My DIY Subaru Electric Forester Sport
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Registered User
Joined: Jul 2011
Posts: 5
From: Bozeman Montana
Car Info: 2008 Subaru Forester EV
All-Electric Subaru Forester Sport
Four years ago this month I removed the boxer engine from my brand new 2008 Forester Sport. My wife thought I was crazy, and I'll admit to having some doubts. Folks in the electric vehicle community were telling me a Subaru was a bad choice for an EV because of it's weight, lack of aerodynamics, and complex all-wheel-drive system. They suggested a smaller older car - maybe an old VW Rabbit or Porsche 914.
But now I can say the Forester turned out to be a great choice for my DIY EV conversion. The car drives much like a stock Subie, but is quieter, doesn't need to warm-up on cold Montana mornings, there's no muffler to drag in deep snow, you don't clutch when you stop, and it never needs an oil change, tuneup or trip to the gas station.
I can plug the car in to any standard 110 volt outlet. At home, I charge it overnight while we sleep. Depending how far I drove that day, it takes between 4 and 12 hours to fully charge. If I want to charge faster, I can plug into a 220 volt "dryer" outlet. Each morning, I drive off with a full tank of electricity.
When the sun shines, I use the stored energy produced by our 3 Kw rooftop solar array. Then, the SubiEVee is a true zero emission vehicle. If it's cloudy, the juice comes from the grid. That costs about 2-1/2 cents a mile. In this part of the country, utility power is generated by a mix of hydro, wind, geo-thermal, natural gas and coal. Best of all, we can give the finger to Exxon-Mobile. They just spilled 1000 barrels of crude into the pristine Yellowstone River, not far from us.
Today, EVTuners.com, an on-line magazine, published a cover story about the "SubiEVee" project. Links are below.
http://www.evtuners.com/2011/07/12/subievee/
Photos:
http://www.evtuners.com/project-car-...um=9&gallery=9
Would enjoy reading your thoughts about my car.
Ron Gompertz
Bozeman, Montana
But now I can say the Forester turned out to be a great choice for my DIY EV conversion. The car drives much like a stock Subie, but is quieter, doesn't need to warm-up on cold Montana mornings, there's no muffler to drag in deep snow, you don't clutch when you stop, and it never needs an oil change, tuneup or trip to the gas station.
I can plug the car in to any standard 110 volt outlet. At home, I charge it overnight while we sleep. Depending how far I drove that day, it takes between 4 and 12 hours to fully charge. If I want to charge faster, I can plug into a 220 volt "dryer" outlet. Each morning, I drive off with a full tank of electricity.
When the sun shines, I use the stored energy produced by our 3 Kw rooftop solar array. Then, the SubiEVee is a true zero emission vehicle. If it's cloudy, the juice comes from the grid. That costs about 2-1/2 cents a mile. In this part of the country, utility power is generated by a mix of hydro, wind, geo-thermal, natural gas and coal. Best of all, we can give the finger to Exxon-Mobile. They just spilled 1000 barrels of crude into the pristine Yellowstone River, not far from us.
Today, EVTuners.com, an on-line magazine, published a cover story about the "SubiEVee" project. Links are below.
http://www.evtuners.com/2011/07/12/subievee/
Photos:
http://www.evtuners.com/project-car-...um=9&gallery=9
Would enjoy reading your thoughts about my car.
Ron Gompertz
Bozeman, Montana
Last edited by SubiEVee; Jul 15, 2011 at 08:52 AM.
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Joined: Jan 2008
Posts: 6,849
From: Cheesesteakville
Car Info: 05 wrx wagon, 90 celica alltrac, 66 mustang
Sweet, what a neat project. Now you just need to make an impreza diesel "pusher" trailer, for longer trips. It can charge you up and act as a hybrid to get up steep grades.
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