Product Description

Save money on gas and turn your car into an electric and efficient machine

What really happened to the electric car? This completely revised and updated edition of the “bible of electric car books” gives you the component-by-component coverage you need to convert your gas-guzzler to a clean-running electric powered vehicle. The book begins with a history of electric vehicles and the latest international advances in EV technology, and goes on to describe every component—from motor to chassis—showing how to put them all together to create a working vehicle.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #86584 in Books
• Published on: 2008-11-01
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Paperback
• 327 pages

About the Author
Seth Leitman, (Briarcliff Manor, NY) is currently President and Managing Member of the ETS Energy Store, LCC, which provides energy efficiency, electric transportation and organic, natural, and sustainable products for business and home use (from energ-efficient bulbs to electric vehicle conversion referrals). Previously, he worked for the New York State Power Authority and the New York State Energy Research and Development Authority, where he helped develop, market, and manage electric and hybrid vehicle programs serving New York State and the New York metropolitan area. Seth is the consulting editor for a series of upcoming titles called the “Green Guru Guides,” which focus on implementing environmentally friendly technologies and making them work for you.

Bob Brant was the forward-thinking author of the now classic first edition of Build Your Own Electric Vehicle

Customer Reviews

Useful (but biased) information
'Build Your Own Electric Vehicle' is an easy to read book, with a lot of good information on everything from the history of electric vehicles to estimating performance of your own EV. Where I was disappointed was with the, at times, heavy biases in Mr. Brant's writing. At times, his 'save the world by driving an EV' rants almost convinced me to return the book. Mr. Brant brings up many tradeoffs with EVs - buy/convert/build from scratch, 6-volt/12-volt batteries, truck/car/van, etc. In each case, he compares the pros and cons and proceeds to say 'The best choice is ...' If there are tradeoffs involved, there probably isn't a 'best choice'. Instead, a more appropriate summary might be 'If range is your primary concern, X is better. If acceleration is what you want, then go with Y.' Perhaps I would have a higher opinion of the book if I hadn't read it from start to end. If you are looking for specific information (How can I estimate the range/current draw for my EV?), this is a good book. If you want a general overview of EVs, I would look somewhere else.

A comprehensive guide to the components and systems of EVs
This 310 page book is more than its title implies. It is an excellent source of information, even if one is just interested in learning more about the subject of electric vehicles. Mr Brant's credentials include a degree in engineering, and having worked on the Lunar Rover. He begins his book by exploring the appropriateness of the electric vehicle from an environmental standpoint. He then quickly reviews the history of the EV, from the mid 1800's to the present. He does a good job of surveying the current (as of late 1993) crop of electic vehicle producers, as well as the plans of the major auto makers for electrics. Brant devots a chapter to the options available to the person who wants to own an electric vehicle today: Buy a ready to run car from a manufacturer or converter, have one built or converted for you, or do the conversion yourself. One option that he seems to largely discount is the option of buying a used EV. Although such vehicles can be somewhat hard to find, especially away from large cities on the coasts, they can put a person into an EV for much less money and work than any other alternative. As you might expect from the book's title Brant favors the self-conversion option. He compares the various types of motor vehicles as conversion options; passenger cars, vans, and small pickup trucks. His conclusion, that a small pickup truck might be the easiest to convert, while giving the best range, seems a valid one, as long as a small pickup meets your needs, and suits your style. Chapter 5 is an excellent reference listing suppliers, EV clubs, and various converters and manufacturers. With Chapter 6 Brant begins the real meat of the book. He presents formulae and charts that allow you predict the performance of the vehicle you choose for conversion, and pick the size of motor and batteries that you will need. The next chapters are devoted to each of the unique systems of an EV in some detail: Electric motors, controllers, batteries, and chargers. To this reviewer, these chapters are the most valuable, and make this book useful to anyone with an interest in Electric Vehicles. The current state of the art is reviewed for each of these systems in some detail and with an eye toward practical maintanence and selection, and upcoming technology is also covered. Surprisingly, only one chapter of the book covers the actual conversion process. Although there is probably enough detail here for the experienced home mechanic or mechanically inclined individual, someone who has never pulled an engine out of a car, or done other major repairs on his own, will probably need more help; especially if his conversion is not of a small pickup truck. All-in-all there is a lot of good information in this book, and it is a vital addition to the library of any would-be electric vehicle converter, owner or pipe dreamer..

Buy it for info
This book is a good read if you are into all af the technical data on electric cars but not too good if you are looking to build one.

Information on how to make an electric car is limited to the basics of what you will need to do. There isn't a lot on how to actually do it though.

The information this book contains is useful as a introduction to self building an electric car as it does give all the details on what you need but due to lack of instructions I wouldn't reccommend it to someone with no technical knowledge.

If Haynes made a manual it probably be better but I suggest buying this so you know what you are getting into first so you can decide weather you can do it or if it would be too much trouble. Either way buy it. I have and I believe I can do it even though I have never built a car before.