Is there a place where i can get my car turned into an electric hybrid from a gas guzzuling car.?

Question

i want to keep my 1992 jeep wrangler driving for a long time, but there is an issue of gas it does get 20mpg thats ok for now but when gas prices go up i want to be fully electric.

Answer 1

Electric hybrids have become the flagship for those in our society so environmentally conscious that they are willing to spend a premium to show the world how much they care. Unfortunately for them, their ultimate ‘green car’ is the source of some of the worst pollution in North America; it takes more combined energy per Prius to produce than a Hummer.

Before we delve into the seedy underworld of hybrids, you must first understand how a hybrid works. For this, we will use the most popular hybrid on the market, the Toyota Prius.

The Prius is powered by not one, but two engines: a standard 76 horsepower, 1.5-liter gas engine found in most cars today and a battery- powered engine that deals out 67 horsepower and a whooping 295ft/lbs of torque, below 2000 revolutions per minute. Essentially, the Toyota Synergy Drive system, as it is so called, propels the car from a dead stop to up to 30mph. This is where the largest percent of gas is consumed. As any physics major can tell you, it takes more energy to get an object moving than to keep it moving. The battery is recharged through the braking system, as well as when the gasoline engine takes over anywhere north of 30mph. It seems like a great energy efficient and environmentally sound car, right?

You would be right if you went by the old government EPA estimates, which netted the Prius an incredible 60 miles per gallon in the city and 51 miles per gallon on the highway. Unfortunately for Toyota, the government realized how unrealistic their EPA tests were, which consisted of highway speeds limited to 55mph and acceleration of only 3.3 mph per second. The new tests which affect all 2008 models give a much more realistic rating with highway speeds of 80mph and acceleration of 8mph per second. This has dropped the Prius’s EPA down by 25 percent to an average of 45mpg. This now puts the Toyota within spitting distance of cars like the Chevy Aveo, which costs less then half what the Prius costs.

However, if that was the only issue with the Prius, I wouldn’t be writing this article. It gets much worse.

Building a Toyota Prius causes more environmental damage than a Hummer that is on the road for three times longer than a Prius. As already noted, the Prius is partly driven by a battery which contains nickel. The nickel is mined and smelted at a plant in Sudbury, Ontario. This plant has caused so much environmental damage to the surrounding environment that NASA has used the ‘dead zone’ around the plant to test moon rovers. The area around the plant is devoid of any life for miles.

The plant is the source of all the nickel found in a Prius’ battery and Toyota purchases 1,000 tons annually. Dubbed the Superstack, the plague-factory has spread sulfur dioxide across northern Ontario, becoming every environmentalist’s nightmare.

“The acid rain around Sudbury was so bad it destroyed all the plants and the soil slid down off the hillside,” said Canadian Greenpeace energy-coordinator David Martin during an interview with Mail, a British-based newspaper.

All of this would be bad enough in and of itself; however, the journey to make a hybrid doesn’t end there. The nickel produced by this disastrous plant is shipped via massive container ship to the largest nickel refinery in Europe. From there, the nickel hops over to China to produce ‘nickel foam.’ From there, it goes to Japan. Finally, the completed batteries are shipped to the United States, finalizing the around-the-world trip required to produce a single Prius battery. Are these not sounding less and less like environmentally sound cars and more like a farce?

Wait, I haven’t even got to the best part yet.

When you pool together all the combined energy it takes to drive and build a Toyota Prius, the flagship car of energy fanatics, it takes almost 50 percent more energy than a Hummer - the Prius’s arch nemesis.

Through a study by CNW Marketing called “Dust to Dust,” the total combined energy is taken from all the electrical, fuel, transportation, materials (metal, plastic, etc) and hundreds of other factors over the expected lifetime of a vehicle. The Prius costs an average of $3.25 per mile driven over a lifetime of 100,000 miles - the expected lifespan of the Hybrid.

The Hummer, on the other hand, costs a more fiscal $1.95 per mile to put on the road over an expected lifetime of 300,000 miles. That means the Hummer will last three times longer than a Prius and use less combined energy doing it.

So, if you are really an environmentalist - ditch the Prius. Instead, buy one of the most economical cars available - a Toyota Scion xB. The Scion only costs a paltry $0.48 per mile to put on the road. If you are still obsessed over gas mileage - buy a Chevy Aveo and fix that lead foot.

One last fun fact for you: it takes five years to offset the premium price of a Prius. Meaning, you have to wait 60 months to save any money over a non-hybrid car because of lower gas expenses

Answer 2

That's a tough one - most SUV's on the road today won't have any range if converted to fully electric, and the cost of going half way with hybrid doesn't carry over to the full conversion currently... bad pun, currently.

Sorry.

Anyway, I'd convert to E-85... if it were legal.  It IS legal, for about 800 bucks for an 8 cyl, less for less cyl, to buy a converter for your engine, and spend a bit on new fuel lines, and, er... not tell anyone you installed it.  The EPA made it illegal for pollution purposes, but it pollutes less - the law was written when Propane and Methane were being considered fuels, and it was a blanket law.  

Even now, people are toying with how much E-85 they can blend into their regular gas vehicle, since it's already 10% ethanol... The oxygen sensor usually trips first - many times at or below half and half mix.  Winter and summer mixes are different, and cold weather may mean hard starts.  I need to make it clear that I HAVE NOT done this myself, but have thoroughly researched it for both my fuel injected Tahoe and 69 pontiac.  Please don't arrest me.

More at my blog below

Answer 3

the hybid option is not really feasible for conversion because of the complex gearbox and electronics control systems required to split the dirve & regeneration between the two motors.

Pure electric is much preferable and plenty of people have made conversions from clunky, noisy, smelly to fun enjoyable motoring

there is a Yahoo group to check out http://autos.groups.yahoo.com/group/diy_...

and there will probably be an organisation like the UK Batery Vehicle Society near you http://www.batteryvehiclesociety.org.uk/...

for technical formula to get the range/performance you want see Bob Brant's book

http://www.amazon.com/Build-Your-Own-Ele...

and if you want a range >300miles you can tow a small generator.

Answer 4

For what it would cost you could just trade up for a new one. I have a Compass, which gets 28mpg. A new car would also be safer and more comfortable.

Answer 5

How you get 20mpg on a jeep would really be of interest to many engineers. Are you sure about your mathematical abilities?

Answer 6

Of course there are! There are many conversion shops located all over the world. Feel free to ask on the DIY Electric Car Forums to find a shop near you or for any additional info.

Answer 7

Yes, there are a few. My group can also do a conversion for you. But, what are your expectations as to range? If its less than 40 miles, OK, contact us:

http://electric-cars-trucks.blogspot.com...

Answer 8

If you've got the money, there is always a way...  Just look at the military,  they were working on hybrid Humvee back in 1997.  Unfortunately testing found that the amount of repair and cost of the equipment just wasn't quite worth it presently.  But dang an electric attack vehicle would be really stealthy at night.  Anyone who has been around a hybrid car running on full electric mode knows how quiet they are.

http://www.military.com/soldiertech/0,14...

The cost of converting your jeep to electric would pay for the cost of gas for the rest of your jeep's usefull lifetime.  And 20 mpg is actually pretty common for jeeps.  I averaged right around 20-22 mpg with my Jeep Cherokee.  On the highway I could get around 26 mpg.  Best thing to do would be to keep your jeep in regular maintenance and maybe make a few upgrades like better air intake or exhaust or even a different carburetor to increase your fuel efficiency.

Answer 9

it can be done... you won't like the cost.

Appx $12,000 for the electric drive components.  Then add the small gas engine for the ability to generate electricity as you are driving.... and the special transmission...

Any decent mehanic can do the conversion... if you buy the parts... and pay the appx $5,000 in labor.