Cheap electric cars

Cheap electric cars are hard to come by. Here’s why.

First, it’s the batteries. Storage batteries are still expensive, around $ 900 per kWh for newer lithium batteries. A gallon of gasoline has the energy equivalent of about 36 kWh. Therefore, storing the energy in a US gallon of gasoline in a modern battery pack will cost you approximately $ 30,000. That’s why a new Nissan Leaf with a 24kWh battery pack costs close to $ 40,000 before incentives.

So how can you find a cheap electric car when batteries cost so much? There are a couple of ways.

Get a NEV. If you’re not in a rush, get yourself a used neighborhood electric vehicle. Some of these little cars can move up to 40 mph (64 kph) or so. You can have a 2007 Zenn for $ 5,300, a 2008 Zap Xebra for $ 4,500, or a 2007 Flybo for $ 4,500.

Modern NEV can hit 35 mph and can have a range of up to 50 miles (80 km) or more. Some are a little faster, some a little slower, and the range can vary. However, if you are in a city where speed is not important, an NEV is a good solution. If you need more range and speed, check out used electric cars.

Get a used electric vehicle: Used electric cars that you can enter, turn the key, and leave will cost you around $ 7,500 and up. This is a general figure, you can get a deal for less, but it will most likely require a new set of batteries. Note that at the listed price, your range will also be between 20 and 40 miles. Again, you might get lucky and hit 60 miles, but that’s a long way to go for the cheap EV.

Here’s why: Battery type and weight. Old lead-acid batteries are relatively cheap and easy to come by, but they take up a lot of space and don’t hold much power. At the end of the day, 1,200 pounds of batteries can get you 30 miles down the road, depending on conditions. This range can be expanded with driving techniques, proper tires, etc., but not much in most cases.

Here is an example of a battery pack:

– Battery type: Trojan 24 – 12 volt @ $ 125 / ea = $ 3,000

– Package Weight = 24 x 62 lb = 1,488 lb Storage = 24 x 225 AH = 5400 AH

– Package storage = 225AH x 144 volts = 32,256 watts = 32.26 kWh

– This is about 1 gallon of gasoline energy equivalent

Depending on the weight of the electric car, motor, controller, terrain, temperature, and driving style, a gallon of gas in an older, less efficient EV could get you around 40 miles. However, you are more likely to get less. This is the main reason people sell their conversions.

If you want a cheap electric car, try an NEV or maybe a used conversion. Be prepared to change batteries and work with range limitations.

Do Your Own Conversion – This is probably the cheapest way to get an electric car. However, several important notes:

1. You need some kind of workshop, the tools, the skills, the time, and some luck to get there. While it is entirely possible, it is not for most people. Check the web to see the guys who turned a forklift into an electric vehicle for something like $ 900. Actually, there was more than that, but it’s a rock-bottom price.

2. You may end up with a performance between that of the NEV and that of the used electric vehicle just described. One thing about old donor parts is that they are old. There is a reason they are deeply discounted. You may be able to extract certain efficiencies, but it will take considerable effort.

There is a saying the Tappet Brothers have on NPR (Saturday in most places in the Continental US): “The cheap man pays more” Although this is not always true, we recommend that you approach the electric vehicle cheap with considerable research.

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