No alternator for this as its got a seperate 12v battery to power all the normal electrics. Vac pump will be electric too.

---

Also just for reference this is the dash in a 106 electrique.



there is no gear stick



and it also has two horns. One normal one for beeping cars and another for beeping pedestrians who didnt hear you coming because youre electric!



and they had a small petrol heater so you still had all your lovely heating.

Batteries are one above the motor under bonnet and one at the rear where the spare wheel normally goes. Traction batteries are 120v fuel tank is made smaller about 6ltrs this is for the webasto petrol water heater so that your heating is the same as a normal 106

source

---

and from wikipedia....

In 1995, Peugeot launched an electric powered version of the 106, called the 106 Electrique.[3] This was offered in a number of European countries including France, Belgium, The Netherlands, Norway and the United Kingdom.
The electric powertrain was developed and built by French engineering company Heuliez. The car used Nickel-cadmium battery technology manufactured by Saft Groupe S.A., had a top speed of 56 mph (90 km/h) and had an official range of 100 km (62 mi).
Despite the high price of the vehicle, Peugeot anticipated demand for around 15,000–20,000 Peugeot 106 Electriques each year, with an expected total production run of 100,000 vehicles.[4] In the end only 6,400 Peugeot 106 Electriques were sold between 1995 and 2003, most purchased by the French Administration.

---

One was for sale just last week and sold for £3660!

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?V...25&afsrc=1

[Poodle]

I'll just point out a couple of things to get you thinking:
Firstly, how often do you see an electric car with a gearbox..?
Secondly, this website is awesome - http://www.diyelectriccar.com/forums/sho...n-669.html
Finally, might want to consider energy transfer and how you're going to link up the batteries if they're spread about the car, more cable length means more resistance, not to mention expense.

Really interested to see this project get going, hope you do it.

[Piggy]

gearbox allows you to run a smaller motor which thus is lighter and cheaper.
this is a cool idea...I dont think you'll have too many issues with battery location...esp if tank and spare wheel is removed

---

(and amazing how ahead of the times pug was....and actually a decent speed/range too)

[cully]

sam remember the Electric Kart i built!

yes i too would love to build this sort of thing but unfortunatly i dont have £10k to hand

you best bet is to buy a scrapped electric forklift, as they tend to scrap these when the battery packs are dead, as the batterys are so expensive to replace

remember to look for the highest voltage battery pack types as these produce the greatest torque

as for your 'electrique' one went throug ebay two weeks ago for £400 including a spare motor gearbox controller assembly as spares and repair

---

theres another on the bay at the mo

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Peugeot-106-El...3386225d6d

[Eeyore]

sam remember the Electric Kart i built!

yes i too would love to build this sort of thing but unfortunatly i dont have £10k to hand

you best bet is to buy a scrapped electric forklift, as they tend to scrap these when the battery packs are dead, as the batterys are so expensive to replace

remember to look for the highest voltage battery pack types as these produce the greatest torque

as for your 'electrique' one went through ebay two weeks ago for £400 including a spare motor gearbox controller assembly as spares and repair

---

theres another on the bay at the mo

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Peugeot-106-El...3386225d6d

yes its the same on but relisted! They go for quite a lot! It would be a a travesty to remove those stickers and fit a gti kit though D: Maybe if it was less than a grand Id think about it! Yes the electric cart was awesome!

---

I'll just point out a couple of things to get you thinking:
Firstly, how often do you see an electric car with a gearbox..?
Secondly, this website is awesome - http://www.diyelectriccar.com/forums/sho...n-669.html
Finally, might want to consider energy transfer and how you're going to link up the batteries if they're spread about the car, more cable length means more resistance, not to mention expense.

Really interested to see this project get going, hope you do it.

the gearbox isnt a gearbox as such. its just a very easy way of mounting the motor and connecting it to the drive shafts. If it were rear wheel drive you wouldnt need one, but for front wheel drive its just a lot easier to keep the box.

[Dum-Dum]

Maybe start looking at french ebay and see if you can find a cheap one.

[Poodle]

I see your point, but you could achieve that by hooking it straight up to the diff.

You may also find the forklift motors are a bit industrial for your needs, depends what your priorities are I guess.
Mind if I ask where are you doing your research? Could do with some more reading material myself.

[martyn92]

Didn't even know these existed. Looking forward to see what happens

[Eeyore]

I see your point, but you could achieve that by hooking it straight up to the diff.

You may also find the forklift motors are a bit industrial for your needs, depends what your priorities are I guess.
Mind if I ask where are you doing your research? Could do with some more reading material myself.

Its just easier to connect it to the gearbox. It keeps it nice and simple. Anyway im just googling everything. There are a few guides on how to do it and one really good one which comes up all the time.

[Poodle]

Fair enough, will keep doing what i'm doing then i guess lol.

[Eeyore]

Batteries are going to be the killer expensive thing for this. If anyone knows where to get lots cheap then let me know!

[procta]

a car for toms306! no more mpg worries then!
i have heard a few people doing conversions, one i saw a old rover forsale on ebay that ran folk lift battaries or somthing, to power it. I am sure it was a college project.

[PUGNUT_XS]

Good luck with the project, on the battery side it may be worth getting a set of heavy duty gel batterys from a military landrover FFR, they power all the radio kit and you can pick up a set of 4 at around £300.

If you want to go for a dare to be different, what about fitting a bike engine?.

[Poodle]

Haha i'll let you know if I find more than I need.

---

/ can afford lol.

[silverzx]

Would it not be cheaper to buy the car off eBay for £3k?

[Eeyore]

yeh it probably would. Ive had this idea and planned it out but the likelihood of it happening is fairly slim. Batteries are just too expensive.

[procta]

i am sure there was a artical in one of the car mechinics monthly about doing an electric conversions on cars.