Introducing the Electric Duster Project

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MoparGarage

Winter Sucks!
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I was going to wait until it was on the road to introduce my project to the Mopar community. However, CarDomain.com just did a nice article about it so I thought the time was right for the official Mopar 'unveiling' :-D

Some people think this idea is cool. A surprising (to me) number of people don't like what I am doing. Either way, here it is! Let me know what you think. :wave:
~Bruce

CarDomain Article http://blog.cardomain.com/blog/2008/09/electric-duster.html

My Blog About it http://electricmopar.blogspot.com/
 
Thanks Aaron, I didn't know it had already been mentioned. I saw that thread yesterday but didn't open it :)
 
Thanks Aaron, I didn't know it had already been mentioned. I saw that thread yesterday but didn't open it :)

Sorry to steal your thunder, Sickness :( Actually, the guys over at Jalopnik got to it before I did. I just wanted to spread the word to the good folks here at FABO.

Personally, I find your Duster in the *COMPLETELY BITCHIN* category. Keep on doin' what you're doin', bro! Can't wait to see it completed and running down the road :toothy10::toothy10::toothy10:...
 
Thats just wrong.To nice of a car to do that to.Maybe a clean 71 Valiant 4 door would have been better.$12,000 to convert it? $12,000 still can buy a few tanks of gas. Jim
 
I've seen they're actually drag racing some electrics (classic cars, that is) in Canada.......some strong et's, and amazing torque.........

Is this a motor used in forklifts?...........I'd like to see a detailed spec layout of the tech and performance on this project.....parts list, manufacturers, etc.

I think it's a great idea.......more so at this point in time that a big v8 resto-mod..............THIS is resto-mod as well...........Just don't use the term "green" on me or I'll hurl.............Choose a different color. 8)8)8)
 
I've seen they're actually drag racing some electrics (classic cars, that is) in Canada.......some strong et's, and amazing torque.........

Is this a motor used in forklifts?...........I'd like to see a detailed spec layout of the tech and performance on this project.....parts list, manufacturers, etc.

I think it's a great idea.......more so at this point in time that a big v8 resto-mod..............THIS is resto-mod as well...........Just don't use the term "green" on me or I'll hurl.............Choose a different color. 8)8)8)

Would you hurl "green"??? :puke: LOL! Just ribbin ya, Good PastorTom ;)!
 
Very interesting
I do see a great car and would like to see more.
My 66 hits the scales at 2780 with the factory / in it.
and would be happy with 185 hp and 30 mpg.
but they say it can be a 35 mpg car for something
that needs oil and alternator to keep being used.
I would like to see more.
 
I probably would hurl green......that's all you hear about these days.........it's probably turned my innards to that shade...........

Honestly, look guys..........

All politics aside for a minute........

It matters very little in the coming short term who is elected President, and I say that only to state the fact that NEITHER of them can stop what's coming in the middle-east........Israel WILL attack Iran's nuclear and military facilities very soon, I believe by the first few months of 2009. Iran has a very large retaliatory capability, including missiles that can destroy carriers and ships at sea thanks to the Chinese and Russians.

My quick point is this........When they are attacked, it's not going to be like hitting Iraq which was basically a dead duck. It will launch a war, and oil trade is going to be interrupted big time, and especially if the Saudi's are hit, which the Iranians have said they will do.

If we lose even 20% or a little less of our oil shipments, we're going to be hurled into a depression......NOT a recession, a depression. Add to this Chavez in Venezuela in cohoots with Russia and China now, and HIS exports to the US which we need to survive, and there's a formula for disaster.

Reality stinks guys, but it's here. I need to know ALL I can about this electric conversion, and NOW.......not in a few months. Good grief, we're livin' in La La Land, even in the midst of a looming economic disaster here and now.........some just don't GET IT. We're living on borrowed money, and on borrowed time.......we need to use BOTH wisely in the next few months.

Learn all you can about this electric conversion........the knowledge will be very valuable in the coming year.......Study up quickly on solar charging for batteries, and think about what YOU'LL do if God forbid a depression DOES take hold in the US.

SO, let's see some serious specs and info on this electric Duster project........this is a great idea and it's time is NOW. :read2::read2::read2::read2::read2::read2:
 
I probably would hurl green......that's all you hear about these days.........it's probably turned my innards to that shade...........

Honestly, look guys..........

All politics aside for a minute........

It matters very little in the coming short term who is elected President, and I say that only to state the fact that NEITHER of them can stop what's coming in the middle-east........Israel WILL attack Iran's nuclear and military facilities very soon, I believe by the first few months of 2009. Iran has a very large retaliatory capability, including missiles that can destroy carriers and ships at sea thanks to the Chinese and Russians.

My quick point is this........When they are attacked, it's not going to be like hitting Iraq which was basically a dead duck. It will launch a war, and oil trade is going to be interrupted big time, and especially if the Saudi's are hit, which the Iranians have said they will do.

If we lose even 20% or a little less of our oil shipments, we're going to be hurled into a depression......NOT a recession, a depression. Add to this Chavez in Venezuela in cohoots with Russia and China now, and HIS exports to the US which we need to survive, and there's a formula for disaster.

Reality stinks guys, but it's here. I need to know ALL I can about this electric conversion, and NOW.......not in a few months. Good grief, we're livin' in La La Land, even in the midst of a looming economic disaster here and now.........some just don't GET IT. We're living on borrowed money, and on borrowed time.......we need to use BOTH wisely in the next few months.

Learn all you can about this electric conversion........the knowledge will be very valuable in the coming year.......Study up quickly on solar charging for batteries, and think about what YOU'LL do if God forbid a depression DOES take hold in the US.

SO, let's see some serious specs and info on this electric Duster project........this is a great idea and it's time is NOW. :read2::read2::read2::read2::read2::read2:

Nothing wrong with that.

No need to explain your preparedness to us, you are a boyscout just being prepared.
While the rest of us poor saps have virtually worthless cars that won't run and are scrambling to find other methods of transportation, you may be one of the only dudes on the road.
 
Very cool project, I'd love to do something like that with my Valiant. The 40-50mi range is kind of a bummer though.

You should graft some solar panels into the top of a go-wing and stick it on that thing. That, some fiberglass bumpers, body panels and a nice light set of wheels....I'd think you could improve on that range quite a bit.
 
I would have loaded all those batteries into a trailer behind the car.
Safety first.
 
PastorTom,

You have pretty much nailed it!

I am not doing this to be "green". IMO, the "green" phenomenon is nothing but a fad that will run its course just like it did in the 70s. I do not even buy into the global warming theory - and I am a meteorologist. BTW, an overwhelming majority of the people I work with do not endorse global warming either. Of course politicians and the media have turned wild speculation into indisputable fact. Nothing new there I guess.

Anyhoo, I am simply tired of being a slave to gasoline prices. We have to have the stuff - our lives depend upon it - and we have to pay whatever we are TOLD to pay! When I watch how gas prices change with relation to crude oil prices I just feel like I am being robbed. It adds salt to the wound when I see record oil company profits time after time. It just seems like my money - as much as 'they' can squeeze out of me - goes to make a select few obscenely rich. This, while the rest of use suffer, and sit and bite our nails waiting to see what 'they' will make us pay today.

I really don't want to bring politics into the discussion but I also see my gasoline money providing almost unlimited funding to the government - whose spending has become totally out of control.

I have felt the fragility of our economic situation for a long time. When gasoline got to $4, I felt my life changing. I began to imagine what things would be like with gasoline at $5, or $10 a gallon. Scary stuff!

ENOUGH! But what can I do about it right now? Complain? Sure, we all do that to no avail, but that doesn't do ME any good or make me feel any better. Thus, the Duster project was born. Conversions like this are something that has been going on 'under the radar' for over 15 years. I didn't even know it was possible (or so easy) until recently. IMO, we should all do this!

Bruce
 
I'm gonna chime in and say that it's a waste of a good Mopar. I think the negativity towards your project may stem from the fact that gearheads are born with gasoline in their veins. We spend our lives refining and improving the effectiveness of the internal combustion engine. That makes us outsiders to the mainstream, no one has a passion for these types of cars like a gearhead. I think many of us may not see a bright future for the gasoline engine given the current economic and environmentally-concerned climate but don't want to see it regulated out of existence by the green types. An electric Duster is blasphemy!

Hey, I'm all for American ingenuity and inventiveness and it looks like your project is well done, but I say leave the good old car bodies out of it, no matter what make.

In all honesty, electric cars kind of bum me out - they have no soul.
 
I'm gonna chime in and say that it's a waste of a good Mopar. I think the negativity towards your project may stem from the fact that gearheads are born with gasoline in their veins. We spend our lives refining and improving the effectiveness of the internal combustion engine. That makes us outsiders to the mainstream, no one has a passion for these types of cars like a gearhead. I think many of us may not see a bright future for the gasoline engine given the current economic and environmentally-concerned climate but don't want to see it regulated out of existence by the green types. An electric Duster is blasphemy!

Hey, I'm all for American ingenuity and inventiveness and it looks like your project is well done, but I say leave the good old car bodies out of it, no matter what make.

In all honesty, electric cars kind of bum me out - they have no soul.
Dude, you're talking to a gearhead, and a Mopar gearhead at that :) I appreciate your comments and I understand, and to a certain extent agree with what you have said. I have 5 A-Bodies and 2 B-Bodies, so I know of what you speak! I have had serious psychological issues doing any modification to my classic Mopar - and have mentioned that in my blog about the project.

When I decided to build an electric car, I first had to decide what vehicle to convert. I could not envision being happy with just any car. My life revolves around Mopar cars. It seemed like driving a Honda or something similar was the real blasphemy. I wouldn't have one with or without it being electric.

So as I was deciding which car to purchase to convert, my thoughts turned to what I already owned. I love the feeling I get when I am able to drive one of my Mopars somewhere. The Duster always attracts a lot of attention. The more I thought about it, the more excited I got about using it for a conversion vehicle. It's actually a natural, and I wrote about that in the blog as well.

Rest assured, this was not a perfect, numbers matching Duster. It took a lot of work to bring it back from the dead in the first place. I don't feel that I am destroying the car. Yes, there is a certain soullessness about having an electric motor in place of the rumbling V8. However, the rest of what the car is, and stands for, will be out on the road being enjoyed. Maybe the soul will live on - we'll see.
 
It's an interesting project and I can see where it has it's place. I can also see what rmchrgr meant when he said "they have no soul"

But for where I live now, I'd be afraid to get out in something that (maybe) only had a 40 mile range. It's a 26 mile round trip to the larger town near me. And I tend to go there quite often cause this 1/2 horse town I live in ain't got **** in it. Isn't even a hardware store anymore. Couldn't drive it to a cruise either except twice a year when there is one within a 30 mile round trip.

Still, it's an interesting idea. And I'm curious what the total cost will be.
 
Dude, you're talking to a gearhead, and a Mopar gearhead at that :) I appreciate your comments and I understand, and to a certain extent agree with what you have said. I have 5 A-Bodies and 2 B-Bodies, so I know of what you speak! I have had serious psychological issues doing any modification to my classic Mopar - and have mentioned that in my blog about the project.

When I decided to build an electric car, I first had to decide what vehicle to convert. I could not envision being happy with just any car. My life revolves around Mopar cars. It seemed like driving a Honda or something similar was the real blasphemy. I wouldn't have one with or without it being electric.

So as I was deciding which car to purchase to convert, my thoughts turned to what I already owned. I love the feeling I get when I am able to drive one of my Mopars somewhere. The Duster always attracts a lot of attention. The more I thought about it, the more excited I got about using it for a conversion vehicle. It's actually a natural, and I wrote about that in the blog as well.

Rest assured, this was not a perfect, numbers matching Duster. It took a lot of work to bring it back from the dead in the first place. I don't feel that I am destroying the car. Yes, there is a certain soullessness about having an electric motor in place of the rumbling V8. However, the rest of what the car is, and stands for, will be out on the road being enjoyed. Maybe the soul will live on - we'll see.

Okay, point well taken. You make a good argument. However... I am surprised that given your obvious passion for Mopars that you would modify it in such a way.

Personally, I have a hard time associating a muscle-era vehicle with anything other than a cast-iron internal combustion engine in it. I guess that's my lack of vision and narrowness of view. I do hold that idea close because that's what I love. We'll agree to disagree on that one.

I also suppose a lot of guys may have felt this same way when the flathead was on the way out and the now ubiquitous overhead valve SBC found it's way into everything with wheels.

Perhaps if you could wire up a speaker to mimic the visceral sound of a healthy V8 in there, I might be more hip to the idea.8)
 
People resist change (I won't say progress, cause sometimes it isn't)

I used to be in to Porsches. The old hard liners (read 365 people) HATED the 911 and it's 6 cylinder engine. "REAL Porsches had 4 cylinders in them" So to try and placate some of those people the 912 was born.

Then they hated the 914 for being a VW and mid engined. (was designed BY Porsche FOR VW). Then the 924 for being front engined, water cooled, AND a VW (same thing though, designed BY Porsche FOR VW, then VW decided not to build)......

My late father, while basically being a Mopar guy and responsible for my sickness, really didn't think there was much worth owning after the last REAL Packard was built....which was 1956.

So this kind of thing is inevitable. And we'll be like our fathers and not like it.
 
[/quote]Perhaps if you could wire up a speaker to mimic the visceral sound of a healthy V8 in there, I might be more hip to the idea.8)[/quote]
Poker cards in the spokes for me.
Only the uptown kids got Varooom motors. :)
 
Okay, point well taken. You make a good argument. However... I am surprised that given your obvious passion for Mopars that you would modify it in such a way.

Personally, I have a hard time associating a muscle-era vehicle with anything other than a cast-iron internal combustion engine in it. I guess that's my lack of vision and narrowness of view. I do hold that idea close because that's what I love. We'll agree to disagree on that one.

I also suppose a lot of guys may have felt this same way when the flathead was on the way out and the now ubiquitous overhead valve SBC found it's way into everything with wheels.

Perhaps if you could wire up a speaker to mimic the visceral sound of a healthy V8 in there, I might be more hip to the idea.8)

Rmchrger,

I did surprise some people - perhaps even myself. I think that what has changed for me is having been forced by reality into a different mindset.

I have a badass 68 Dart 340 sitting in my garage right now. It is the quintessential Mopar muscle car. It is Sassy Grass Green, does mid 12s in the quarter mile and gets 6 mpg. At age 50 something :), I don't take it to the track anymore. Although it's street legal and still tagged, an 8 gallon fuel cell limits what I can do with it. In this depressed market I cannot sell it for what out of it, so it sits. What good is that?

Anyhoo, yes, I agree to disagree and respect the opinions of those who don't like what I am doing. However, for me, it seems like the right thing to keep my Mopar passion alive and on the road.

RedFish, I'm way ahead of you on the sound thing. I will miss that the most - and the smell of burning fuel. I am seriously thinking of installing subwoofers under the rear and playing mp3 files of my Dart when I am in parking lots and such. It even occurred to me to install some short tailpipes and devise a way to exaust a little smoke or something.
 
I don't have a problem with it at all. If you're got to drive an old mopar around town daily, it only makes sense to do something like this. If the car was hacked to death to do it, yeah...I'd have a problem, but to me it looks like the trunk pan is the only modification.....easy to replace; honestly it looks like once this is finished, it'd only take a few days work to convert it back.

As long as you don't have plans to chop it up I don't see any reason to be against it, have fun.

Far worse has been done to mopars in the past........

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Electric doesn't have to mean boring...there is a guy in Phoenix Az who had a dragster in the 8's named Reddy Kilowatt....maybe Chucko can fill in more detail. It sure was cool to see it. I appreciate something different, and a Duster sure has more class than some econobox that looks like a melted jellybean. Keep up the good work on your project.
Somebody had to start somewhere, progress comes though imagination and initiative.
alan627b
 
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