New Brakes and Wiring

Our team has recently installed new upgraded brake calipers and brackets to our Mustang in order to reduce weight, but still have effective braking ability. The brakes we are using now are twin piston, aluminum brake calipers (disc brakes) that were originally used on a Mustang GT. We decided to go with aluminum calipers because they are lighter, and are more race-inspired than stock brakes, as well as dissipate heat much more effectively than stock brakes.

Our team has also started the re-wiring process on the tail lights of our Mustang. This process consists of stripping the previously used wire harnesses of any electrical tape and sorting them into a more organized position. Team members will then regroup the wires into new harnesses, and place them back into the car.

One of the new calipers after being mounted onto the brake rotor.

Eli Strickland places new brake pads onto the brake bracket before replacing the caliper.

The brake pads and bracket before the caliper is placed.

Spencer Griffin strips wire harnesses of electrical tape.

The next step for our project is completing the re-wiring process and installing the pedals. The gas pedal is now connected to a pontetiometer instead of a carburetor, to serve as a fuel injection system. We are also connecting the brake pedal to our new brakes on the car, using a special brake pedal that has a higher pivot-point. We are using this special brake pedal because we have decided to omit power-brakes from the car in order to save energy.

Rear Axle Overhaul

We have recently installed the rear axle into our Mustang after cleaning it up and giving it a new coat of paint. We ground out any rust on the axle, and then proceeded to grease and paint the axle before reinstalling it. After the axle was cleaned up, the team installed it into the Mustang with new upgraded Bilstein struts, and new braided stainless-steel brake lines.

Hunter Foulks and Quentin Dickerson grind the rust and dirt from the axle.

Chase Irby paints the new axle black.

Chase Irby torques down the rear-axle differential cap.

The rear axle under the car before being fixed.

The axle before our team cleaned it up.

The axle after a fresh layer of paint.

The axle after its overhaul and re-installation into the car.

The next step in the conversion process is the installation of the battery rack and batteries in the rear of the car, where the spare tire used to be stored. Seven batteries are planned to be stored in the rear of the car, while the remaining five are planned to be stored in the engine compartment in order to balance out the vehicle.

Electric Vehicle Conversion 2011

The McMichael High School Electric Vehicle team is back with new members and a new project. This year's team consists of 10 students and our instructor, Mr. Butler. Each student has their own unique skill sets that contribute to our conversion project overall.

2011 Team Members are:

Mr. John Butler- Instructor

Hunter Foulks-Mechanic







Quintin Dickerson-Mechanic








Chase Irby-Mechanic








Spencer Griffin-Electronics/Wiring








Dylan Garner-School Initiative






Clinton Blankenship-Web Designer






Graham Beasley-Video Editor






Jesse Gilbert-3-D CAD Designer






Tyler Haney-Photo Editor






Eli Strickland-Mechanic







Our team hopes to do extremely well at the SMARTT Challenge Final Event this May. Every team member has been working diligently to have our converted car ready for the event. We have recently re-installed the rear axle after cleaning it and making some upgrades to it. We have also upgraded the rear suspension as well as replaced the stock brake lines with braided, stainless steel brake lines. Our next objective is deciding on how to mount the batteries in the car while distributing the weight evenly. We are currently in the process of designing a battery rack that will fit in the back of the car snugly. The batteries we have decided to use are 12 8-volt batteries designed for use in electric golf carts. The batteries are lead-acid batteries and have been graciously donated to our program by Johnson Controls located in High Point, North Carolina.

Thanks you guys!

A big thanks to our sponsors for being avid supporters of the McMichael EV project. Your contributions and comments have been greatly appreciated.


An even greater thanks to the crew!

Mr. John Butler "our leader"

Mr. Michael Clark and Mr. Ben Fulp "the hands behind the wrench"

Mr. Brandon Smith and Mr. Zac Plummer "the troubleshooting duo"

Mr. Matt Miller and Mr. Nick Melms "the tech. support"

Mr. Jonathan Roupe and Mr. Dale Yates " the slick tongued presenters"



And remember you guys, It will forever be "BUSINESS TIME!"

The closing stages....

Today was the final day of the SMARTT Challenge competition here in Raleigh, NC. I feel more than accomplished to have made it all of the way there and bring home some gold.
Upon our arrival, there was just a slight sign of rain yet the sky didn't actually break loose while the events went on throughout the day. After lining our car up along a walkway at the McKimmon Center, Mike and Mr. Butler took a walk to scope out the autocross course. From my point of view, the course at Winston was more challenging and Mike should have no problem dominating the pavement today. My guess was right! After six explosive runs, Michael had the best run time out of all of the cars in the stock class.

Not only did we dominate on the autocross course, but we also had a large amount of complements from the judges of the safety inspection and the design competition. All of their eyes seemed to be instantly drawn to the area of the exposed motor. We were the only car at the competition that had the motor exposed and not covered by a mess of wiring or the controller.

Over all we brought home 1st in Autocross, Rookie of the Year, 2nd in oral presentation, and 3rd in troubleshooting. Not bad for a bunch of "Scallywags" from Rockingham County!

Day 1 at the Smartt Challenge

We arrived in Raleigh, NC late last night on the 14 of May. Thanks to Mr. Butler's cousin, we are staying in his home free of charge. Since our money supply is limited, it was a blessing for him to let us stay in his home while we were there in Raleigh.



Our arrival at the Historic Oak View Park gave us all a chill of excitement in hopes that we would conquer today's events. After unloading the car and registering our team in the competition, We then toured the park and were allowed to view the other teams' electric vehicles. We found out pretty quick that our car was one of the better built automobiles out of all of the schools who entered in the competition.



After weighing the car, we headed up the hill for a brief inspection of today's entrees. With no problems, we were allowed to continue in the day's events. We then decided to divide up into our separate groups and practice for the upcoming events.



Representing McMichael in troubleshooting was Zac Plummer and Brandon Smith, in oral presentation was Johnny Roupe and Dale Yates, Matt Miller and Nick Melms were going to be our photographers, and I was going to take part in driving the car in the range competition.



In the beginning, Zac and Brandon dominated the troubleshooting board. For first year students, we brought home the high honor of 3rd place in troubleshooting. This was exceptionally good due to their crash course on how the car was wired.



Jonathan and Dale presented to a panel of 5 judges in the first round and were chosen along with 3 other teams to do a second presentation. Because of their suave style and slick tongues, They came out of the oral presentation competition with 2nd place.



Later in the day, the tension rose as we were rounded up and staged to go out on the street and complete the range competition. Amazingly enough, our EV conquered 20 miles of pavement through residential areas, traffic lights, and main roads! Not in comparison to many of the other EVs, but it was a victory in our hearts. We are all exceptionally proud of our placement in the SMARTT Challenge. Hopefully next year the guys will place higher in the competition than we have.

Bringing EV1 to a close...

Our morning began with the usual rundown of our agenda. Right after discussing our plans, Mike and I dove into running wire and making connections. We managed to hook up wiring to activate a back up alarm and lights for when we put the car in reverse. Instead of putting them on a switch, we used the stock switch that is built into the transmission. This means that when you place the car in reverse, the lights and alarm automatically come on. Moving on to the next objective, we wired in our horn. Having complications with the switch in the middle of the steering wheel, we decided to wire the horn up to the cruise control switch. It worked out nicely and actually made it easier to reach in case of an emergency. After finishing up the horn, Mike and I finished the quick disconnect cable reaching inside the car. Using a butt-connector, we crimped the cable in a loop through a hole in the handle. By pulling a handle inside of the car, we are now able to disconnect the high voltage circuit from inside of the car.
This afternoon Mr. Butler was able to run to Madison DMV and pick up our new license tag. Tomorrow we hope to take our first legal drive up the road and test the car’s range.