Reverse trike electric E-kart

[Standard issue]

This is my first welding/go kart project that I've been planning for about the past three years. I came across a pair of razor e300 electric scooters and figured I'd be able to use their combined parts to make something suitable for my (then) 1-year-old (now 4). I used the motor controllers in his power wheels quad and Lightning McQueen bub didn't use anything else. I came across free plans from spider karts for a small kart called the "itsy bitsy" It’s designed to be a one-wheel-drive gas motor kart but I'm only using the front half of the plans. The electric scooters have 10" pneumatic wheels, the rear with a sprocket on one side and brake drum on the other. I lopped the dropouts off the scooter and will be using it as the rear end of the kart. I got the front half done but I have to calculate how long to make the back end to retain stability. The kart is only 12" wide at the rails and 19” at the axle ends without spindle brackets. Thin 1/8 thick ¾ steel tubes seem light and strong enough for a light duty, low-speed kart plus it’ll keep the overall weight down. The front track will be close to 3’ wide with the wheels on. 2x 12v 7ah batteries fit perfectly behind the seat, which will be sourced from a power wheels truck. The electronics will fit nicely in the hollow seat. I’m still thinking about what to do with steering.
Any tips or advise would be appreciated. I’ll be uploading some more pics in a few hrs but this is the gist.

 

[dcastillo]

best of luck, I was thinking of doing something similar... only I was going to find a used cart frame that already had steering and just chop the back off and put a single wheel from an electric pocket bike on it ....
sadly time is not on my side at the moment

-Danny

 

[landuse]

Welcome to the forum! you have had a good start with the kart. I look forward to seeing it done!

 

[Standard issue]

More progress on the E-Trike. I'm using a different scooter for the drive train as the Razor wasnt working out due to too much weight and speed. I got a pair of x-treme x250 scooters for $40 and chopped one in half. These scoots have super light 8" plastic wheels with pneumatic tires perfectly suited for the project. All I need to get it running is a steering wheel and spindles. The brake and electronics are all carryover groom the scoot.

 

[Standard issue]

update: steering spindles fabbed and mower wheels installed. I doubt I'll use these but I was bound to 1/2 bore and my other wheels with larger bores are too big.

 

[Hybridyne]

Will the motor be kick start or electric start? Doh

 

[Standard issue]

You can knock electric karts but you can't argue with their upsides.
They've got full tourqe from zero rpm
Theyre quiet and less likely to draw negative attention while driving on the road.
They're clean
Theyre cheap and easy to work on and modify

 

[dcastillo]

I agree with everything you said, except the cheap part

I love my two electric Karts
Cant wait till I can afford a 3KW motor for my big one....

 

[Hybridyne]

I admit I know nothing about Electric karts. And I am being tasked to build one next week. I will be reading through the electric threads in the next day or two.
Just out of curiosity what 3KW motor are you looking at?
I am kind of looking at a Manta2 on E-Bay

 

[dcastillo]

No model in particular, i currently have a 2KW golf cart motor and just want something bigger.

 

[Standard issue]

Some more progress on the e-trike. It's a glorified rolling chassis but I connected one of the 12V batteries to the motor and let the kid tool around a bit at about 7mph. I'm going to add a bumper, a roll bar, and side rails to finish up the chassis then add pedals and electronics.

 

[drm]

That's cool. Where did you score the seats?

 

[Standard issue]

The seat actually came off a feber battery powered 2 seater electric ride-on. I notched one to fit the frame but later realized I didnt have to. So im using the other one. Theres an empty space behind the seat thats going to house the electronics and cable operated twist throttle. Once I put a cover on the back half, the whole system will be pretty water resistant.

I'll probably use the other seat to make a yard-friendly version of the kart with suspension and bigger tires. Keep ink weight down was a big priority since it can only pull 30 amps. As it sits, with batteries, it weighs about 50lbs.

 

[drm]

Neat. Thanks!

 

[Standard issue]

Front bumper, foot support

 

[Standard issue]

The kart is now fully operational.....after finally using my insomnia productively to work on it last night. I've got a Pulse width modulator with a potentiometer to govern speed. The PWM has a soft start feature that only works when it goes from off to on. I cleverly used a relay powered by one of the batteries routed like this: 12V -> throttle switch (single speed), throttle switch to brake pedal which contains a micro switch that remains pressed until he steps on the brakes (band) at which point the circuit to the relay gets broken and the PWM stops getting power. It would probably take 10 seconds before he pressed both the throttle and brake and fried the controller so I took the safe way out. With this set-up he can keep his foot on the throttle, brake, release brake, and be on his way again without interruption. No reverse but it would be very easy to add a DPDT switch to switch polarity to the motors. Race cars don't go backwards anyway.....also he can just put his feet down and scoot backward...... Here are some pics. Note: still needs paint. I just want to let him play before winter.

 

[landuse]

The kart is now fully operational.....after finally using my insomnia productively to work on it last night. I've got a Pulse width modulator with a potentiometer to govern speed. The PWM has a soft start feature that only works when it goes from off to on. I cleverly used a relay powered by one of the batteries routed like this: 12V -> throttle switch (single speed), throttle switch to brake pedal which contains a micro switch that remains pressed until he steps on the brakes (band) at which point the circuit to the relay gets broken and the PWM stops getting power. It would probably take 10 seconds before he pressed both the throttle and brake and fried the controller so I took the safe way out. With this set-up he can keep his foot on the throttle, brake, release brake, and be on his way again without interruption. No reverse but it would be very easy to add a DPDT switch to switch polarity to the motors. Race cars don't go backwards anyway.....also he can just put his feet down and scoot backward...... Here are some pics. Note: still needs paint. I just want to let him play before winter.

Great. How bout those pics as well as a vid

 

[Standard issue]

Some night shots after the maiden voyage. I'll take a vid tonight.

 

[landuse]

Your trike looks bada$$

 

[Standard issue]

Thanks! I only wish I could ride it. It's for my four year old boy. I was into modifying power wheels for a while but they're so limited in performamce and strength that I figured I'd just build my own. It spanks the razor go kart and the neighbor kids love the tadpole configuration. I'm trying to figure out a wah to put a 10" in the rear and pneumatic 8s on the front.