• Quick note - the problem with Youtube videos not embedding on the forum appears to have been fixed, thanks to ZiprHead. If you do still see problems let me know.

Cont: Electric Vehicles II

The complexity in EV repairs comes in the elecrtonic control package the particular model uses.

A simple 'dumb' system would only control the voltages to the motor vía the foot pedal. And of course recharging the battery. Add regeneratión braking, driving modes, eTraction control and whatnot it gets quite complex really fast.

This is where the money will be after battery replacement costs.
Even my son's toy ev motorbike has an alarm system, brushless motor and more tiny thin wires than my 1990 no computer van had.
If a mouse chews up the wiring it's dead.
If it gets under water it's probably dead too.

As someone with mechanical experience I can safely say specialists will be needed to address the electronics side of it all.
That pool of repair guys hasn't been created yet in most areas.
 
"After battery replacement costs"? Well, since most people aren't going to be looking at any "battery replacement costs", presumably we'll never get to the next stage. Whatever it is.

All cars these days have complicated software. It's a fact of life.

If a mouse chews up the wiring of your ICE car, it's dead too. If your EV gets under water the likelihood is that it will be the cost of drying it all out (carpets, upholstery, soundproofing and so on) that causes it to be scrapped, not anything wrong with the drivetrain. People have driven cars away after they've been in flood water, without even getting warning lights coming on.
 
I would love to have an EV just outside the house instead of a 12 year old March. But I would want the one with the most bog standard electronics and control systems.
I don't need it to comunícate with a damn iPhone to enable all the features, the car doesn't need outside communication of it's own.

It needs to go, steer, brake and charge the battery.

Just like I would much rather have pro level battery yard tools instead of gasoline versions. Problem is I can buy five two stroke gasoline tools for the price of one electric. And I need all five .
 
Last edited:
8enotto said:
The complexity in EV repairs comes in the elecrtonic control package the particular model uses.

A simple 'dumb' system would only control the voltages to the motor vía the foot pedal. And of course recharging the battery. Add regeneratión braking, driving modes, eTraction control and whatnot it gets quite complex really fast.

This is where the money will be after battery replacement costs.
Even my son's toy ev motorbike has an alarm system, brushless motor and more tiny thin wires than my 1990 no computer van had.
If a mouse chews up the wiring it's dead.
If it gets under water it's probably dead too.

As someone with mechanical experience I can safely say specialists will be needed to address the electronics side of it all.
That pool of repair guys hasn't been created yet in most areas.
Click to expand...
This is very much true. But in reality, this is the easiest for companies to perfect and make mass market.

What I find interesting is that people are now converting ICE vehicles into EVs. Literally your own DYI EV with 100kw battery packs with everything else needed including the electronics. And repairing electronics today is far easier than most people make it out to be. It's actually a bit of a hobby for me. What I can fix vvery inexpensively today amazes me and I'm doing it. I can repair tiny SMT (surface mount) circuit boards. I do it with a $150 microscope and a $200 soldering setup. It's fun repairing some $1000 piece of equipment and fixing it for a $2.00 capacitor or 50 cent resistor. Or maybe replacing an IC that you bought for $10 or $20.
 
Edison out of Canadá is doing some amazing hybred/ EV conversions. Your old car or truck, thier kit made to your specs.

I fully understand a lot of folks love all the bells and whistles, electric options and 'smart' control systems.
I like hand crank windows, lever adjust seats and a standard trans. I can fix it myself.
No ABS, power options, driving modes, AC or whatever.
 
8enotto said:
Edison out of Canadá is doing some amazing hybred/ EV conversions. Your old car or truck, thier kit made to your specs.

I fully understand a lot of folks love all the bells and whistles, electric options and 'smart' control systems.
I like hand crank windows, lever adjust seats and a standard trans. I can fix it myself.
No ABS, power options, driving modes, AC or whatever.
Click to expand...
I'm with you 100 percent. But I certainly don't mind power windows. The motor for them is cheap and simple as is the switch and maybe a relay.

What I don't like what they frequently do today is run everything through a body control module (a computer). I had a car a few years ago with phantom intermittent problems that affected everything from the windshield wipers, to the power windows, to the car door locks, to the car alarm to the parking lights, to various sensors, etc. Anyone of these thing would stop or start working for no apparent reason. It is easy and fairly inexpensive to replace a switch, a motor, a relay, or bulb. But the BCM is a thousand dollar computer with proprietary software. A major pain.
 
Last edited:
8enotto said:
Edison out of Canadá is doing some amazing hybred/ EV conversions. Your old car or truck, thier kit made to your specs.

I fully understand a lot of folks love all the bells and whistles, electric options and 'smart' control systems.
I like hand crank windows, lever adjust seats and a standard trans. I can fix it myself.
No ABS, power options, driving modes, AC or whatever.
Click to expand...
If I go electric, this would be the kind of thing I'd like. Unfortunately, I no longer have the vehicles to put the stuff into, but yeah, manual everything, wing windows and a sunroof to keep cool. Lights, wiper, horn and maybe a radio, and every other watt goes into pushing it.

e.t.a. acbytesla's post came before I finished mine. I had a Jeep not long ago that had a body control module go bad, such that it believed the tailgate was open, and ran the battery down. The only cure was a manual switch to cut off the circuit that included it, which also controlled the interior lights and the radio memory. The module was, of course, very expensive. Sometimes the alarm would go off too, but that only happened for a while, then stopped, so I never figured out why - maybe moisture in the steering column.
 
Last edited:
acbytesla said:
This is very much true. But in reality, this is the easiest for companies to perfect and make mass market.

What I find interesting is that people are now converting ICE vehicles into EVs. Literally your own DYI EV with 100kw battery packs with everything else needed including the electronics. And repairing electronics today is far easier than most people make it out to be. It's actually a bit of a hobby for me. What I can fix vvery inexpensively today amazes me and I'm doing it. I can repair tiny SMT (surface mount) circuit boards. I do it with a $150 microscope and a $200 soldering setup. It's fun repairing some $1000 piece of equipment and fixing it for a $2.00 capacitor or 50 cent resistor. Or maybe replacing an IC that you bought for $10 or $20.
Click to expand...

a lot of the electronics of an ev are probably beyond the ability of many people, and i’m sure much of the software is proprietary anyway. but that’s the bells and whistles. however the basics of pressing a pedal to make an electric motor go is pretty simple stuff.
 
Almost always a Cryslur product issue. The most common fix is to unplug and clean the plugs going into the module. Always load it up with that water sealer grease too.
2nd common problem is a wire got nipped along the way and loses contact intermittantly.
Good luck finding that.

This is the kind of crap EV cars don't need.
 
8enotto said:
Almost always a Cryslur product issue. The most common fix is to unplug and clean the plugs going into the module. Always load it up with that water sealer grease too.
2nd common problem is a wire got nipped along the way and loses contact intermittantly.
Good luck finding that.

This is the kind of crap EV cars don't need.
Click to expand...
Slightly off topic but in the case of my Jeep's body control module, I traced all the wiring all the way through, and all the components (a long and daunting job including all sorts of panel removals) and finally, using the wiring diagram, duplicated the switching locally at the module. No joy. It was the module itself. I just put in a toggle switch, changed the power source for the radio memory to another circuit, and turned off the interior light circuit when I parked it for any length of time.
 
dirtywick said:
a lot of the electronics of an ev are probably beyond the ability of many people, and i’m sure much of the software is proprietary anyway. but that’s the bells and whistles. however the basics of pressing a pedal to make an electric motor go is pretty simple stuff.
Click to expand...


You hit the nail on the head saying that pressing a pedal to make a motor go is pretty simple stuff. But battery management requires a bit more sophistication. But even that is quickly being commonplace. A charging system for batteries is constantly being refined. Not just for EVs but off grid battery banks.

I could be wrong, but I kind of see a PC computer track. There is nothing to stop slapping an open source computer with open source software capable of controlling dozens of circuits. I'm surprised that car manufacturers aren't building a floor battery pack and drive train and then slapping a car body on top of it.
 
It's exactly what they're doing. Kia/Hyundai/Genesis has EGMP, VAG have another, Stellantis another., etc, etc. I would find the names, but early morning rheum means I can't see what I am typing
 
8enotto said:
I don't need it to comunícate with a damn iPhone to enable all the features, the car doesn't need outside communication of it's own.
Click to expand...
I drive a 2018 Model 3. I can use my Nokia phone to communicate with it, but I don't have to. Just use the key card to unlock and "start" it. The phone is handy if I want to track the car, see where it is, how fast it is going or to remotely change the charging status. What EV features are you only able to access with a phone?
 
When your phone can act as your keycard, people will stop carrying their keycard.

When people's phones have replaced their car keys and their wallet and all the payphones, you better hope it doesn't break or get stolen or just run out of battery. Convenience over resilience. All your eggs in one convenient basket.
 
When you have your phone, you don't need a wallet or purse.

I mean, I agree it's dumb, but it sure is convenient, and it works right up until it doesn't.
 
Clone my phone and gain access to my car, home, life and banking options? I think not.
I unplug the Alexa ball if I see it was left on and my wife isn't present. Now she unplugs it too unless she wants music.

Yeah, maybe not easily done by all but in some cases it is possible already . Luddites still exist out there.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Back
Top Bottom