ICE Removal

The good news was received Thursday evening Sept. 11th when Richard Lane of REV Consultants informed me that my motor had arrived and was ready for pickup. I was really happy about this because I was beginning to think that I might not see anything until October or later because of the production backlog at Netgain. At this point I arranged to pickup the motor in Ottawa on the upcoming weekend. The only other part delay is the Curtis Controller. After speaking with Bryan from EVA, I was informed that Curtis was also experiencing production delays. I am hoping this delay is not long.

On Saturday Sept. 13th, it was the "EV of Destruction" as they say. I mounted my video camera on a tripod and kept my digital photo camera close by to record the work. It was time to get our hands dirty. With the much appreciated help from my father-in-law Evan, we removed the hood, put the car up on stands, drained all the fluids, disconnected a bunch of mechanical components and removed the gas engine (with clutch and transmission attached), exhaust, muffler, radiator, A/C and cruise control. After the engine was out of the car, we removed the transmission from the engine as well as the pressure plate, clutch and flywheel which are to be retained for future use with the electric motor. We also removed the ring gear from the flywheel which was very easy. I must say that everything went nice and smooth. Having lots of space to work, useful air tools and an engine hoist sure helps. Of course it also helps to have a pair of experienced professional hands like those of Mr. EV (those are actually his real initials, what a coincidence!!).

Here he is in action (hard at work):



Underside view (from front):



Underside view (from rear):



Views of engine compartment after ICE removed:




View of engine block crank shaft after transmission, clutch, and flywheel removed:



Here is a side view of engine block and crank shaft face. An important precise measurement needs to be taken between the engine block face and crank shaft face using a straight edge. I believe this will determine the depth of the spacer between the electric motor and transmission.



View of transmission while measuring for the size of aluminum plate that will be required to make the adapter plate:



I will need to clean many of the removed parts as well as the engine compartment in the coming days. The clutch will be replaced since it has a fair amount of wear. I will also have to make a template for the adapter plate and shop around for half inch aluminum plate. The next big challenge will be to have the necessary adaption parts machined.

On Sunday Sept. 14th, we took a drive to Ottawa with Elizabeth and the kids to pickup the motor and visit family. I had a chance to chat with Richard in person once again and I also had a look at some the amazing work he does. He was in the process of converting an automatic 2000 Volkswagen Jetta. Although he had not yet finished the conversion, one can easily get a good sense of what it was going to look like. Very impressive, a work of art!

Here is the the Netgain Warp9 motor:

by Jim