Electric Conversion Crate Motor?

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66stepside
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Electric Conversion Crate Motor?

Post by 66stepside »

I was just reading this article in Hemings:


https://www.hemmings.com/stories/2020/1 ... 2020-10-30

With Tesla, hybrids, E-cars from quite a few manufacturers, and TV shows like Vintage Voltage based out of Wales, it was a matter of time before someone offered a crate E Motor set up.

Super spendy. Has anyone seen a 4wd e vehicle out on the trail?


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Last edited by 66stepside on Fri Oct 30, 2020 7:52 am, edited 1 time in total.
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dodgerammit
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Re: Electric Conversion Crate Motor?

Post by dodgerammit »

66stepside wrote: Fri Oct 30, 2020 7:52 am I just was this article in Hemings:


https://www.hemmings.com/stories/2020/1 ... 2020-10-30

With Tesla, hybrids, E-cars from quite a few manufacturers, and TV shows like Vintage Voltage based out of Wales, it was a matter of time before someone offered a crate E Motor set up.

Super spendy. Has anyone seen a 4wd e vehicle out on the trail?


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I'd say before long we will. The Wrangler e concept. The new "GMC" Hummer :roll: I read another article this morning and it claimed about 100 miles of range. Dunno if that was meaning 100 mi radius since this one said 200 miles.

Given I just plinked down $7K for the driveline rebuild of my Jeep (yeah the transmission was included along with all the extra upgraded parts), there may be a larger market before long. Prices will come on down, I would guess. My biggest concern is that pack. Make it fit in a fuel tank location, and I'm more interested. I'm not giving up cargo volume for the conversion. Otherwise, it seems to be a proper and simple way of doing it. Couple it to the transmission and leave the rest of the drivetrain as is.
84 Grand Waggy-Radio Flyer (Garnet Red/3M Ebony Metallic woodgrain, with honey interior) AMC 360 :cry: 2004 4.8LS/Advance Adapter/727/242 D44/AMC20 Serehill tailgate and headlight harnesses :fsj: Ongoing thread-viewtopic.php?t=11897

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Stuka
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Re: Electric Conversion Crate Motor?

Post by Stuka »

I think we will be seeing more and more of these conversion kits. This particular one is a bit underpowered, but great for a daily driver that you don’t take long distance.

Range really depends on the vehicle.
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Re: Electric Conversion Crate Motor?

Post by 66stepside »

Yeah, agreed. When anything first rolls out, it is spendy, spendy, spendy.

I know most E conversion shops retool wrecked E car components for the conversion process. I am curious to see where this all leads.

E motors in hotrods has been a thing for many years- even E bikes (think Orange County Choppers’ trike with one motor on each rear wheel!) are on and off again.

I do know when an E car is in an accident, the battery packs require special handling/removal/reinstallation at facilities other than the body shops... most of the time.

I was the passenger in a mid level Tesla a few summers ago and the acceleration was unlike anything I had ever experienced: a heart/stomach to throat suffocating kinda of experience. The tires never squealed once. Surreal.

I doubt the E rig would make a good trail rig with the current technology. Maybe in time?


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Re: Electric Conversion Crate Motor?

Post by Stuka »

There is a guy with a full electric JK Wrangler 2dr that did the Rubicon in it. It crawled really well because of the smooth power delivery. He did bring a Honda generator to top off the batteries at the mid way point to be safe. He has a bunch of videos on you tube.
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Re: Electric Conversion Crate Motor?

Post by SJTD »

They could sell it as a package. The Jeep and a trailer with a beeg motor/generator to charge it back in camp that runs all night? :lol:

Could run cables from the trailer to the Jeep for the highway.
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Re: Electric Conversion Crate Motor?

Post by 66stepside »

Stuka wrote:There is a guy with a full electric JK Wrangler 2dr that did the Rubicon in it. It crawled really well because of the smooth power delivery. He did bring a Honda generator to top off the batteries at the mid way point to be safe. He has a bunch of videos on you tube.
Whoa. Interesting- and actually pretty cool.

I’ve considered doing an electric conversion on the FC, BUT it is way above my pay grade for skill sets.


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Re: Electric Conversion Crate Motor?

Post by 66stepside »

SJTD wrote:They could sell it as a package. The Jeep and a trailer with a beeg motor/generator to charge it back in camp that runs all night? :lol:

Could run cables from the trailer to the Jeep for the highway.
Like a Jeep catheter!? Hahaha, until the tech improves- the E conversion might have to stick with the light weight rigs for 4wd.


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Re: Electric Conversion Crate Motor?

Post by marc »

Started shopping around for a crate conversion for my 84 j10. So far, one outfit that advertises a two component drop in system has blown me off. They have an elegant solution, using original transmission and controls and other oem components. Quoted me a very high price and complained the j10 was a "dangerous installation", likely questioning the stability of the j10. Might be truth to that, Truth is that the j10 dos not need the same power and torque of a Ford F-150 that their system is modeled on so likely it doesn't need the weight. . I'd be satisfied with an equivalent to the AMC 258. Curius as to the experience of others?
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Re: Electric Conversion Crate Motor?

Post by Stuka »

Dangerous? How so? From a construction standpoint, a same era F150 isn't much different.
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Re: Electric Conversion Crate Motor?

Post by marc »

Evgine, which makes the drop in two unit conversion for an F-150 removes roughly 600 lbs. of engine, tankage and exhaust from the vehicle and then adds 1320 lbs. of batteries, motor and electronics, mostly batteries, shifting the the weight distribution upwards so perhaps they think that a J10 would be unstable? The person who wrote me offered no explanation, I wrote back questioning that and asking if the price they quoted was for a finished conversion or just the two units. I suspect they just don't want to be bothered so I doubt I will get a reply.
For my use, an electric equivalent to the 258 would be fine, I don't need the top end horse power they are loading into their system. But I do like the idea of a self-contained drop in system. I don't want the fun of the electrical engineering involved in mixing and matching components and re structuring the vehicle. Plus it moves the industry one step closer to the point where electric repowering is a commodity rather than a specialty item.
J10 1984, very stock with AMC 258.
Truck appears to have been rebuilt or restored at one time
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Re: Electric Conversion Crate Motor?

Post by Stuka »

J-Trucks sit lower than F-Series trucks, so it can't be a rollover or stability thing.

I totally expect electric conversions to start to become more readily available and common place.
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Re: Electric Conversion Crate Motor?

Post by marc »

I didn't know that F series were lower. And this is a stock unlifted J10. So my suspicious mind says that they either were thinking small jeeps or they really don't want to be part of the sidewalk repower market opting for high end conversions and fleets. Their fancy website appears to be open to DIY sort of repower but they don't answer their phones and took some repetition and persistence even to respond to me. Too bad, I rather liked the idea of throttling back their motor and having extended range on the batteries.
Is the axle width a factor? If the f-150 has a significantly wider track than the J10, raising center of gravity and moving it aft could be a stability factor.
J10 1984, very stock with AMC 258.
Truck appears to have been rebuilt or restored at one time

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Re: Electric Conversion Crate Motor?

Post by marc »

I have continued my investigations into an electric crate motor for the J10, another company offers a crate motor but it is for smaller vehicles, 85 HP. Easy conversion for a lighter car. They offered the 85 HP for $16,000.00 but the only other one they brought up was a 300 HP system for $60,000.00. Wrote back inquiring about a 110-130 HP alternative to replace the 258 but have not heard back from them. Marc
J10 1984, very stock with AMC 258.
Truck appears to have been rebuilt or restored at one time

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Re: Electric Conversion Crate Motor?

Post by rocklaurence »

Ive been considering the concept of adding auxiliary E power to Dropped Sport trucks. Many of them have a raised bed to allow the rear to lower over the axle. This setup would allow plenty of room for the batteries and motor forward and behind the rear axle. Can you imagine an extra 300 ftlbs of torque tied to the original V8?

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Re: Electric Conversion Crate Motor?

Post by letank »

E motor but keeping the slush box is a bit of a waste of $$$, there is so much wasted energy with the slush box, this is why the E vehicles are good because they do not have the same transmission, it is all electric.
Then the charging monitoring is tricky, you do not want to cook those Li-ion battery and start a bbq...
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