VW Bus Electric Conversion Part 11: Install the EV West Motor Adapter, Flywheel and Clutch

[@dhulkiflmcknight2275]

Nice work.

[@FixItScotty]

Glad you liked it!

[@pstreetgarage7304]

Nice job Scotti! Interesting stuff !

[@HubertusSchaper]

Hi Scotty, Great video arround the Installment from parts for the E engine looking forward for the marriage E motor & transmossion.Good luck🍀🇺🇸👍🏻.Greetings.Hubertus🙏🏻🇳🇴🇳🇱☮🇺🇸

[@FrankGraffagnino]

exciting! looking forward to the next one

[@ianlighting100]

I’m gearing up to my own VW T2 conversion. My approach is to reuse a Nissan Leaf motor and battery, with the Resolve-EV controller. But I’ve been a bit stuck on clutch or not. I see you’ve answered a similar question earlier, and you say that it’s the better way. So maybe I will. I had thought the weight saving was worth losing it, but better cruising speed is probably more worth having in balance. Thanks.

[@FixItScotty]

First let me say, congrats on your upcoming project. It sounds REALLY cool! Second, I have ZERO experience doing an EV conversion using an OEM production setup like the Leaf, Tesla, or Volt. Those options are a little different than the lower voltage Warp9/Hyper9/HPEV setups. That said, I still lean toward using a clutch on any conversion that involves using the stock transaxle of the classic vehicle. Just my opinion. Now if you were to leverage the full drivetrain of the Leaf including the transmission to turn your axles, that would be ideal. But I think you would be happier in the long run having access to different gearing while driving. Like I mentioned below, in my previous Spitfire conversion, I would often just leave it in 3rd gear and drive it like an automatic in town (0 to 45 mph). But if I wanted a snappy start, I could put it in 2nd to take off and upshift from there. That's not to say you can't still choose gears with direct drive, but it's difficult to shift while moving. Also, for me, the clutch is a safety feature. If something goes wrong with the contactor or controller, I don't need a cockpit battery shutoff or anything. I can just kick the clutch and the engine is disengaged. Anyway... there's a lot to consider. My upcoming video will discuss the T2 transmission a little more, so be sure to check that out and let me know if you have any other questions.

[@ianlighting100]

@@FixItScotty thanks for your thoughts there. I’m definitely approaching this in a slightly conservative manner. I have a working 74 T2 that I aim to convert. But rather than destroying a working bus, I’ve got hold of a complete rust bucket that will be my prototype test bed. Once I’m happy I can transfer the results over. Yes I plan to keep the original transmission. The other advantage of reusing the Leaf setup is keeping the 50kW charging via Chademo. It’s not a common charge format, but there’s now a CCS adaptor so I could take the bus anywhere. (Im in the UK BTW). Most DIY conversions I’ve seen have low charging speed. Fine for a day trip maybe, but going to festivals is no good if you need a 10 hour recharge en route! The Resolve EV controller should manage all the complexities, plus allows me to upgrade to a higher capacity Leaf battery once it’s all proven working. Looking forward to your next episodes.

[@operator8014]

I've always thought it was weird that the EV co's don't want you to run a transmission, just motor straight to t-case or drive shaft. Having a 5-speed behind the motor makes an EV 20x as attractive to me.

[@FixItScotty]

I think direct-drive conversions are a legacy thing. It seems like nowadays people are using crate motors or Telsa drive units that include the gearing. Or going with a standard flywheel adapter like mine. My last conversion included the clutch. 1st gear never got used, and I could drive it like an automatic in 3rd gear from 0 to 45 mph. But it's nice to have the option to use 2nd gear for quick starts and 4th gear for cruising.