Xebra PK Has Arived

[Roy Von Rogers]

After some delays due to the transport guy getting the flu, it was finaly delivered at 9 in the night, not without some exitement. The transport guy had a nice trailer, but the ramps...well what can I say..were pittyfull. In the process of getting it off, the ramps slid off the trailer and the front tire slid between the ramps and came down on one of the ramps that stayed up. MY heart almost sank when I saw the front skirt hanging in midair on one of the ramps. Anyhow luckily it only did small damage to the front bottom fender skirt, which can be straighten and a bit of paint applied were it scraped.

I put it on the charger overnight and did some preliminary checking the next morning to make sure there was no other damage. Sofar I have only driven it around the block a few times to get the feel of it, and of course tried every switch, radio and heater...lol.

Have a few complaints which some I was aware of, the ride is stiff as hell, I can see why there is a mod for that, I just dont know what happend to Bob's site, it says he's moving to Florida, but site still not up.

Also Zap should have moved the ignition switch to the dash instead of the steering collum, and located the steering wheel a bit closer to the dash, making entry a bit easier, as it is, its a bit tight getting in.

Also I'm going to put a door switch in, when its dark finding the ignition is a chore, and the interior light doesnt come on til the ignition is on. Putting a door switch at the drivers side connected to the interior light will help.

Also there are three switches at the heater control, but the one on the right doesnt seem to do anything, maybe puppyjump knows what thats for ..lol

Thats all I have at the moment, will do more as my experience progresses.

Roy

 

[liveforphysics]

Pics!

Let's see some battery and motor shots

 

[317537]

I was clueless as to what it even was until I got midway through the post. I started getting a clue when the word fender was dropped.

Hehehe awesome looking thing. Its almost a trike.

 

[Puppyjump]

That 3rd switch is not used for anything. It's a spare. I hooked mine up to a box that dumps tacks on the road.
As for the stiff ride, make sure the tires are inflated properly. Mine were inflated by the dealer to 100 PSI, rock hard. Set the pressure to 50 PSI and the ride will be harsh, but a little smoother.
Enjoy.... and you will want to do an 84 volt upgrade someday.
http://www.youtube.com/user/Puppyjump#p/u/6/xthOeDv7URg

Enjoy!!! I still like my ZAP, and, so far in the year I've owned my ZAP, I've screwed Chevron out of 5000 miles worth of gas

 

[Roy Von Rogers]

That 3rd switch is not used for anything. It's a spare. I hooked mine up to a box that dumps tacks on the road.
As for the stiff ride, make sure the tires are inflated properly. Mine were inflated by the dealer to 100 PSI, rock hard. Set the pressure to 50 PSI and the ride will be harsh, but a little smoother.
Enjoy.... and you will want to do an 84 volt upgrade someday.
http://www.youtube.com/user/Puppyjump#p/u/6/xthOeDv7URg

Enjoy!!! I still like my ZAP, and, so far in the year I've owned my ZAP, I've screwed Chevron out of 5000 miles worth of gas

Thats funny, just remember those tacks may be still there when you come back..lol

I talked to Zap, and was told I need to take the preload off the shock, which I had already figured. He told me that most where done before shipped to dealers, but admitted that some slipped trough.

And yes I already have my local battery guy getting me a battery, he's going to try to get a Discover EV 31A-A, if not hes going to get me a Dekka to match as close as what i have now, the Discover. Already have the charger for the 7th battery.

Let me ask you puppyjump, is there any reason you took out all the batteries to make the rack for the extra battery. It seems I could take out that lone battery, move that charger vertical, and have my welder guy just weld a new rack in.

Havent yet drove it too far, I drive it from my office to the house a block away, and drove it to Autozone a couple of times to buy some better mirrors, cant stand those cheap plastic ones that it came with.


Roy

 

[Puppyjump]

That 3rd switch is not used for anything. It's a spare. I hooked mine up to a box that dumps tacks on the road.

Thats funny, just remember those tacks may be still there when you come back..lol

Roy

D'oh !!!

Anyway I took all the batteries out to make more room to work. I suppose they could have been left in-place, but since I have an engine hoist, it was a simple mater to remove all of them. Plus, when grinding and welding, massive amounts of sparks go everywhere....I did not want to melt open one of the batteries in close proximity to the work

Yes, you should buy an AGM to closely match what you've got, but when it's time to replace the whole pack, go with floodies like I did as they can tolerate abuse by simply boiling water. Sealed batteries can form bubbles that ruin them. Note floodies vent gasses that can irritate your lungs, but this is not a problem in the PK truck where the batteries are well ventilated away from the cab, but it could be a problem in a sedan where the batteries are basically inside with you.
Also note that there is a far simpler method to doing the 84V upgrade whereby you cut away the spare tire bracket and drop in the 7th battery there. I did it my way simply cuz I'm a purist and wanted battery pack symmetry, as well as retaining the spare tire in place.