Im building a formula hybrid vehicle, and Im wondering what would be the difference from using AC and DC motor

Question

Im building a formula hybrid vehicle, and Im wondering what would be the difference from using AC and DC motor

Answer 1

Compared to DC motor controls, early AC motor controls were more complicated, larger, less reliable, less efficient, and more expensive. Early AC motor controls did not provide very high starting torque or stable and accurate control at low speeds.

Compared to DC motors, AC motors are smaller, lighter, less complicated, more efficient, less expensive, more reliable, and easier to maintain. That has provided great incentive to develop better electronic controls for AC motors. With the introduction of integrated circuits, surface mount technology, microprocessors and high power isolated gate bipolar transistors, AC drives steadily overcame many of the advantages of DC drives. The development of flux vector control techniques has provided AC drives with performance capabilities equal to DC drives. AC drives now also provide equal or better efficiency and reliability. Since AC motors are much less expensive than DC motors the AC motor and controller packages are less expensive than the DC drive packages.

AC drives now have all of the advantages except that DC packages may be smaller and less expensive in the smallest sizes such as for small appliances and portable tools.

If you are working on an amateur project, what you should use will be determined by what you can understand and economically obtain.

Answer 2

DC motors are easier to control, especially using digital (computer) systems. DC Control systems are usually more reliable than AC Control systems

AC Motors require a sourcde of Alternating Current, but ALL batteries are Direct Current (DC).  Therefore, you need what is called an AC Inverter to make Alternating Current (AC) from Direct Current (DC)batteries.

This means more expense, AND more parts that could possibly fail, thus reducing the  reliability of the vehicle and making it more expensive to repair.