Converting Petrol Car to battery.

donalh087

I have an older 3 litre jeep that is in good condition but I would love to convert it to an electric vehicle. The jeep is perfect but the mpg is just crazy. I would find it very difficult to spend close to 50k on a new car and the only second hand ones are Nissan Leafs (which are just too small for me). My mileage is pretty low - 300km a week.

Is there anybody doing these conversions?

I don't know where to start.

Girl Geraldine

Unless you are doing this as some sort of project of passion, then it is a waste of time and money and it will break you.

You'd have to get a good scrapped EV and re-engineer all the parts to fit your jeep. That or have a company specialising in that do the conversion for you.

If you think buying an EV for 50k is too expensive, wait until you see the bill for a custom conversion. Anyway, most of the cost of an EV is the battery, and whatever the advertised range of whatever car the powertrain was orignially designed for, you can cut it in half for a heavy, unaerodynamic jeep body.

Throwing enough money into it, it could be done. But even at that you have a vehicle that is a custom build - it is largely unservicable and unwarrantyable since it will be a made up concoction of different parts from different manufacturers. It'll be worth next to nothing because there would be lettle or no market for it.

All the engineering aside, you'd really struggle to get insurance for it. I don't know if its even possible. They are very strict nowadays.

Even getting NCT might not be feasible.

Girl Geraldine

Actually, what you would happen is, rather than transplanting an EV powertrain into your jeep, you would be transplanting the jeep body and chassis onto an existing EV platform.

An EV is a fully integrated software driven vehicle. Unless all parts are assembled and programmed up as part of the one entity, it just won't work. It'll be a brick. You can't just do a frankenstein job on it like with older ICE vehilces.

For example, even something like an EV hacing a charge port with a lid. Unless the sensors and actuators on the charge port lid aren't present, the car won't take charge. Without any part of the vast and extremely complicated network of electronic devices, the car would just cease to function.

Hell, even some EVs, if an electronic component is simply disconnected and then reconnected, the EV will cease to function until a dealership with the right service equipment resets and reconfigures the EV.

It think it is a complete non runner.

It would be cheaper and less hassle to simply just bit the bullet and go buy an EV

DoctorEdgeWild

An LPG conversion might be an option for you? Not sure if the infrastructure is there to cope but there’s two garages near me (UK) that are doing really good business converting diesels over.

unkel

@Girl Geraldine - you are right to give the OP a good scare, but you are being overly pessimistic at the same time. If the conversion is done in a structurally sound way, it is not hard to get it classified as an EV with €120 motor tax, nor is it difficult to pass the NCT provided the car is roadworthy. Insurance is also not a problem in Ireland but you have to obviously declare to your insurer that the car is converted

Your key points are that it is extremely expensive to have someone convert the car for you. This is true, there is a lot of demand and only a few companies doing it and very few "bolt in" kits available. But this is improving

And that it is extremely difficult to do. Again, true for a very modern car with CAN communication, but relatively easy on an older car with fewer electronics. The OP does say his Jeep is "older" but doesn't say what it is

donalh087

I hear what you are saying Geraldine. There is a company in Wicklow ( a spin off of a Dutch company) who do these conversions but they appear to be too busy to answer any emails or phone calls. The reviews are all good though. They have no issues with NCT or insurance. If there are no alternatives there is a huge opportunity (IMHO).

Girl Geraldine

Fair enough, but i would suspect that it would work out much more expensive to do a conversion and even then you will be left with something that might have poor performance since the drivetrain components are probably designed for a lighter purpose built ESUV at best.

You see these conversions but they are not for daily driver vehicles. They are show pieces made with exotic or interesting classics for exhibiting and doing cannonball runs and the like and not practical or not likely to be the most reliable in day to day usage.

I'd say the wisest and cheapest option is to just go and buy an EV of your choice.

As for companies doing conversions, they probably cater largely to wealthy collectors/enthusiasts with deep pockets, or corporate customers with a big budget looking to make a showpeice EV.

If you are coming to them with a clapped out jeep and complaining that you want it converted because paying €50k for a new EV is too much for you to bear, then you are not the sort of person who would make up their customer base.

unkel

How handy are you @donalh087 and what exactly is your Jeep ?

Here is a guy who converted his own old car to EV in his yard. Gives a good idea of what's involved for a simple older car

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y8ftCb95ci4

Also google "Damien Maguire", he's an Irish electronics engineer who has been converting his own cars for about 12-13 years and who reverse engineers available components like Toyota hybrid stuff and provides the info all open source and also gives courses in how to convert your own car

donalh087

This is the company I mentioned and they say for about 6k you can convert to an EV. Very interesting article.

https://www.autocar.co.uk/car-news/used-cars/how-put-electric-car-your-driveway-little-%C2%A3900

Girl Geraldine

Yeah, but doing it DIY for those fellas it is almost a way of life for them. If the OP has a life to be getting on with, throwing into the very, very complex work of EV engineering is just not a realisitic proposition.

We're not dealing with a 1985 Ford Escort here where you could read a Haynes manual of a sunday evening and dig a socket set out of the shed and have a different engine in it the following sunday.

DIYing EVs would take literally years to learn. Look at yer man Ruch Rebuilds with his refurbishing and stuff with Teslas and bits of them. That fella is a genius, and wealthy from his social media activity on it, EVs are a way of life for him, and more often than not he is banging his head against a wall dealing with anything on a Tesla. Unservicable. Unrepairable. Even if you know what you are doing and have loads and loads of money to throw at it.

LMAO at that lad with the cement mixer motor in the Sierra. That is just backyard tinkering with is neither going to be drivable, insuraable nor NCTable.

For a commercial conversion which provides you with a converted EV that is drivable, has a usable range, can be insured, can be NCTed, and is reliable, you are probably going to have to pay well over the cost of the average EV purchase price.

You have to understand that a conversion like this is almost a bespoke bumper to bumper re-engineering of the car and very very labour intensive with educated, skilled technicians which means super duper expensive. That is why the services of such companies is largely the preserve of collectors and coportate customers who want show pieces and have plenty money.

LMAO at €6k for a conversion. You wouldn't by the average range battery pack for that money, let alone have a roadworthy car for it!!

unkel

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119506060#Comment_119506060

That's Damien Maguire's (former) home with two of his converted BMWs. I own one of his conversions that he famously did for a €1000 budget. It's called the "Red Arrow". The car is mentioned in the article.

Girl Geraldine

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119506166#Comment_119506166

But is it practical for daily driving?

Range?

Performance?

Charge time?

Reliability and robustness?

Insurance & NCT?

For €1000, if it sounds too good to be true it probably is. At the end of the day if a conversion could be done for a few thousand quid sure everyone would be doing it.

donalh087

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119506058#Comment_119506058

Not handy at all Unkel, I would have no part in this conversion. I have a 3litre petrol Shogun Sport, 00 reg, with about 100k miles. I was building a house 4 years ago and bought it in Jersey as semi-disposable workhorse. I kinda fell in love with it but the petrol makes no sense. I would hate to ditch it to buy a second hand Leaf for 25k.

Thanks for the Damian Maguire lead - I have dropped him an email.

Girl Geraldine

Either way, even if you do pay the bumper bill for a full roadworthy and drivable conversion, do no be expecting the range, performance and charge time to be comparable to a that of the average commercially available EV. All facets of performance are likely to be substantially inferior than an EV bought off the forecourt. Unless you are willing to throw more money again into upgrading some of the components to a much higher spec to compete.

It would be a very expensive project to take on. And a conversion company is not going to take on a job unless they are confident that you have the ability to pay for it. As i said before, if you are telling them that you want to convert because buying a regulat EV is unaffordable, you'll be laughed out of the office.

Girl Geraldine

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119506209#Comment_119506209

You are not going to get a practical, daily driveable conversion for less than the price of a second hand Nissan Leaf. That much I can tell you for certain.

Battery pack probably €5k for the most basic of units with limited range. I see listings of €5.5k for a 24 kwhr leaf battery. Whatever range that would give in a leaf, in a clunky jeep with a heavy chassis, you can probably cut the range in half.

Charger unit €750 for a cheapo one + at least €1000 for electrician to install

Power electronics & motor you are probably looking at €8000 for something of any decent type of spec that would be practical to drive.

So there straight away you are at near €15,000 for the major components. That is before you include for any of the other myriad of smaller ancillary components, let alone all the labour and time of some highly skilled technicians. Labour cost may well be more than the cost of parts and materials.

If you want components to allow the jeep to function as an actual jeep, ie with 4WD etc, capability to tow a trailer, you could expect the uprated and additional components to come at a very, very substantial price tag and the time and cost of the specialist engineering services required to balloon.

unkel

Yep, can't argue with any of that @Girl Geraldine.

There is a company in Wales that have converted several Irish reg cars too, but even a basic low range, no fast charging conversion of a very simple car, like a FIAT 500, would likely cost GBP20-30k (they are quite shy about pricing). They do deliver top class results though. They have also started selling complete conversion kits to the trade for some suitable classic cars like the original Mini.

https://www.youtube.com/c/ElectricClassicCars

There are companies in France who offer conversions for about €7-8k for a few basic old small cars, the government adds a subsidy so the cost to the end user is in the order of €4-5k. We just need a lot more companies to do this sort of stuff for the pricing to come down.

donalh087

Geraldine, I am not a complete cretin. I have done some research but am looking for some advice here. You are jumping to a million conclusions about what I want and the idiotic traps I will fall into. I'm only asking questions. Relax a small bit.

unkel

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119506179#Comment_119506179

Pretty much all those questions are answered in the first episode of the series he did on them. Yes, he put the car through the NCT and it passed, yes can be driven daily. Motor tax is €120 like any other EV. It can do motorway speed and it has a practical range of about 65km (no fast charging). I have it fully comp insured as a classic car directly with one of the biggest insurers in Ireland for just over €200. It's pretty robust and reliable but the charger died on me and no, you can't just ring Damien Maguire (or pretty much anyone else in the country) to come fix it, even if you paid them 😁

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nkg8Rk-aP4U&list=PLPHK4T9kKEyYxfC-4Jk70D6IfFSwsJQlh&index=2

He got some parts cheaper than market value really and he left the relatively expensive charger in it, so €1000 didn't quite do it, but you get the picture. Also it was a car that was about to be scrapped 4 years ago. Now it is still driving around with zero emissions and almost exclusively charged from the sun.

Girl Geraldine

I notice that the cars you refer to has having relatively cheap conversions are all old, small and fairly light weight.

Now I'll ad this into the mix....

A jeep, of any sort is going to be heavy enough and need power steering. Even getting the power steering system to work effectively and reliably in a conversion would, in itself, be something that would require a substantial effort be-spoke engineering at a significant cost.

Girl Geraldine

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119506312#Comment_119506312

I see. Not very practical for daily use. Much a curiosity and pet project.

unkel

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119506320#Comment_119506320

You really should watch or at least skip through the series. Yes power steering in an ICE car comes from the engine. So yes, you will need a separate power steering system. My car does have it, Maguire used electronic power steering from a scrapped Opel Zafira B. It works very well, I think it cost him about €50 in parts and the setup is very straight forward. There is an episode dedicated to it.

Girl Geraldine

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119506308#Comment_119506308

I am just being realistic with you. You are not going to get a quality conversion suitable for day-in day-out driving with performance comparable with a regular EV for less than the price of a second hand leaf.

I am not trying to be insulting. I am just trying to show you that you are massively underestimating the complexity, specialist engineering and cost of what you are hoping to do.

I mean, if it was a genuine classic car of some note that you were doing up as a showpiece project, fair enough, but a 00 reg jeep just because you think it is too good to leave blocking a gap in the ditch, honestly, it just doesn't make sense.

unkel

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119506332#Comment_119506332

Yes very practical for daily use, why not? The average car in Ireland does about 40-50km per day. Obviously it has limitations and it wouldn't be for everybody. And it most certainly wouldn't be suitable as the only family car for a family with kids. But it is fine for someone like me who only occasionally needs to use a second car.

hometruths

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119506308#Comment_119506308

Go for it OP. I’m researching exactly same idea currently on a 1989 Range Rover, and am planning on going ahead.

Kind of surprised just how anti the idea some posters are, but I’d say a lot of people who will tell people now how crazy they are to even contemplate it, will be thankful in a few years that a small number of crazies went ahead and did it, demonstrating demand and a market, ensuring it becomes affordable for others in the future.

best of luck with it.

Girl Geraldine

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119506352#Comment_119506352

That is interesting and he did some good inventive work. But a jeep is a much heavier duty vehicle. Steering would always be hydraulic in those. It could be reconficured with an electrically driven hydraulic pump, but the re-engineering of a system to do that would be costly.

Out of interest, was he able to retain functionality of the ABS/VSP and airbag systems? How did he manage the car's body control systems when divorced from the original power train?

unkel

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119506371#Comment_119506371

I don't know the details, I obviously didn't do the conversion myself and I don't think those systems were addressed in particular in the series. The car did however pass the NCT, so I presume that everything that is supposed to be working, was working.

Bovakinn

I know a Humvee is in a different league than a Jeep but this is an interesting playlist showing the conversion process from start to finish.

https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL0vZL9uwyfOFezIOiBjkdW3TTdn0Q_AKL

zg3409

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119506060#Comment_119506060

That article is from 2020. I believe they are not in Ireland any more. They never offered a service to the public. They will offer courses in Netherlands for mechanics and DIY. The price quoted was theoretical not real. There is no company offering turn key options in Ireland.

In practical terms unless you want a pet project it may only make financial sense for rare or classic cars. Prices seem to be 20k to 50k excluding donor car. For other cars it probably makes more sense to buy a real EV than try get a non EV to become EV.

If done right you can get NCT, cheap tax, but there may be insurance premium.

hometruths

I am hoping to get it done to a Range Rover for sub 10k, using a Nissan Leaf motor and battery pack. Budgeting max 5k for the bits and max 5k for labour. Time will tell if I'm crazy I guess!

Girl Geraldine

What range and charge time are you aiming to get?

Bear in mind that a Range Rover is far bigger, heavier and less aerodynamic than a Leaf, so the driving range will be significantly reduced.

hometruths

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119509427#Comment_119509427

What range and charge time are you aiming to get?

Range about 60 miles. Charge time currently unimportant. I will charge overnight at home. If in future I wish to upgrade to fast charging that is a possibility.

Bear in mind that a Range Rover is far bigger, heavier and less aerodynamic than a Leaf, so the driving range will be significantly reduced.

I'll be sure to bear that in mind.

donalh087

"I'll be sure to bear that in mind."

Ha ha.

donalh087

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119509387#Comment_119509387

Are you doing it yourself??

unkel

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119509691#Comment_119509691

Obviously not if he is budgeting €5k for labour 😂

@hometruths - have you any breakdown of those figures? Also what Leaf did you buy? Probably an early Leaf which at this stage has a badly degraded battery, you won't even see 30 miles range out of it in a Range Rover I would imagine.

hometruths

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119509691#Comment_119509691

Nope. Current plan is that I have agreed an arrangement with a family member mechanic who will do the stripping of old bits out eg engine, fuel system, exhaust etc, and mount and mate the motor and battery boxes etc, and other common bits and pieces like power steering pump.

Then I hope to a get an autoelectrician to connect all the wiring and test it.

I have a thread on it in another forum which has more detail if you're interested: https://****/viewtopic.php?f=17&t=1654

ETA - I see that other forum is censored. See screenshot:

hometruths

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119509799#Comment_119509799

It's still very back of the envelope stuff. Haven't bought the donor yet.

I am working off ideally get a complete crashed leaf, probably in the UK, and landing it here for approx 5k. This is based off online ads I have seen in breakers/auctions etc in UK. I have also seen motors stacks advertised for 1500 - 2000. Leaving 3k for a battery pack. At this price range, the batteries vary hugely, and yes I have considered whatever I get will have degraded somewhat, and that will effect the range.

If the best range I can manage in budget is 30 miles, so be it. It's a start and having done the conversion it is relatively simple to upgrade the batteries in the future as time and funds allow.

danoriordan1402

If you had a spare 30k Sterling 🙄, you can covert an old landy with a drop in kit

https://www.topgear.com/car-news/electric/ps28800-kit-turns-your-old-land-rover-defender-ev

hometruths

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119509942#Comment_119509942

Unfortunately I don't have a spare 30k sterling hence why I am pricking about trying to buy a crashed Nissan leaf!

unkel

@hometruths - found your link, just past it into a browser and replace the **** with gooboodotayeee 😁

Why go to the UK for a crashed Leaf, prices over there are way higher than here and you can buy a fully working Leaf here from about €5k, no issues with import duty / VRT / VAT etc. Like this:

https://www.donedeal.ie/cars-for-sale/2011-nissan-leaf/31908829?campaign=23

As for your worry about weight and weight distribution - might not be a problem at all. Leaf motor + inverter is a lot lighter than the old diesel lump plus ancillaries. Stick part of the battery pack in the front and a smaller part in the back, you are getting rid of fuel tank and spare wheel, which saves a lot of weight. I haven't tested it, but I'd be fairly sure my E36 is lighter now as an EV than it was as a diesel.

Best of luck with your plan, you should start a thread on it here on boards too!

hometruths

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119510026#Comment_119510026

Why go to the UK for a crashed Leaf, prices over there are way higher than here and you can buy a fully working Leaf here from about €5k, no issues with import duty / VRT / VAT etc. Like this:

I haven't turned my back on Ireland at all, and if something good pops up I'll buy it. Just most of my research centred in UK as their is a lot more choice, and I'm hoping for a 2015 leaf with a better battery in the UK! (bearing in mind the aerodynamics and weight of a Range Rover compared to a leaf!)

Wasn't going to worry about if buying a crashed one as would be breaking for parts I need, selling as much as I can of what I don't need, and weighing the rest in.

As for your worry about weight and weight distribution - might not be a problem at all. Leaf motor + inverter is a lot lighter than the old diesel lump plus ancillaries. Stick part of the battery pack in the front and a smaller part in the back, you are getting rid of fuel tank and spare wheel, which saves a lot of weight. I haven't tested it, but I'd be fairly sure my E36 is lighter now as an EV than it was as a diesel.

My worry about weight distribution was because I wanted to keep the original battery pack intact for simplicity. As you say weight distribution not a problem if you split the pack, which it looks like I'll have to do.

unkel

You'll probably have to split the battery pack anyway as it will likely not fit anywhere in the RR as a whole 😁

Good thinking about getting parts from a newer (from very late 2013) Leaf, their battery is a lot less prone to degradation and will give you about 100km real life range in the Leaf, so perhaps 60km in the Range Rover (not at motorway speeds)

pron

Not a RangeRover .. but this guy's converting a Freelander with a Leaf motor and eGolf battery pack : Ongoing, but now a moving lump : https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCRhFZUZKXlOEvw35vr4P-7g/playlists

blackbox

For a 3 litre petrol Shogun, LPG would be a much more sensible option.

hometruths

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119510227#Comment_119510227

Do you know any auto electricians who would wire the thing up assuming everything was in place?

What I've discovered is there is very little run of the mill commercial expertise in this stuff - it's either companies charging 50K for really high end bumper to bumper conversions with Tesla bits or eccentrics working in their sheds!

Girl Geraldine

If you are reworking the Leaf powertrain, I would be very skeptical of it actually working as a transplant, even if you match everything up electrically and mechanically. You'd need to establish whether it is possible to replace the control software so that the controller will allow the powertrain to function outside of the original vehicle.

Even disconnecting and reconnecting an electronic component, the controller module will detect an anomaly and will either disable or severely limit the vehicle's performance until it is re-set by a dealer's diagnostic machine. Even modifying the length of a cable in the CAN bus network could throw the system out of kilter.

An example is this: The recipient vehicle is obviously not going to have Nissan Leaf door latches, which would be connected into the CAN network on the Leaf. Therefore they would have to be left out of the network. Then the transplanted ECU will detect that there is an anomaly on the network as the door latch device is absent/non-responsive/or returning a fault condition. ECU says, right, there is a significant fault somewhere on the vehicle, therefore no start and no drive.

The same could be said of a multitude of networked Leaf components and devices which could not be transplanted into the recipient vehicle - light fittings, parts of the centre console, dash board, window regulators, boot latch, ABS sensors, seat belt latches, seat presence sensors, steering wheel angle sensor, brake hydraulic circuit pressure sensor, airbag systems etc etc the list is endless. Anyhow, any modern car that is badly crashed, the ECU will lock it down and prevent it driving, even if it is still mechanically, physically capable of driving. Depending on how it is made and programmed, it might not even be possible to re-set it to a working condition after such an event. So be careful of what donor car you buy - it might be in brick mode after a crash.

Must be remembered that most manufacturers these days do their best to lock down their vehicles so that they can't be modified or tinkered with, at least not without some highly specialised skills, equipment and software.

In an endevour like this, the mechanical and physical bit is actually the easy bit. It is the software and component networking bit that will be the biggest hurdle and the potential show stopper. If there is after market software that can cater for such modifications, well great if you can source the software and someone with the skills to implement it.

Maybe there are aftermarket custom ECUs out there that can be tailored for a build like this. But i would imagine the would be difficult to source and extraordinarily expensive.

Some manufacturers make things where it is not even possible to install modded firmware, such as Tesla who have everything electronic totally locked down and it isn't physically possible to modify or even service.

Now you will see some conversions on Youtube with tesla power trains, but these are usually exotic or very noteworthy classic cars with very wealthy enthusiast owners who have pumped in tens if not hundreds of thousands of dollars to have one-off customised ECUs and software created for their projects.

zg3409

Most conversions using leaf parts I have seen do not use the "computer" from the leaf instead use an open source or non leaf controller to trigger the leaf hardware. This then becomes a mixture of two systems and somewhat complicated with software settings etc.

In order to mate a leaf motor to a non leaf gearbox you at the very least need an adapter plate custom made up and in some cases you might need specific gearing.

The budget seems crazy tight particularly if existing car needs respray, upgraded suspension. The weight distribution would be an issue if you don't split the pack and if you split the pack you need battery boxes to hold them. You possibly need non leaf battery chargers too.

Normally I recommend start simple with say a beetle and a bolt in conversion kit. Then work up to more advanced projects. A 24kwh leaf battery would struggle to get 60 miles when new, so I would be worried on real world high speed range.

hometruths

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119510486#Comment_119510486

If you are reworking the Leaf powertrain, I would be very skeptical of it actually working as a transplant, even if you match everything up electrically and mechanically.

It definitely sounds like somebody pissed in your cornflakes regarding electric vehicle conversions. What's the angle here?

Despite your skepticism that such an idea is even possible, I have checked that I'm not attempting to reinvent the wheel with this. And lo and behold I discovered it works. And not just in theory. Loads of other people have done it and are prepared to share their knowledge and experience of how they have done it.

And that's what I hope to do too.

You'd need to establish whether it is possible to replace the control software so that the controller will allow the powertrain to function outside of the original vehicle.

That's a very good idea. I wish I had thought of it sooner. Luckily I'm not in too deep just yet.

hometruths

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119510487#Comment_119510487

The budget seems crazy tight particularly if existing car needs respray, upgraded suspension.

The budget is tight yes. No respray required, nor upgraded suspension anticipated. I spent a ton of money on welding the chassis about 5 years ago so hopefully nothing needs done there either.

The weight distribution would be an issue if you don't split the pack and if you split the pack you need battery boxes to hold them.

I will split the pack so the wight distribution is not an issue.

You possibly need non leaf battery chargers too.

That will be an unexpected and unbudgeted problem. Hopefully not.

Girl Geraldine

No piss in my breakfast 😂

I am just trying to illustrate that an EV build is a far cry from the likes of retrofitting a cosworth engine into a 1985 Ford Escort. The vibe I got in the OP, was that he saw it along the lines of a "buy a scrap donor, get the angle grinder, vice grips and a socket set, and Tommy below who's a dab hand with the spanners and we'll be on the road by the weekend".

It is more of an automotive electronics and software project than a mechanical project.

unkel

@hometruths - "It definitely sounds like somebody pissed in your cornflakes regarding electric vehicle conversions. What's the angle here?"

No, not really. @Girl Geraldine makes a lot of valid points but she (?) is not very familiar with how these are usually resolved in EV conversions. @zg3409 briefly mentions that open source software is used. This to work with new boards made after reverse engineering the existing hardware and software. Even for Tesla, @Girl Geraldine! Tesla chargers in particular are cheap and at 10-11kW very powerful. Tesla motors and converters are also widely used. But cheapest and easiest these days seems to use Toyota / Lexus hybrid hardware.

Anyone interested in this stuff should go visit

https://openinverter.org/forum/

Girl Geraldine

Good to see that opensource ECUs and control systems are exist , that is a start. But are they available in Ireland, and more importantly, is there anyone available in Ireland who has the knowledge, skills and experience to set up and configure such a system. And if they are, will they cross the country to take on that part of an EV build? And what is their fee likely be for their time in such a specialised field? I can't imagine that they would be selling their time cheaply.