AC/DMC - electric powered DeLorean

[gotgraham]

Hi All -

I've had car #3015 for around 5 years now. This is the car that Matt Farah drove in "World's Fastest DeLorean" (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iFEqClpt5ck). Here's some history:

- When I bought the car, it was in terrible condition. The twin turbo GN motor was essentially blown. Wiring harness was really bad. Clutch was horrible. Interior shot. Loads of black widow spiders. I'm positive it had been sitting for years. It was more or less undrivable.
- I talked to Matt about the car a couple years ago. He said it was the worst thing he's driven.
- I pulled the car completely apart. Rebuilt the motor. New suspension. Frame cleaned and painted. Wiring harness replaced (painless). New clutch setup - hydraulic throw out bearing. New interior.
- Car still sucked to drive and therefore sat in our shop for a while.
- We built a Tesla powered Honda Accord (Teslonda - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Nhwl-Skxdzo)
- With a new interest in electric power, I decided to build a 250kw inverter from scratch to drive a Nissan Leaf motor.
- My inverter worked! Now to find a home for the Leaf motor - the DeLorean seemed like a good home.
- I installed the Leaf motor, Gen1 Leaf Battery pack, my inverter, etc into the car.
- It drives like a dream.
- It will be at SEMA this year.
- I have a lot of pictures of this build on Instagram (@gotgraham)

These are the highlights. It's been a ton of work. I'll share some of the latest pics just to be concise. If you want to see anything specific or have questions about any of it I'll add it to this thread.

https://i.imgur.com/nlaw30k.jpg?1

https://i.imgur.com/sliWxrF.jpg?1

https://i.imgur.com/UEas7zj.jpg?1

https://i.imgur.com/VyVF1Fb.jpg?1

https://i.imgur.com/miIOylc.jpg?1

https://i.imgur.com/55HvLI7.jpg?1

[gotgraham]

Quick clarification, the inverter is about 300kw. 800 phase amps @ 385v. It's roughly 350 mechanical hp if I were to push it that hard. I'm running closer to 550 phase amps right now for testing.

The 2588lbs weight is the car complete with batteries, motor, full interior. Weight distribution has improved. 44% front, 56% rear.

Here's some more pictures:

https://i.imgur.com/0QtfOM9.jpg?1

https://i.imgur.com/rfA6t6O.jpg?1

https://i.imgur.com/KWdlOYk.jpg?1

https://i.imgur.com/s4fKOLi.jpg?1

https://i.imgur.com/V4AesG8.jpg?1

[Timeless]

This is 100% fantastic. I saw the Teslonda at SEMA and snapped some photos. I hope I make it this year to see this in person. Great work! :cheers:

[Mark D]

Awesome project, thank you for sharing all the photos and details. Your conversion makes going electric seem so elegant compared to the stock engine.

[DMC-81]

Wow, that's pretty cool! Great fabrication. :thumbup:

[Chris Burns]

Awesome work man!!:)

That car has had an interesting life. It was featured in a few magazines when the engine swap was done back in the 80s. The hood was different then though I think.

Glad you gave it a new chance at life and looks very clean!! Glad you got rid of those ugly aftermarket rims it had before.

[gotgraham]

Thank you! It's been quite a project.

The aftermarket 17's were the first things to go. I replaced them with factory 15's all around. The Wilwood brakes barely clear. I had to relieve the calipers a little.

It's an 81 model, and originally had the gas flap hood. At some point it was in a collision, so everything got replaced with later parts. The interior is / was a two tone thing. It's a mix of grey and black interior bits. I like it.

I still have the 4.1L Grand National setup that was in it along with the 5 speed and associated bits. It's all been rebuilt and has a new McCleod clutch. I machined the bell housing for a hydro throw out bearing which made a huge difference in pedal feel. The main issue is it never felt "right" - which is probably because I didn't spend the time to dial it in. The electric conversion makes the car so smooth and torquey ... and quiet. That said, I was careful to design the conversion in such a way that it didn't make any major changes to the car. I re-purposed mounting holes, etc. Very little was changed in that regard.

Here's a video of it driving. The tach now shows Amps x 100.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z6ZS5K7z_Ps

[Josh]

I was on the fence about going to sema this year (for the first time)
This makes the decision more clear.... ha!

Great work.

[Jason]

Does the heat and AC work?

[Chris Burns]

Found this pic of your car in 1988. Wow!!

[gotgraham]

Found this pic of your car in 1988. Wow!!

Wow! I had always assumed the car was a clone of the banks car. The twin turbo setup had a lot of home made parts on it and was a bit cobbled together - however they're correct in that it is a stage block. And has the belt driven oil pump. Some of the engine bay bits match up. The kicker is the plate matches the plate I have (V6 Buick). My guess is someone picked it apart and messed with it - a lot. Then it sat for a long time.



The heat and AC do not currently work. I'm in the process of wiring the HVAC setup, and installing a vacuum pump for the diverter doors, etc. I have an A/C Compressor from the Nissan Leaf that is driven by the HV battery - I'll install that up front. For heat, I may be able to use the heat-pump method that Nissan uses (run the A/C in reverse). Alternatively I can go resistive.

[mr_maxime]

Nice to see it finally posted here! First good shot of the "transmission" mounts that I've seen. I mentioned in another thread that this was the inspiration for my conversion.

[ssdelorean]

How far can you drive at highway speeds before needing to re-charge?

[gotgraham]

How far can you drive at highway speeds before needing to re-charge?

Around 70-90 miles or so. I have a 24kWh battery pack in it now. Generally speaking most electric cars will go 3-4 miles per kWh. Some a little more and some less. My plan is to upgrade to around 60kWh so I can get a good 200 mile range. That coupled with direct DC charging would give me pretty good practical range. I basically could take it anywhere at that point.

[Drive Stainless]

The Nissan Leaf was never offered with 350HP, so is it typical to increase the power to these types of electric motors to increase the horsepower? If you know that it will make 350HP @ 800 phase amps, will it do 700HP @ 1600 phase amps?

[gotgraham]

The Nissan Leaf was never offered with 350HP, so is it typical to increase the power to these types of electric motors to increase the horsepower? If you know that it will make 350HP @ 800 phase amps, will it do 700HP @ 1600 phase amps?

It's very common. As an example, think of R/C cars or planes - where people commonly add more voltage or amperage to increase power. Another example would be guys pumping up their kids power wheels. It's the same for cars. In theory the Leaf motor could do that (700hp). The limitation (generally) comes down to how well you can cool it.

[mr_maxime]

It's very common. As an example, think of R/C cars or planes - where people commonly add more voltage or amperage to increase power. Another example would be guys pumping up their kids power wheels. It's the same for cars. In theory the Leaf motor could do that (700hp). The limitation (generally) comes down to how well you can cool it.

When reading about arlins hi power inverter, I thought that 800amps was about the max the leaf motor could take.

Also could you post a picture of your throttle?

[gotgraham]

When reading about arlins hi power inverter, I thought that 800amps was about the max the leaf motor could take.

Also could you post a picture of your throttle?

No one really knows. I believe Arlin was pretty sure it could hit 500hp. The limiting factors are probably cooling and the gearbox. That said, 350hp is plenty lol.

Here's my throttle setup. It's an EV West pot connected to the factory throttle cable. This is located behind the driver's seat.

https://i.imgur.com/wmHyrDv.jpg?1

[mr_maxime]

Wow... I was thinking of driving to put it closer pedal, but that's way easier. I got the one from Thunderstruck Motors.

[Exolis]

Dang, that is awesome. As an Engineer at Nissan, Leaf Owner and DeLorean owner, this is really awesome and basically something I've been thinking about doing myself. Sorry for the million questions, but this is great!

1. Are you using the BMS from the Battery Pack? Essentially, did you just take apart the pack and moved the modules to fit in the vehicle?
2. Are you using the Leaf Onboard Charger, Vehicle Control Module or any original modules?
3. Have you modified the 12V System much? It seems like you are doing quite a bit of work to it but wondering how much you are changing.
4. Are you adding Power Steering to it? Not sure how much more the battery adds to the weight and over all feel of the car while driving.
5. Since you are using Mechanical Pedal with Pot, does Regen braking still work on it?
6. Have you considered using the Side Pontoon areas to put some of the Battery Modules?
7. Did you buy the Powertrain new, used, donor/scrap car?

That's about all the questions I have for now... Again, that is awesome and some great stuff man. Seeing this is very motivating!

[mr_maxime]

I've been talking to gotgraham on Instagram for my swap so I can answer some basic stuff and let him elaborate on everything else. He steered me towards a less complicated solution so I'll focus on that. This is the kit I got with accessories. https://www.thunderstruck-ev.com/dilithium-vcu.html I had them swap the leaf pedal for their throttle pot.

Leaf onboard charger won't work outside the leaf. He told me he's using the 6.6kw elcon charger. I plan on using the same.

12v gets charged with DC DC converter from Chevy, (volt or bolt can't remember). The thunderstruck controller is programmed to work with it. Gotgraham is using his own controller.

Brake regen is programmable with the controller and I think gotgraham has it in his too. There is zero throttle regen which works when throttle input is 0v, and brake regen which works by splicing into the brake light. When brake light is the controller ignores throttle input.

I got an entire used motor assembly out of a wrecked car on ebay. This included the charger (power delivery module) , inverter, motor and transmission. There are so many wrecked leafs that you can get really good deals.

Using the stock inverter isn't as exciting as this car, but its a less complicated route to take to start off with.

[Drive Stainless]

I enjoyed reading through these free DIY plans for an inverter and also watching his (MPaulHolmes's) videos:

https://www.instructables.com/id/200kW-AC-Motor-Controller-for-Electric-Car/

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6FUEo_TXSDg

[mr_maxime]

I enjoyed reading through these free DIY plans for an inverter and also watching his (MPaulHolmes's) videos:

https://www.instructables.com/id/200kW-AC-Motor-Controller-for-Electric-Car/


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6FUEo_TXSDg

Here's another one for the leaf motor. I believe he was working on turning it into a kit

https://endless-sphere.com/forums/viewtopic.php?f=30&t=63982&sid=fe2fa5e7fd21716de296a92597f04532

[Bob635]

Absolutely beautiful work!

[gotgraham]

Dang, that is awesome. As an Engineer at Nissan, Leaf Owner and DeLorean owner, this is really awesome and basically something I've been thinking about doing myself. Sorry for the million questions, but this is great!

1. Are you using the BMS from the Battery Pack? Essentially, did you just take apart the pack and moved the modules to fit in the vehicle?
2. Are you using the Leaf Onboard Charger, Vehicle Control Module or any original modules?
3. Have you modified the 12V System much? It seems like you are doing quite a bit of work to it but wondering how much you are changing.
4. Are you adding Power Steering to it? Not sure how much more the battery adds to the weight and over all feel of the car while driving.
5. Since you are using Mechanical Pedal with Pot, does Regen braking still work on it?
6. Have you considered using the Side Pontoon areas to put some of the Battery Modules?
7. Did you buy the Powertrain new, used, donor/scrap car?

That's about all the questions I have for now... Again, that is awesome and some great stuff man. Seeing this is very motivating!

Thank you! No prob!

1 - I'm using the Zeva EVMS v3 for my BMS. I'm using 48 Gen1 Leaf modules - 24 in the rear and two groups of 12 up front.
2 - I'm not using any of the Leaf electronics. For DC-DC I'm using the Chevy Volt unit. Charger is Elcon TC 6.6kW.
3 - When I bought the car, the factory harness was in horrible shape. I removed all of the main harness and replaced it with a rear-engine Painless wiring kit.
4 - No power steering. It feels pretty good. There'a about 200 lbs extra up front. It doesn't seem to change the feel much.
5 - Yep, regen works. My motor drive has 2 throttle inputs. One for regen and one for accel. I can adjust how much regen I have with the 2nd pot. When I back off the accel, the regen phases in. I have it limited to 70 battery amps regen. I guess that would be about 25kW.
6 - I didn't consider it, but it's a good idea. At least for a few modules. I bet you could fit 6-8 modules in the sides. I'm curious how the weight would affect the fiberglass. Not sure how strong it is.
7 - I bought the complete motor assembly from a wrecking yard from a 2016 Leaf.


This is the motor drive / inverter I'm using. I bought the bare boards from Arlin, parts from Digikey, made a reflow oven and assembled the boards. I would not recommend this route unless your electronics background is pretty good. I spent almost 6 months sorting stuff with it. It works great now though! The main issue is that the working component values / revisions to the board don't match his docs - so it was a lot of debugging with a scope to get things right. It's a great design though. Car hauls ass.

https://endless-sphere.com/forums/vi...96a92597f04532

[gotgraham]

Absolutely beautiful work!

Thank you!!

[Timeless]

This is 100% fantastic. I saw the Teslonda at SEMA and snapped some photos. I hope I make it this year to see this in person. Great work! :cheers:
.... and I was lucky and saw it at SEMA 2019. I'm the one who ran out to snap a couple photos during the Friday afternoon roll-out. He's a shortened video from the roll-out at the rear of the convention center.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GWDbSvBlt54

[gotgraham]

.... and I was lucky and saw it at SEMA 2019. I'm the one who ran out to snap a couple photos during the Friday afternoon roll-out. He's a shortened video from the roll-out at the rear of the convention center.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GWDbSvBlt54

Oh fun! I remember. That was a fun show.