Hi Everyone
Gearing up to start an electric kart project for the kids (and myself of course). Looking at it as a good way to practice my welding skills and challenge myself. I couldn't find too many two seater designs with suspension out on the net, so as of right now I've settled on the Spidercart GrandDaddy for a chassis. It will require some modifications to go electric of course. The plans look reasonably well detailed. As I'm starting to pull together a plan and estimated costs, wondering if the more experienced folks could weigh in on some drivetrain questions:
I'm looking at motors in the 5kw range. The two that I'm comparing are the:
5KW Golden Motor Brushless and the Motenergy ME1717
There is about a $200 difference between the two. The Motenergy looks like the better product and the IP 65 rating is a nice feature, but wondering if anyone has experience with the Golden Motor and their controllers.
Some questions:
- Is the cost to upgrade to the Motenergy worth it here?
- Any quality concerns with the GoldenMotor products?
- GM offers a liquid cooled version, under what circumstances would this be needed? Since I won't be running the kart full out for extended periods of time, I'm assuming air cooled will suffice. Geeking out on liquid cooling sounds fun though.
Now the battery:
- Not sure I want to drop the money on it, but what are the thoughts on this ReLion battery?
30ah, but shows a 100A continuous discharge rate and 200A peak . If I'm doing my math right (am I?), it would provide about 17 minutes of power at a continous 5kW. So in normal use, maybe 45 minutes to an hour of playing around? Does this seem right?
For the motor controller I'm considering the Golden Motor, Kelly, or Sevcon (although seems unnecessarily pricey compared to the other 2)
Let me know what you all think. Am I making some bad sizing choices here?
Gearing up to start an electric kart project for the kids (and myself of course). Looking at it as a good way to practice my welding skills and challenge myself. I couldn't find too many two seater designs with suspension out on the net, so as of right now I've settled on the Spidercart GrandDaddy for a chassis. It will require some modifications to go electric of course. The plans look reasonably well detailed. As I'm starting to pull together a plan and estimated costs, wondering if the more experienced folks could weigh in on some drivetrain questions:
I'm looking at motors in the 5kw range. The two that I'm comparing are the:
5KW Golden Motor Brushless and the Motenergy ME1717
There is about a $200 difference between the two. The Motenergy looks like the better product and the IP 65 rating is a nice feature, but wondering if anyone has experience with the Golden Motor and their controllers.
Some questions:
- Is the cost to upgrade to the Motenergy worth it here?
- Any quality concerns with the GoldenMotor products?
- GM offers a liquid cooled version, under what circumstances would this be needed? Since I won't be running the kart full out for extended periods of time, I'm assuming air cooled will suffice. Geeking out on liquid cooling sounds fun though.
Now the battery:
- Not sure I want to drop the money on it, but what are the thoughts on this ReLion battery?
48V Lithium Golf Cart Battery | RELiON
InSight Series is a 48V lithium battery designed specifically for golf cars, utility vehicles, and AGVs.
relionbattery.com
30ah, but shows a 100A continuous discharge rate and 200A peak . If I'm doing my math right (am I?), it would provide about 17 minutes of power at a continous 5kW. So in normal use, maybe 45 minutes to an hour of playing around? Does this seem right?
For the motor controller I'm considering the Golden Motor, Kelly, or Sevcon (although seems unnecessarily pricey compared to the other 2)
Let me know what you all think. Am I making some bad sizing choices here?