Walkertown, NC

Today, Mr. Butler, Mike, and I are taking a little trip to a small junk yard in Walkertown, NC. I can't remember the name of the place at the moment, but i'll post it on here at a later date.

Our main mission is to obtain a carpet that is in better condition than the rag-tag, stained rug that currently inhabits the Mustang EV. Along the way we are hoping to spot any extra needed pieces that we currently don't have.

Hopefully, one thing that will catch our eye is a manual steering rack. Our plan is to remove the hydraulic steering system (power steering) and convert it to a system that requires no type of fluid. This, in turn, will eliminate unecessary weight and create a safer way to control the automoblie in case of an emergency.

Saturday on the Farm!

Since our funds for completing the Mustang EV are growing short, Mr. Butler decided to let us dip into his stockpile of mustang reserve parts. Since our car is a 1988 Hatchback LX, it can be compatible with both coupe and other hatchback parts from various models. It just so happened that Mr. Butler had a late '80s 5.0 Mustang coupe. This car happened to contain the other suspension and 5 lug bolt pattern upgade parts that we needed. The only drawback was we had to remove all of the parts needed from the 5.o Mustang and then replace the removed parts with the parts we had taken off of our EV. What a job that was!

Our first objective was to relocate the 5.o out of a field and into his shop. As you can see, the car was on cinder blocks and in dire need of some T.L.C (tender loving care). Mr. Butler told us that the car hasn't ran since he graduated college. Our path around the car was completed by using Mr. Butler's four wheeler to mash down the weeds.

This is a shot of Michael and I aligning the trailer with the rear of the car. It was such a tight squeeze between the two treelines that we had to shimmy the trailer into alignment by using Michael's pickup as a bulldozer. This, in turn, slid the trailer sideways into position.

This is a shot of me (Ben) making sure that the car was sucessfully making its way onto the tailer without rubbing, dragging, or snagging.

This is a pic. of Mr. Butler wenching the car up onto the trailer using a come-along cable. We weren't allowed to be in his position due to the fact that the cable could snap and create a safety hazard.



This is a shot of Michael and me posing near the car after a brisk morning workout. A successful load!

Unloading was a piece of cake! After safely returning to the shop with our prize, we quickly rolled the 5.0 into the bay. This is a shot of me moving around the rear of the car to align jackstands .

After removing both tires and the outer shell of the rear drum brakes, our next objective is to remove the axles and drop the rear end out from under the car. This component is going to allow us to convert the EV to a 5-lug bolt pattern. And instead of using rear drum brakes, we are going to convert over to rear disc brakes. Rear disc brakes create a more reliable stopping power.



This is a shot of the "hogs head" after removing the backing plate off of the rear end. You have to do so in order to knock out pins and "c' clamps that hold the axles in place.

After removing the pins and "c" clips, Mr. Butler and I slowly removed both axle shafts.

This is a shot of Mike inspecting our work after we removed the rear end from beneath the car. "It seems more complicated than it really is," exclaimed Mike, "Who knew only a few bolts held this thing together?"

A shot of the undercarriage where the rear end once was.



After our return from a short lunch break, the next project was to remove the engine so that the needed front end components could be removed easily. Mr. Butler also plans to use this car as next year's EV. This is a shot of the motor being lifted out of the car on a motor hoist.

Slowly but surely.

Who can't help but smile at pic like this? Two young guys and a massive power supply! Priceless!

Now that the engine is removed, our next goal was to repace the 5-lug rear end with the 4-lug. This is a temporary exchange, only so that Mr. Butler can move the car in and out of his shop.

This is a shot of me disassembling the rear drum brakes so that the parking brake cable can be hooked back up. Who doesn't love drum brakes?(Sarcasm)



Mike taking on the right side.

Teamwork is the key!

What a great way to end the day! A completed transfer.

Even though we didnt get any pictures of the front end disassembly, we did manage to get a new sway bar, control arms, performance struts, brake discs, interior parts, transmission crossmember, transmission, driveshaft, and 5-lug rear end.

After about a 12 hour day of success, it felt like it was time to retire to our showers and sheets.

That's what I like to call a Butler Barn Bustin'!

Testing the electric components

Not long ago, we purchased the equipment to run and control our car. These pieces consisted of things such as the motor, controller, contactor, potbox, fuses... etc. Since our purchase was equipment previously used by another high school, we needed to make sure the equipment was working properly.

Our testing of the motor was low voltage. Not because we were lacking the batteries, but because the motor requires a load and can't be ran without some form of resistance such as the tires on the ground.To substitute the voltage resistance of the motor, we used a light strip with the equivalant voltage rating. We then, in turn, assembled all of the controller parts to a battery series. This set-up was provided to us by the "Curtis Controller Manual."

After all the components were connected to the batteries, we flipped a switch that allowed power to flow through all the components and all the lights came on showing that the circuit was complete. We then turned a potentiometer to see if it would dim the lights as it was supposed to do. This mimmicks our throttle control system, kind of like a dimmer switch on your headlights. This was a success and made all of us glow with enthusiasm!

Wheel conversion

Today, Mr. Butler and I (Ben), picked up parts for our brake conversion system. Our list consisted of new calipers, rotors, hubs, and spindles. Our goal is to convert the stock four lug rotors and brakes to a five lug system. This is simply for more braking power and a wider selection of wheels. We also picked up new tail light systems to replace the broken ones on the rear of the car.

This is the stock rear drum brake. Our initiative is to replace the axles to five lug disc.


This is a quick shot of the removal of the 4-lug right front wheel.



We'll later have an updated set of photos and info showing our brake conversion.

Installation of the transmisson

Our transmisson is just your basic five-speed T-5 Mustang transmission. Our car was originally automatic. But, no worries yet my friend, our plan of acton is to drive the car in set gears without shifting or the use of a clutch. I know it sounds weird, but it will work. Since our electric conversion has no extreme RPM to horsepower ratio, we will be able to drive the car in any gear starting or stopping and cruising with ease. Kind of like a tractor in a sense of using the throttle to gain speed and de-accelerate, but still allowing you to start off in a high gear.

But my real reason for this blog is to show how we converted the components for an automatic car to a manual transmission automobile.

This is the bracket that connects the the transmission

to the crossmember.

This is our modified manual transmission crossmember.

Inserting the transmission to see if our modification
is going to allow our shifting components to line up.

This is a top view showing that our shifter is going to line up properly.

Success!!!

Awaiting our coupling device to place in bell housing to connect our motor!

Removal of the fuel system.

First on our to do list, was removing the old gasoline engine fuel system. Since the car was purchased with no engine, it was a sign of help to us.We were allowed to dive straight into removing the useless gas tank, fuel lines, fuel pump, and other related objects. Thus decreasing our weight.

Our original plan was to re-sell the used parts to increase our fund. But as fate would have it our fuel system components were stolen.

1988 Ford Mustang (EV)?

We know you're probably wondering what exactly is meant by the title. The car was originally manufactured as a 1988 Mustang LX. LX standing for the body style. But lately, with a little imagination, a class known as Transportation Systems has recently gained a Technology Studies course that plans to convert the mustang into an EV(electric). The Tech. Studies course is an advanced course consisting of only two bright young individuals, Michael Clark and Ben Fulp, who were hand chosen by the instructor, Mr. Butler.
Our goal is to complete the car in time for a competition in Raleigh, NC at the infamous NC State University.
One of these students, Ben Fulp, has also taken upon the challenge of documenting the journey, dedicating his personal time, and presenting the information as his graduation project. What I am trying to prove is, the advantages EVs have over internal combustion engines. I will be updating the blog every time we advance in completing the car.

If you have any suggestions and comments towards the project, feel free to send an e-mail .

So please enjoy the blog and feel free to continue to follow up on our progress.


Sincerely,

Ben Fulp
McMichael EV